Injury Prevention

7 Risk Factors for Hamstring Injury


Have you ever pulled a hamstring? Do you know someone who has? Chances are you answered 'yes' to at least on of these. Several risk factors have been identified, some of which are obvious even to the novice, and some which require a little more skill. Below is a list of 7 factors:

  • Inadequate hamstring strength, particularly lack of eccentric muscle strength. 
  • Strength imbalance between hamstrings and quadriceps- legendary sprint coach Charles Francis said, "If an athlete is in a sport where leg strength and power are not required to be maximal, then testing hamstring/quadriceps strength at low to moderate speeds may have some relevance... We looked at five or six of our top athletes [sprinters] and discovered that the average ham/quad ratio was more in the order of  125-130:100."
  • Bilateral hamstring strength deficits.
  • Previous hamstring injury- previously injured players have more than twice as high a risk of sustaining a new hamstring injury.
  • Poor hamstring flexibility- in a study, it was been shown that soccer players are less flexible than a control group, and that soccer players do not stretch sufficiently.
  • Fatigue
  • Improper warm-up- How much time do you spend warming up before a game? Even a recreational one? FIFA's medical research team has found that warming up purposefully can be highly effective, reducing the incidence of injury by up to 50%. See the "11+" programme here.
There are other risk factors such as age and the fact that the game itself is a physical one. As there is nothing we can do for these two factors, I have put them on their own. But if you did answer yes to the above questions, you may be predisposed to injury by one of these factors. The good news is that each of the above factors can be addressed to make sure you don't suffer injury. There is also the added bonus of increased performance. So pay careful attention to your training, stay healthy and enjoy the beautiful game!

No comments:

Post a Comment

I'd love to hear your thoughts and questions! Just submit them below.