I’ve noticed lately that my hamstrings are more stiff and pumped after my sprints than previously. Even over short distances such as 90 to 110m my hamstrings are very pumped after the sprint.
This could be 1 of 3 reasons;
My hamstring strength in the gym has deffinately increased lately.
Perhaps my technique has faltered, my hips might be lower and hams are over-compensating.(I cannot tell if my hips are lower.)
My blood circulation is not as good as it has been,( I’ve not done a good volume of general fitness/sprints this last year) hence the lactic acid pump is coming on sooner.
I hope it’s the result of the first point. I can not see that it might be lower hips becuase my sprinting feels lighter and more relaxed than ever before in my life.
Questions/spacific or general comments? Anybody else notice changes in hamstring feeling or response to sprinting and did you find out why?
I have heard that when your form is getting better (top speed sprinting after accel phase) you can feel it in your glutes/hams more after the run. If you are getting unusual soreness etc I would be careful. Videotape is your friend!
the hs and gluts play huge roles in sprinting.its up to you to figure out why such a thing is occuring.have you had this expereience in the past and if not why is it happening now? (check back in your training diary for new sessons etc)
personally my hs do not feel like this at all,maybe after a meet they can slighty but after practice i’m just tired.
your reasons
1)-strenght increase,by how much have the hs increased?
2)-mechanical issue,this would be my concern…as chris said,get the cc out and watch it.your hips could be dropping or you could be braking/landing in front of cog,how the lower back or gluts
I cannot video myself sprinting becuase I don’t have a cam corder or what ever, niether does my coach becuase, I don’t have a coach.
I have to guess this one. I’m just not sure how technique could just change for the worse. I’m actually feeling more relaxed in my sprints now, would that not suggest higher hip lift?
I’ve included a few hills in my training lately which is something I did not do before. The thing is , this might not actually be lower hips, maybe my hips are higher. Is it possible to get xtra ham pump fron higher c.o.g or is it usually associated with lower c.o.g ?
goose usually when the hips are low you cannot land under or near your cog mainly due to lack of room.when this happens the foot will land in front of you causing a braking action in your stride to occur leading to extra pressure being placed on the hs.you don’t want a pulling action but rather a pushing action
Please explain what you are thinking about when you sprint. How many times have you felt this hamstring pump? If it has only been at one or 2 practices, I wouldn’t even worry about it. What sort of times are you running? You said your hammy strength has increased in the gym lately. Are you working specifically on hamstrings more now than in the past? And, are you allowing more time for adaptation/recovery after your weight room workouts? Once your body gets used to the inceased hamstring load, the pump feeling should go away. (That is if you have increased your hammy load in the weight room).
First of all, thanks for your aproach…
According to the end of your post I take it, that it is desirable to feel less hamstring pump (I’m only doing short distances at presant) after a sprint.
I’m not thinking about much when I sprint other than at certain points the “lightness” and comparative “relaxation” in my sprinting now to times past. This is why I thought the ham pump was the result of something good rather than bad.
Yes, it has only been in recent practices (my last 3 sessions) though admitadly there was a long break between these sessions than the previous ones several months ago.
I have not timed myself for 6 months, becuase of a sprinting lay-off.
My hamstring strength has improved lately, I have been working on them a bit more, they’re as strong as they were 2 or 3 years ago. However, my quads are also as strong as they’ve been in a long time.
** My abs are as strong as ever… my hip flexors are STRONGER than they’ve ever been.
I am leaving enough time between my strength workouts and sprints.
I don’t do strength training the day before sprints and do strength
work after my sprints.
2 of my recant sprint sessions have included hills, including 160m hill sprint each session and a 100m hill sprint both sessions. suprisingly I did not feel a massive hammy pump from that session. However a slight change in techinque may have crossed over into my flat sprinting? But I thought it would give me more sprint power and improve accel plus develope ability for high hips. I wonder if this has effected my technique negatively.
The thing is I got my stiffest ham/biggest ham pump over a 100 meters on flat surface.
There is a good chance that you are insufficiantly activating the glutes and if this is the case they will not be providing adequate protection for the hammies. This is probably the biggest contributor to hamsting injuries in sprinters and can be caused by several factors.
Where is the soreness occuring?
Do you have tight hip flexors?
You shouldn’t need to be sprinting to determine either of these.
Dazed good point about hamstring activation. Too many people think the hamstring is the primary muscle group in sprinting (except for those who think it is the quad). The hamstrings can only play (should only) play a secondary role.
I was told by a weightlifting coach, please correct me, that the glutes are the most powerfully muscle in the body.
