I’ve starting rowing twice a week to bring up my back recently but because of that i cant do romanian deadlifts as my low back cant take it. I’ve also always felt extremely uncomfortable doing leg curls as it feels as if my hamstrings are about to rip in half. I would do glute ham raises but my gym doesnt have one.
Anyone know of a good hamstring exercise that doesnt tax the low back too much?
Don’t think that GHR’s WON’T make your hams feel like they’ll rip in half! I stopped doing them because they were tearing the backs of my knees apart (or so it felt like).
Do you have access to a seated leg curl machine? These take all the stress OFF the lower back.
[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
Don’t think that GHR’s WON’T make your hams feel like they’ll rip in half! I stopped doing them because they were tearing the backs of my knees apart (or so it felt like).
Do you have access to a seated leg curl machine? These take all the stress OFF the lower back.[/quote]
You misread my post. Leg curls make my hamstrings feel like they’re about to rip off, and my gym does not have a GHR
[quote]deadliftgoal500 wrote:
[quote]Iron Dwarf wrote:
Don’t think that GHR’s WON’T make your hams feel like they’ll rip in half! I stopped doing them because they were tearing the backs of my knees apart (or so it felt like).
Do you have access to a seated leg curl machine? These take all the stress OFF the lower back.[/quote]
You misread my post. Leg curls make my hamstrings feel like they’re about to rip off, and my gym does not have a GHR[/quote]
He didn’t misread your post. He said that GHRs will make your hams feel worse if you’re already struggling with leg curls.
Band leg curls and Pull-throughs (I guess lol, these don’t kill my low back)
[quote]deadliftgoal500 wrote:
gym does not have a GHR[/quote]
You can do GHR’s with one of those half balls if your gym has one. Put it under your knees and anchor your fet somewhere.
Or do Natural GHR’s. Knees on the floor and feet anchored on something, but this is 10x harder.
Or do Ham Killers: Ham Killers - YouTube
Anyway, Dwarf is right, GHR’s can be rough on your hams too, but try it out.
probably doing something wrong if some leg curls hurt… you try usin less weight?
Single leg deadlifts could be good, not really a mass builder though.
you ever try glute bridges? You can load the fuck out of those and they have always felt good on my back my back blows
have you tried long strided lunges? those rape my entire thigh.
x2 on JM “ham killers”. that thing is hell on the hamstrings, 4-5 sets of these and you be walking like a duck. great mass builder. do it after squats or deads.
If lower back hurts, you’re probably not pushing your butt back enough
Honestly it sounds like you are doing something wrong, possibly many things.
There is no reason you shouldn’t be able to do bent rows twice a week (unless you have an injury), and still do romanian deadlifts. Either your routine is set up poorly, or you are using bad form, or you are just being a wuss and need to suck it up for a couple weeks until your body adapts to it.
You aren’t going to snap in half just because your lower back is a little sore when you go to do your bent over rows. Your low back shouldn’t even be getting recruited that much anyway.
Uncomfortable doing leg curls? Like they’re going to rip in half? This just sounds like you are trying to use way too much weight, or your flexibility/form is awful.
[quote]deadliftgoal500 wrote:
I’ve starting rowing twice a week to bring up my back recently but because of that i cant do romanian deadlifts as my low back cant take it. I’ve also always felt extremely uncomfortable doing leg curls as it feels as if my hamstrings are about to rip in half. I would do glute ham raises but my gym doesnt have one.
Anyone know of a good hamstring exercise that doesnt tax the low back too much?[/quote]
In terms of prioritizing, I would say ditch the rows and keep the RDL.
You can always hit your back well with chins, pullups, chest-supported rows and ring work. None of these will tax the lower back and you get to keep RDL’s in your program which are a great exercise.
Just my 2 cents.
But if you really want to do rows and ditch the RDL. Then a great hamstring exercise you can even do at home if you have some equipment is Inverted Glute Hams (or suspended bridge leg curl):
BTW - I have no idea of the video is any good, I can’t watch it at work.
also: dat azz
Hyperextensions hit your hammies pretty hard.
Back Extensions w/ DB or BB on neck
Single-leg back extension
Kneeling hip extension
45 degree hypers with mini-band across neck
Slideboard leg curls (also single-leg variation)
http://www.T-Nation.com/free_online_article/exercises/exercise_of_the_week_the_glute_ham_raise
No need for a machine…
I would say to NOT do bent over rows 2x a week. Why not do a chest supported machine row on one of those days so you can still do RDL/SLDL’s. There are no substitutes for those movements, IMO.
How are you going to deadlift 500 without ever deadlifting?
Man… go to a physio… you have some imbalance issues that you can take care of first. You cant just slip into a weights program and get all better, your body is doing the wrong thing no matter how much you try to do “proper form” this isnt meant to make you feel bad, just its the best and most effective solution. Once you fix that up you’ll feel better then ever. Cheers man