releasing knot in hamstring...

  1. I have a knot in my right biceps femoris 2. I believe the knot is creating tension in the ham. which is pulling on the ischial tuberosity. I think this is causing a few muscles in my lower right butt to spasm and thighten up.
    Its been this way for a few weeks and its tough to release. I don’t have access to a good massage therapist, so anyone have any ideas on how to release this knot? Its getting to be a real pain in the ass(pun intended).

Since no one else has responded, I’ll give it a shot. It might be that the tension in the hips is what’s causing the hamstrings to tighten up (rather than the other way around). Specifically, the gluteus medius and minimum on the upper, outer portion are probably tight (very common in runners) along with the tensor fascia latae just to the front of the iliac crest. Try lying down on a small rubber ball (about 5-6" in diameter) and gently work these areas and then alternate that with stretches. As the hips loosen, you should be able to release the hamstring more effectively.

flash, thanks for the response. i actually been working on it lately and it’s been doing ok. I hit the area(knot) with a foam roller and then work the hips where the tightness is. Then i hit all around the hips, quads and hams with the roller. Then, i’ll go back to the ham with a 4" PVC pipe and roll on that to hit a bit deeper, then move up to the hips. it’s been working decently and the tension in my butt and been easing up. It will act up every few days but it is much better. I would be much better off with a good therapist, but unfortunately there are none around me.

Don’t neglect the adductors and the abdominals. They interact with the hamstrings as well.

Fastest way is to get someone with some expereince to release it manually.
Rarely does much else work and certainly not near as fast as manual release.

ART would be perfect in this case