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August 27, 2004
Hamstring Pain
One athlete describes her trials and tribulations with her troublesome hamstrings.
The hamstrings, the long muscles in the back of the thigh, extend the hip and bend the knee. If they can't hold their own against the quadriceps (the muscles at the front of the thigh) - meaning if the quadriceps/hamstring strength ratio isn't 60/40 - the hamstrings can be overpowered and injured.
"Muscle imbalance is one of the biggest risk factors, especially for women, who are quad dominant," said sports medicine doctor Kathy Weber, a team physician for the Chicago White Sox and the U.S. Women's soccer team. "It's one of the reasons we see more ACL injuries in women. We have less hamstring strength compared to men and have muscle imbalances from one side to the other."
Still, if the hamstrings flare, Nicola recommends relaxing them by propping both legs up against the wall and letting them stay perpendicular to the floor until the muscles quiet down. Massages can work wonders.
Posted by linda at August 27, 2004 11:11 PM
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