We recommend consulting a musculoskeletal physiotherapist to ensure exercises are best suited to your recovery. If you are carrying out an exercise regime without consulting a healthcare professional, you do so at your own risk. If you have any concerns whilst completing these exercises, please contact a healthcare professional.
Early rehabilitation is individualised depending on risk factors for future injury, how the initial injury occurred and which hamstring muscle was injured. All this information will guide rehabilitation selection (18).
Rehabilitation in the early stages will consist of the self-management strategies explained above. Lower load eccentric (muscle lengthens as it is put under tension) exercises should be started as soon as possible and a gradual introduction to low-intensity jogging is also recommended. Starting eccentric exercises early allows for muscle lengthening, addressing a potential risk factor for future injury (7,18). During the early phase of rehabilitation, it is ok to exercise with some pain, ideally less than 4 out of 10 on an individual’s self-perceived pain scale.
During the next stage of rehabilitation, exercises are progressed and more challenging. This might include single-leg eccentric exercises and the introduction of the Nordic hamstring exercise. This exercise is an invaluable exercise when rehabilitating and preventing hamstring strain injuries as it has been shown to reduce the incidents of injury by 51% (18). Building running acceleration, deceleration and speed should now be built into your programme if it is your intention to return to a higher level of function or sport.