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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 17, 2025

Muscle Imbalances: Testing and Training Functional Eccentric Hamstring Strength in Athletic Populations

Muscle Imbalances: Testing and Training Functional Eccentric Hamstring Strength in Athletic Populations

Published on: May 1, 2018

Hamstring muscle architecture and microstructure changes following Nordic hamstring exercise training and detraining.

Anoosha Pai S¹, Max H Andrews², Reed D Gurchiek³

¹Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.

Journal of Sport and Health Science

|June 27, 2025

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Nordic hamstring exercise (NHE) increases hamstring muscle volume and fiber length, with greater gains in the semitendinosus and biceps femoris short head. Sustained training is crucial for maintaining these protective adaptations.

Keywords:

Diffusion tensor imaging Exercise adaptation Hamstrings Nordic hamstring exercise

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Area of Science:

Sports Medicine
Exercise Physiology
Muscle Physiology

Background:

Nordic hamstring exercise (NHE) is known to reduce hamstring strains.
Muscle-specific adaptations of the four hamstring muscles to NHE are not well understood.
This study examined architectural and microstructural changes in the biceps femoris short head (BFsh), biceps femoris long head (BFlh), semitendinosus (ST), and semimembranosus (SM) following NHE.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the muscle-specific architectural and microstructural adaptations of the four hamstring muscles to NHE training.
To determine the effects of a 9-week NHE intervention on hamstring muscle volume, fiber tract length, and microstructural parameters.
To assess the reversibility of these adaptations after a 3-week detraining period.

Main Methods:

Eleven participants underwent 9 weeks of supervised NHE training followed by 3 weeks of detraining.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to measure architectural (volume, fiber tract length, fiber tract angle) and microstructural (diffusion parameters: AD, MD, RD, FA) properties of the hamstrings.
Measurements were taken at pre-training, post-training, and detraining phases.

Main Results:

NHE induced significant, non-uniform muscle hypertrophy (ST: 26%, BFsh: 22%, BFlh: 9%, SM: 6%) and increased fiber tract length across all hamstrings.
Significant increases in axial (AD), mean (MD), and radial (RD) diffusivities were observed, indicating microstructural changes.
Detraining led to a decrease in ST volume and a return of fiber tract lengths to baseline, while diffusion parameters remained elevated.

Conclusions:

NHE training significantly increases hamstring muscle volume and fiber tract length, with differential effects across muscles (ST and BFsh showing greatest hypertrophy).
Microstructural changes, indicated by increased RD, accompany hypertrophy.
Detraining results in partial loss of adaptations, highlighting the need for continued training to maintain protective benefits.