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See our FAQsYou can get access to Level 1 separately to start your healing journey, or get the Level 1 + Level 2 Bundle deal.
Purchase Level 1 Access Alone - $175Purchase Level 1 + Level 2 Bundle - $300To get access to the advanced Level 2 courses, you'll need to work through Level 1 first.
You can get access to Level 1 separately to start your healing journey, or get the Level 1 + Level 2 Bundle deal.
Purchase Level 1 Access Alone - $175Purchase Level 1 + Level 2 Bundle - $300
Watch this first then lie down and perform while listening to the audio.
Hamstrings Release
Position: Lie on your stomach on a firm surface. Place your head wherever it is comfortable. If your knees are sensitive, place a small soft item at the end of your thighbone, above your kneecap.
Movement: Very slowly and carefully bend your knee to lift your foot off the floor about a foot. Feel your hamstrings, down the back of your thigh, gently contracting. Slowly count to 12 and resist gravity as you release your foot back down to the floor. Once your foot reaches the floor, completely relax. Repeat 1-2 more times.
If one leg feels harder to do or was jerkier, do another repetition on the less coordinated side, this time lifting only an inch or 2, releasing super slowly.
Notes:
Keep your glutes relaxed.
Initiate the foot lift as you inhale to support your lower back.
I’m adding this floor exercise to make it easier for you to sense and use your hamstrings when you are in a much more challenging position: standing. This exercise will help you bridge the gap between a lying down “exercise” and a functional posture. It may look like a traditional bridge, but you aren’t lifting at all. Please be very subtle with this. If your hamstrings are still learning how to work intelligently, they may want to cramp. When in doubt, do LESS.
Lie on your back with knees bent, feet on the floor, knees and feet hip width distance apart. Move your feet away from your bottom. The further away you place them, the more intense this will be. Breathe into your belly then exhale and do a pelvic tilt. Once you can feel that your abs are engaged and your lower back is pressing into the floor, imagine lifting your bottom, but don’t. The goal is to lightly feel your hamstrings while you are in a pelvic tilt. Try to make the contraction a 2 or 3 on a 0-10 scale then release your tilt and the hamstrings contraction as slowly as possible. Rest. In preparation for your next repetition, note that the first tilt you did was created primarily by your abdominals. In real life, the tilt is produced by teamwork between your abs and your hamstrings. Attempt to feel both your abs and your hamstrings work when you repeat this exercise. Now, inhale and you exhale, tip your pelvic bowl backwards and try to sense that your tailbone and sitting bones are moving towards your heels. Feel your hamstrings work gently and equally side to side then release as carefully as possible. As you practice the standing activity presented in the Application section, you can return to this “Bridge” exercise as needed to reinforce this teamwork.
How many times in a day do you kick your heel up to your bottom? It's not a functional movement!
They don't bring your heels up to your bottom...they reach your sitting bones down towards your heels.
Find your hamstrings while brewing your coffee or waiting in line!
