Functional Anatomy of the Hamstring Muscle and Its Correlation with the Various Yogic Postures: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Yoga is believed to be a safe practice; nonetheless, as the number of yoga practitioners has grown, so has the incidence of yoga-related injuries. Overall, lower extremity injuries comprised 64% of total injuries; specifically, the hip, hamstring, knee, ankle, feet and toe. Although a few research studies have quantified the hamstring muscle activities in various yoga asanas, evidence correlating it to functional anatomy is scarce. Therefore, the objective of this narrative review is to examine the literature and analyse hamstrings activity and its relationship to yogic postures, as well as yoga-related injuries, to establish which poses provide the most risk of damage, and to suggest injury-prevention techniques. The following electronic databases were used to conduct the literature search: Cochrane Library, PubMed, Google Scholar, EMBASE, and Web of Science. hamstring muscle injuries OR yoga and rehabilitation OR intervention AND electromyography was among the search phrases utilized. Such information is important for yoga teachers, yoga therapists to help selecting yoga posture for hamstring muscle imbalance condition and avoiding posture to prevent hamstring muscle injury. KEY WORDS: Hamstring Muscle Activation and Injuries, Yoga Posture.