Hamstrings: what they do, and what trains them

How each exercise is done

The same descriptions the app shows on each exercise’s screen.

• Barbell Clean High Pull+

  The pull of a clean taken as high as it goes, with no catch. Set up as for a clean, the bar over your midfoot and your grip just outside your legs. Pull the bar past your knees, extend your hips, knees and ankles hard and shrug, let your elbows carry the bar up close to your body to about chest height, then lower it under control.

• Barbell Romanian Deadlift+

  A hinge in which a barbell travels down the front of the legs and back up while the knees stay only slightly bent. Stand holding the bar at your thighs, push your hips back and let the bar slide down close to your legs until you feel a stretch in the backs of your thighs or your back can no longer stay neutral, then drive your hips forward to stand up.

• Good Morning+

  A hip hinge with a barbell across the upper back. Set the bar on your upper back as for a squat, feet about hip-width apart and knees slightly bent. Push your hips back and lean your torso forward until it is close to parallel with the floor or your back can no longer stay neutral, then drive your hips forward to stand up.

• Stiff-Leg Deadlift+

  A deadlift with the knees kept almost straight, so the hips do the moving. Stand holding the bar at your thighs, knees just unlocked. Hinge at the hips to lower the bar close to your legs as far as your back stays neutral, then drive your hips forward to stand up. The knees bend even less than in the Romanian deadlift, and the bar may go all the way to the floor.

• Barbell Clean+

  Lifting a barbell from the floor to the front of your shoulders in one movement. Set up as for a deadlift with a grip just outside your legs. Lift the bar close to your body, and once it passes your knees extend your hips and knees hard, shrug and pull yourself under it, turning your elbows forward to catch it on your shoulders in a squat. Stand up, then lower the bar.

• Barbell Clean and Press+

  Bringing a barbell from the floor to your shoulders, then pressing it overhead. Clean the bar to the front of your shoulders, extending your hips and pulling yourself under it, and stand up tall. Brace, press the bar overhead until your arms are straight and it sits over the middle of your feet, lower it to your shoulders, and return it to the floor before the next rep.

• Barbell Hang Clean+

  A clean that starts from a standing hang rather than from the floor. Stand holding the bar at your thighs, push your hips back to lower it to just above your knees with a neutral back, then extend your hips sharply, shrug and pull yourself under the bar, turning your elbows forward to catch it on your shoulders in a partial squat. Stand up tall, then return the bar to your thighs.

• Barbell Snatch+

  Lifting a barbell from the floor to straight arms overhead in one movement, with a wide grip. Set up as for a deadlift with your hands far apart. Lift the bar close to your body, and once it passes your knees extend your hips and knees hard and pull yourself under it, catching it on straight arms overhead in a squat. Stand up with the bar overhead, then lower it.

• Barbell Sumo Deadlift+

  A deadlift from a wide stance, with the hands inside the knees. Stand with your feet well wider than your shoulders, toes turned out and the bar over the middle of your feet. Squat down to grip the bar with your arms straight inside your knees, chest up and back neutral. Push the floor away, pressing your knees out, and stand up tall with the bar close to your body, then lower it the same way.

• Deadlift+

  Lifting a barbell from the floor to standing by straightening your hips and knees. Stand with the bar over the middle of your feet, feet about hip-width apart, then bend down and grip it just outside your legs. With your back neutral and the bar close to your shins, push the floor away and stand up tall, then lower the bar along the same path, hips back first.

• Deficit Deadlift+

  A deadlift standing on a low platform, so the bar starts further below you and each rep is longer. Stand on a weight plate or a low platform with the bar over the middle of your feet, bend down and grip it just outside your legs. With your back neutral and the bar close to your shins, push the platform away and stand up tall, then lower the bar along the same path.

• Kettlebell Sumo Deadlift+

  A deadlift from a wide stance with a kettlebell between your feet. Stand with your feet wider than your shoulders, toes turned out and the bell under your hips. Push your hips back and bend your knees to grip the handle with both hands, back neutral and chest up, then push the floor away to stand up tall, and lower the bell the same way.

