“Never skip leg day”. Training your legs is difficult. It is important that you properly train the three main muscle groups in your legs: quadriceps, hamstrings and calves. To help you on your way, in this article we will discuss the best Hamstring cardio exercises you can do as a bodybuilder.
Your hamstrings are located on the back of your thighs and consist of three muscle groups: biceps femoris muscle, Semi membranous muscle, and Semi tendinosus muscle. Hamstrings are biarticular muscles, which mean that this muscle group runs through two different joints: the hip joint and the knee joint. Hamstrings provide the hip stretch and knee flexion. These muscles ensure that your knee can bend, and when it is bent, you can lift your leg back.
Hamstring exercises
There are many exercises that are not aimed directly at the hamstrings. However, it is also important to perform some isolation exercises in which you focus on the hamstrings, such as Hamstring hiit workout.
Seated leg curve
Leg curling is basically an exercise in which the thigh remains still and the leg is bent. This exercise can be performed in several ways and it is good to switch between different variants. The curvature of the seated leg is probably the most famous variant. With this variant, the emphasis is mainly on the top of the hamstrings, close to the buttocks. Most gyms have a machine on which you can perform this exercise; therefore, little can go wrong with performing this exercise. When you are going to perform the seated leg flexion, it is important to set up the machine correctly.
Lying leg curl
This is the horizontal version of the leg winding. With this variant, you train your buttocks and hamstrings. Some gyms have a special machine for winding the legs. Doesn’t your gym have that? Do not worry. You can also perform this exercise perfectly on a cable station or even with a dumbbell.
Standing leg curve
The last variant of the barbell thread is also the most difficult: the standing leg wave. This variant can also be performed on a specially designed machine, but few gyms have such a machine. You can also perform this exercise on the leg extension machine, which is available at most gyms, or at a cable station.
Rigid Leg Dead lift
Rigid leg lifts and Romanian lifts are often used interchangeably. In addition to the hamstrings, the Romanian dead lift mainly activates the gluteus muscles. With the rigid dead lift you target the lumbar region. The starting position is the same as the Romanian dead lift. This exercise is difficult and especially at the beginning you will not be able to sink as much. However, the more you do the exercise, the deeper you will be able to go without bending your knees.
Good Morning
With good mornings, your tendons, glutes and lower back are trained. The easiest way is to perform this exercise in the squat. The barbell rests on your shoulders and you can easily lift it off the cradle. This is much easier than when you have to place the barbell on the shoulders of the floor. The start of the good morning is similar to the squat.
Glute ham-ham
Buttock augmentation is a little-known exercise. For this exercise, you need a special machine that is not available in all gyms. If your gym has this machine, you are lucky! This is a very effective exercise for the hamstrings, because you stretch your hips and knees. Therefore, you use both hamstring functions.
With these exercises, you are completely prepared for the next leg day. If you regularly perform these hamstring exercises in combination with quadriceps and calf exercises, you will certainly not leave the gym on thin legs.
