Why do your hamstrings get stronger faster at first, then slower?
Biceps femoris long-head motor unit discharge rates and recruitment thresholds vary across 9 weeks of eccentric training
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
When you do Nordic hamstring exercises, your body first learns to use your muscles better, then later your muscles actually grow stronger.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 531 / 72
Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
When you do Nordic hamstring exercises, your body first learns to use your muscles better, then later your muscles actually grow stronger.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 531 / 72
Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Publication
Authors
Andrews MH, Martinez-Valdes E, Lichtwark GA, Pincheira PA
Related Content
Claims (6)
Increases in strength are mainly due to changes in how the nervous system activates muscles, while increases in muscle size are mainly due to the total amount of training performed within a repetition range of 4 to 30 reps.
After nine weeks of Nordic hamstring exercises, recreationally active men showed a 17% increase in knee flexor strength, with noticeable improvements starting at three weeks, indicating a gradual improvement in muscle force production.
Performing Nordic hamstring exercises for three weeks leads to a 6% increase in the rate at which nerve signals activate the biceps femoris muscle, but this increase stops after nine weeks, suggesting that initial strength improvements are driven by nervous system changes that become less influential over time.
Performing Nordic hamstring exercises over several weeks leads to a measurable increase in the amount of force needed to activate muscle motor units, with greater increases seen after longer training periods.
After nine weeks of Nordic hamstring exercises, the force required to stop muscle fibers from firing increases by 12%, but no change is seen after three weeks, suggesting that the nervous system's control of muscle activation adapts slowly over time.