• Kettlebell Swing+

  Swinging a kettlebell from between the legs up to chest height by driving the hips forward. Stand with your feet a little wider than your hips and the kettlebell on the floor just in front. Hinge, grip it with both hands and hike it back between your legs, then drive your hips forward to swing it up with straight arms. Let it fall back between your legs and go straight into the next swing. The movement comes from the hips, not the arms.

• Kettlebell Snatch+

  Swinging a kettlebell from between your legs to overhead in one movement. Hike the bell back between your legs, drive your hips forward and pull it up close to your body, then punch your hand through as it rises so the bell turns over onto the back of your forearm and your arm locks straight overhead. Lower it back down in a controlled swing. Finish one side, then switch.

• Leg Curl+

  Bending the knees against a padded bar on a leg curl machine, lying or seated depending on the machine. Set the pad so it rests on the back of your lower legs just above the heels, with your knees in line with the machine's pivot. Curl the pad as far as it goes, keeping your hips still, then return it under control.

• Lying Leg Curl+

  A machine exercise lying face down that bends the knees against a padded bar. Lie on the bench with your knees just past its edge and the pad resting on the back of your lower legs, above the heels. Curl the pad towards your buttocks as far as you can, keeping your hips down on the bench, then lower it under control.

• Seated Leg Curl+

  A seated machine curl that bends the knees against a pad under the heels. Sit with your back against the pad, the lower pad behind your ankles and the thigh pad locked down just above your knees. Pull the lower pad down and back as far as it goes, then let it return under control until your legs are straight.

• Negative Nordic Curl+

  Only the lowering half of a Nordic curl: leaning forward from kneeling as slowly as you can. Kneel on a pad with your ankles held down by a partner or a fixed bar, body straight from knees to head. Lean forward slowly, resisting all the way with the backs of your thighs, catch yourself with your hands when you can no longer hold it, then push back up to kneeling for the next rep.

• Nordic Hamstring Curl+

  Lowering your body forward from kneeling and pulling it back up with the backs of your thighs. Kneel on a pad with your ankles held down, body straight from knees to head and hips straight. Lean forward slowly as far as you can control, then pull yourself back up to kneeling without bending at the hips. Push off the floor with your hands at the bottom if you need help.

• Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift+

  A hinge with a dumbbell in each hand, lowered down the front of the legs with the knees only slightly bent. Stand holding the dumbbells in front of your thighs, push your hips back and lower the dumbbells close to your legs until you feel a stretch in the backs of your thighs or your back can no longer stay neutral, then drive your hips forward to stand up.

• Single-Leg Romanian Deadlift+

  A Romanian deadlift on one leg, with the free leg reaching back as the torso tips forward. Stand on one leg with the knee slightly bent, holding a dumbbell in the opposite hand. Hinge at the hip so your torso leans forward and your free leg rises behind you in line with it, hips square to the floor, until you feel a stretch in the back of the standing thigh, then return to standing. Hold a support if balance is hard. Finish one side, then switch.

• Cable Pull-Through+

  A hip hinge pulling a rope from a low cable through your legs. Stand facing away from the machine, feet wider than your hips, holding the rope between your legs. Push your hips back and let the rope draw your hands back through your legs, then drive your hips forward to stand up tall, arms straight throughout.

• Banded Nordic Curl+

  A Nordic curl with a resistance band taking part of your weight. Kneel on a pad with your ankles held down, and loop a band from a high anchor behind you around your chest. Keeping your body straight from knees to head, lean forward as slowly as you can while the band holds you back, then pull yourself back up with your hamstrings, pushing off the floor with your hands if needed.

• Swiss Ball Hamstring Curl+

  Rolling a Swiss ball towards you with your heels while your hips stay up. Lie on your back with your heels on the ball and your arms out at your sides, then lift your hips so your body is straight from shoulders to heels. Bend your knees to roll the ball towards your buttocks, keeping your hips high, then straighten your legs slowly to roll it back out.