The Weekly Reset: 5-Minute Hamstrings

This week, our new #5minreset series features your (soon to be un-stiff) hamstrings.

You can’t really blame your hammies for being angry. The combo of your workouts and the amount of time you spend sitting on them leaves this muscle group tight, dry, and stuck together. Luckily, just a few minutes of functional stretching a day will help keep them rubber band-like (rather than like guitar strings). The small action of “bending and stretching” aka adding a bit more bend to the knees, then straightening the legs a little, helps to draw more circulation into the muscles, so that you can effectively stretch (rather than strain) them…

Hammy Bend + Stretch

• Step your feet to hip’s width apart, keeping them parallel.

• Walk your hands down your legs, bending your knees as much as needed to rest your fingertips on the floor (if that feels tough, rest your hands on a block or even a coffee table).

• Try to keep your torso close to your thighs, bending your knees more if needed to make that happen.

• Bend and stretch your legs about 10 times.

• Eventually come to stillness and press down evenly through your feet to gently deepen the stretch, rather than trying to force your knees back more (never lock your knees).

• Drop your head.

• Hold for 10 deep breaths.

Happier hammies are just five minutes away. Check out our new 5-Minute Hamstring Reset video and use #5minreset to let us know how it goes!