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Hamstring Exercises: Training and Technique

Explore hamstring exercises with barbells, dumbbells, cables, machines and bodyweight. Find technique guidance and practical training variations.

Hamstring exercises target the muscles along the back of the thighs. This category includes hip-hinge movements, leg curls and bodyweight variations using equipment such as barbells, dumbbells, cables and machines.

About hamstring exercises

The hamstrings assist with hip extension and knee flexion. Exercises such as Romanian deadlifts, seated leg curls and glute-ham raises train these functions in different ways. Select a variation that matches your experience and equipment, since range of motion, resistance and setup vary between exercises.

Technique and training guidance

For hip-hinge exercises, keep your spine controlled and send your hips back before standing tall. During leg curls, keep the pad aligned with the lower leg and move smoothly rather than swinging. Use a load you can control, and stop if you feel sharp or unusual pain.

Bulgarian Split Squat

Bulgarian Split Squat

The Bulgarian Split Squat is a powerful exercise that targets the lower half of your body with a unique twist. By placing one leg on an elevated surface behind you, the focus shifts to the other leg, providing an intense workout for your muscles and balance. Execution Find a bench or stable elev

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat

Bulgarian Split Squat

The Bulgarian Split Squat is a powerful exercise that targets the lower half of your body, with a unique focus on stability and balance. This exercise is perfect for strengthening your legs and glutes while also engaging your core and stabilizing muscles. Execution Find an elevated surface, such

Glutes Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat

Bulgarian Split Squat

Introduction: The Bulgarian Split Squat is a powerful lower-body exercise that targets the legs and glutes. What makes this exercise unique is that it also improves your balance and coordination because you perform it with one leg. Execution: Here is how to perform a Bulgarian Split Squat correctly

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat Bodyweight Left

Bulgarian Split Squat Bodyweight Left

The Bulgarian Split Squat is a powerful exercise that focuses on strengthening your lower body, with an emphasis on one leg at a time. This variation, performed without additional weights, emphasizes your left leg and improves balance, coordination, and muscular endurance. Execution Find an elev

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat Bodyweight Right

Bulgarian Split Squat Bodyweight Right

The Bulgarian Split Squat is a powerful exercise that targets strengthening your lower body, with a focus on one leg at a time. This creates a unique challenge for your balance, coordination, and muscle strength. It is an excellent way to address asymmetries between your legs and strengthen your low

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat Left Bodyweight Side View

Bulgarian Split Squat Left Bodyweight Side View

The Bulgarian Split Squat is a powerful exercise that targets the lower-body muscles, with a focus on one leg at a time. This provides a unique workout that not only improves your strength and balance but also helps correct muscle imbalances. Execution Find an elevation, such as a bench or a stu

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat Machine

Bulgarian Split Squat Machine

The Bulgarian Split Squat Machine offers a unique way to train your lower body, focusing on balance, strength, and stability. This exercise is a variation of the traditional squat, but places greater emphasis on one leg at a time, resulting in a more intense workout for the leg muscles and core. Ex

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat Right Bodyweight Side View

Bulgarian Split Squat Right Bodyweight Side View

The Bulgarian Split Squat is a powerful exercise that focuses on strengthening your lower body, with an emphasis on the right side when performed from a side view. This exercise offers unique benefits, such as improved balance, coordination, and the isolation of muscle groups in each leg. Execution

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat with Cable Resistance Band

Bulgarian Split Squat with Cable Resistance Band

The Bulgarian Split Squat with Cable Resistance Band is a dynamic exercise that combines strength, balance, and flexibility. Adding the resistance band provides an extra challenge, improving not only lower-body strength but also core stability. Execution Find a stable surface, such as a bench or

Quads Strength Training
Bulgarian Split Squat with Dumbbells

Bulgarian Split Squat with Dumbbells

The Bulgarian Split Squat with dumbbells is a powerful exercise that targets strengthening your lower body, with a particular focus on the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. This variation adds extra resistance with dumbbells, making your muscles work harder and challenging your stability. Executi

Glutes Strength Training
Burpee

Burpee

The burpee is a variation of the squat that includes a push-up and a jump. When performing burpees, you train your legs, arms, chest, back, and abdominal muscles. It is almost a full-body workout, and the best part is that the only equipment you need to perform this exercise is something you always

