Can Hamstring Injuries Be Prevented With A Targeted Exercise Program?

According to the results of several studies researched on the PubMed database, yes they can! Eight studies met the criteria for this question, evaluating sport-specific hamstring strengthening and exercise in soccer, rugby, and Australian Rules football players. A study of soccer-specific balancing exercises found that there was a significant decrease in hamstring injuries across two seasons. Another study followed Australian Rules football players during two seasons where an intervention was incorporated and found a significant reduction in the incidence of match-play hamstring injuries. It was also found that soccer players who successfully corrected hamstring strength imbalances had a significantly reduced risk of injury compared to players that were untreated. Finally, strengthening, stretching, and Nordic hamstring exercises resulted in significantly lower rates of injury compared to participants that performed strengthening only. Therefore, it was concluded that hamstring strengthening exercises can reduce the incidences of some hamstring strain injuries.

Please contact us if you would like to find out more, or would like to make an appointment!