Are Your Hamstrings ACTUALLY Tight?

Stretching your hamstrings may be making your issue worse. Why?

Your pelvis plays a big role in the length of your hamstrings! Your hamstrings attach to your sitting bone (ischial tuberosity) under your bum. If your pelvis is tilted forward (anterior pelvic tilt) that means your hamstrings could be reflexively ‘tight’ because they are trying to pull the pelvis back into its normal position, hence giving the impression of tight hamstrings

Yet people will continue to stretch them - get minor relief only to be worse off than what they were because they are contributing to the issue. Although this anterior pelvic tilt makes for good selfies :) it's not going to help your lower back in the long run.

Two tests to determine if you hamstrings are actually tight:

1. Can you achieve 70 degrees of hip flexion when lying on your back?
   
2. Can you touch your toes when standing?
   

If you can do both of these chances are your hamstrings aren’t tight! It could be that your hip flexors, quadriceps or lower back erectors are over active and tight and your glutes and abdominal muscles are underactive and weak.

A neutral pelvis is a balanced pelvis.

First story of many to come :) stay tuned

Adios,

Angelo