Full-body training Cardio
Burpee

Burpee

The burpee is a dynamic, full-body exercise that improves your strength, endurance, and explosiveness. It combines a squat, push-up, and jump in one fluid movement, making it an efficient workout for both fat burning and muscle building. Execution Begin in a standing position with your feet shou

Full-body training Cardio
Burpee Squat

Burpee Squat

The Burpee Squat is a dynamic exercise that combines strength, endurance, and coordination. This exercise is unique because it contains both cardiovascular and muscle-strengthening elements, allowing you to get a full workout in a short time. Execution Begin in a standing position with your feet

Full-body training Strength Training
Burpee With Dumbbells

Burpee With Dumbbells

The Dumbbell Burpee is a dynamic exercise that combines strength, endurance, and explosiveness. Adding weights increases the challenge and intensifies the impact on your muscles. Execution Start with a dumbbell in each hand and stand upright with your feet shoulder-width apart. Bend your knees

Full-body training Strength Training
Butt Kick

Butt Kick

The Butt Kick is a dynamic cardio exercise that focuses on strengthening your lower body, with an emphasis on your hamstrings and glutes. This exercise is not only effective but also easy to perform, making it an excellent addition to any workout routine. Execution Begin in a standing position w

Quads Cardio
Butt Kick Arm Raises

Butt Kick Arm Raises

The Butt Kick Arm Raises exercise is a dynamic movement that challenges both your lower and upper body. This exercise combines the benefits of cardio with strength training, raising your heart rate while simultaneously working on muscle building and strengthening. Execution Begin in a standing p

Full-body training Cardio
Cable Kickbacks

Cable Kickbacks

Introduction: Cable Kickbacks are an effective exercise for strengthening your glutes and hamstrings. This exercise helps build strength and shape in the back of your legs, which is essential for better performance in sports and daily activities. Execution: Begin by setting the cable machine to a l

Glutes Strength Training
Cable Leg Extension

Cable Leg Extension

The leg extension is the only exercise in which the quadriceps muscles can be trained in isolation from muscles such as the hamstrings, glutes, abdominals, and lower back. This variation uses a cable instead of a specialized machine to provide the desired resistance. Cable Leg Extension Muscles invo

Quads Strength Training
Cable Leg Kickback

Cable Leg Kickback

Want to take your glutes to the next level? The Cable Leg Kickback is a fantastic exercise that targets the shaping and strengthening of your glutes. This exercise offers a unique way to isolate and train your gluteus maximus, the largest muscle in your buttocks, resulting in firmer and stronger glu

Glutes Strength Training
Cable Pull Through

Cable Pull Through

If you are looking for an effective exercise to strengthen your posterior chain, the Cable Pull Through is for you. This exercise offers a unique way to train your hamstrings, glutes, and lower back using a cable machine, helping you build stability and strength. Execution Set the cable machine

Glutes Strength Training
Cable Pull-Through

Cable Pull-Through

The pull-through is an exercise for the hamstrings, glutes, and the muscles in the lower back and along the spine. The hamstrings and glutes have to work hard to bring the upper body upright by aligning the thighs and back. The erector spinae, which runs along the spine, helps straighten the back. O

Glutes Strength Training
Cable Pull-Throughs

Cable Pull-Throughs

Intro: Cable Pull-Throughs are a fantastic exercise for strengthening the posterior chain, particularly the glutes and hamstrings. This exercise also helps improve hip flexibility and stability. Execution: 1. Set the cable machine to the lowest position and attach a rope handle. 2. Stand with your

Glutes Strength Training
Cable Standing Hip Extension

Cable Standing Hip Extension

The cable standing hip extension is an exercise for the glutes, lower back, and hamstrings. The name indicates that it involves extension of the leg. Normally, this means bringing a forward-positioned thigh (flexion) back into line with the torso (extension). In this exercise, that occurs through a

Glutes Strength Training
Cable-Assisted Inverse Leg Curl

Cable-Assisted Inverse Leg Curl

The Cable-Assisted Inverse Leg Curl is a dynamic exercise that targets the hamstrings using a cable machine. This exercise offers a unique way to improve leg strength and stability while also working on core stability. Instructions Begin by setting the cable machine to a low position and attachi

Hamstrings Strength Training