FITNESS CHALLENGE: Nordic curl, the exercise that strengthens thighs and activates metabolism
Some exercises go through phases in the fitness industry. First, they are considered useless and non-functional, then they become incredible panaceas, and finally they fall somewhere in between. It happened with the swings with kettlebells, spinning and perhaps it will happen with the Nordic curls, at the height of popularity for its muscular work and its
ability to fire metabolism.
It is an exercise on the rise after knowing a series of studies that have shown that they are
excellent for preventing hamstring hypertrophy, increase eccentric strength and greatly reduce the chances of sustaining a hamstring injury. This is partly because it lengthens the hamstring.
How to Do a Nordic Hamstring Curl
Most people think of the exercise as being done with a partner holding your ankles while you
you drop your torso to the ground from a kneeling position. However, it is not difficult to do it on your own. You will surely find something that can help you, both at home and in the gym.
Simply
hook your feet under the bottom of anything else that you can find that has an opening a few inches off the ground. You could even do it at home by putting your feet under the dresser and your knees on a pillow; just remember to always put something soft under your knees.
Sometimes it is done in
plantarflexion or dorsiflexion, without lowering the feet at all, but it is recommended that the toes point downward, not backwards. You also don’t want to bend your hips too much; you can lean forward a bit, but try to
keep hips fairly neutral.
Woman in sportswear/PEXELS
A great benefit of the Nordic curl is
improve eccentric strength, which means that you should not fall directly to the ground when kneeling. Many people think that the eccentric phase is insignificant and do not understand that it builds muscle. You should really focus on trying to get the most out of the downhill part.
Nordic curl benefits
The Nordic curl is an excellent exercise for
improve results in sprint races and
reduce injuries among athletes, so it can benefit anyone who runs fast. Also anyone who likes to sprint for fat loss and conditioning. Fire up your metabolism.
He
hamstring It’s one of the most injured muscles in sports, which is always something to note, although it’s worth remembering that having short or eccentrically weak hamstrings isn’t the only reason they get injured. The evidence shows that movement can definitely have an effect on injury rate.
For whom
The Nordic curl is a
“functional” exercise: Helps you run quickly and safely, which is quite a natural movement. It’s also great for hypertrophy if you’re interested in
develop your physique and it is good for people who just want their muscles to be strong.
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As a last resort,
not really a specific exercise for strength sports. In powerlifting, the hamstrings are used primarily in the deadlift, but they are used in hip extension, so if you’re going to train the hamstrings, it makes more sense to do it with hip extension exercises like push-ups. back, reverse hyperflexion, etc.
If you play ground sports, run, or just like the idea of getting bigger, toned hamstrings, the Nordic hamstring curl is a great
exercise that has a low risk of injury and is not too difficult to do without equipment. A variant to take into account if you already have a good physical level.
