Semitendinosus muscle exercise

Introduction

• Semitendinosus muscle exercise includes different types of exercises such as stretching exercises, strengthening exercises,s, and Neuromuscular Inhibition Techniques. strengthening exercise helps to improve Joint flexibility, Increased muscle mass, Stronger bones, Weight control, and Balance. stretching exercise Improves your performance in physical activities, Decreases your risk of injuries, Helps your joints move through their full range of motion, and Increases muscle blood flow. Enable your muscles to work most effectively, Improve your ability to do daily activities.
• The semitendinosus muscles are half tendinous. It lies medial to the biceps femoris and shares the same origin as its long head. Semitendinosus lies superficial to semimembranosus muscles and forms its tendon approximately two-thirds of the way down the thigh. This tendon inserts to the medial surface of the tibia as part of the ‘pes anserinus’, which is also made up of the tendons of the sartorius and gracilis muscles.
• The semitendinosus muscle exercise includes three types of exercise

1. Stretching exercise
2. Strengthening exercise
3. Neuromuscular Inhibition Techniques

Stretching exercise

Benefits of stretching exercise

• Increase muscle blood flow.
• Improve your performance in physical activities.
• Help your joints to move through the full range of motion.
• Decrease your risk of injuries.
• Enable your muscles to work most effectively.
• Improve your ability to do daily activities.

Stretching in the Standing position (Both Legs at Once)

• Stretch is done in the standing position and stretches both legs at once.
• Stand and cross your right foot in front of your left foot of yours.
• Slowly lower your head to your right knee by bending at the waist.
• Keep both knees straight.
• Hold this position for approx 15 to 30 seconds.
• Than relax.
• Repeat for the other side by crossing your left foot in front of your right foot.

Muscle Stretching with the towel

• Muscle Stretching with the towel is a simple stretch to do.
• Lie on the floor on your back.
• Loop a long bath towel around your foot and hold the ends of the towel in both hands.
• Slowly pull on the towel to lift your leg straight up. Be sure to keep your knee straight. Your other leg should remain in contact with the floor.
• Bring your leg up until you felt a stretch behind your thigh. You can feel a stretch in your calf area.
• Hold this position for approx 15 to 30 seconds, and then relax.
• You can repeat this exercise three to five times on each leg.

Wall stretching

• A Wall stretch is performed at the corner of a wall.
• Keeping one leg on the ground, place the other leg against a wall.
• Gently push the knee towards the wall so that the raised leg is as straight as tolerable.
• Hold the position starting for 10 seconds, and gradually work up to 30 seconds.
• Perform Wall stretch with each leg, one at a time, 4 to 5 times for one complete set. Aim to perform 2 sets daily.

Muscle Stretches While Sitting

• Stretching while in a seated position is less gentle than stretching while lying on the back. While using a sitting position, the degree of a stretch according to based on the pain level. An important part of this technique is to avoid the lower back rounding; instead, fold forward at the hip.
• Sit on the edge of a chair, and straighten one leg in front of the body with your heel on the ground.
• Straighten your spine by sitting tall and rolling the pelvis forward.
• Hold this stretch for approx 30 seconds.
• Repeat this exercise 3 times for each leg. Aim to perform this exercise twice daily.

Strengthening exercise

Benefits of strengthening exercise

• Joint flexibility: Strength training helps joints stay flexible and may decrease the symptoms of arthritis.
• Increased muscle mass: Muscle mass naturally decreased with age, but strength training can help reverse the trend.
• Stronger bones: Strength training increases bone density and reduced the risk of fractures.
• Weight control: As you gain muscle, your body begins to burn calories easily, making it easier to control your weight.
• Balance: Strengthening exercises can increase flexibility and balance, which reduces injuries and falls.

Hamstring Sets

• This strengthening exercise is the best to start initially, especially after an injury because it doesn’t require any knee movement. It is very easy to control how hard you work the hamstrings by changing how hard you push the heel downward.
• Lie flat on your back, with your knee slightly bent and your heel on the ground
• Press the back of your heel firmly downward. You should feel the muscles in the back of your thigh contracting. Hold for 5-10 seconds and then relax.

Prone hamstring curl

• Lie down on your stomach
• Bend your knee to pull your heel toward your buttock, keeping your thighs and hips on the ground.
• Stop when you can’t pull any further. Return to starting position.
• Do 12 to 15 repetitions

You can also use resistance in progression to improve the strength of the muscle. Resistance can be applied manually, Theraband or spring.

You can also do hamstring curl exercises in a standing position.
Lift your foot back behind you bringing it up towards your buttock as high as you can. Hold for 3 to 5 se

Dumbbell lunge

Hold a dumbbell in both hands. Allow the arms to hang at the sides with the palms facing each other and the feet parallel. Step forward with one leg while keeping your back straight. Bend the knee of the front leg to make a 90-degree angle. Once the front knee is bent, the back leg should be two to three inches from the ground. Return to the initial position by forcefully pushing up with the front leg. Switch legs and repeat the same movement. Continue the exercise by alternating legs until 10 to 15 repetitions have been completed. Longer strides forward place a greater emphasis on the semitendinosus muscle and the remaining hamstrings in the muscle group.

Isometric exercises

• These exercises work on the muscles without movement. it is important to do them at different amounts of knee bend.
• Lie on your stomach.
• A therapist provides resistance as you contract the hamstring muscles, hold for 3 or 4 seconds and then relax.
• Change the amount your knee is flexed to work the muscle at different lengths.
• Once you have worked the muscles through a different range of angles, repeat with your foot turned outwards. Then again with your foot turned inwards. This targets the inner and outer hamstring muscles.

Multiple-Angle Isometric Exercises

Patient position and procedure

• The patient’s position is Supine or long-sitting. Apply either manual or mechanical resistance to a static hamstring muscle contraction with the knee flexed to several positions in the Range of motion.
• Place the tibia in internal or external rotation prior to resisting knee flexion to emphasize the medial or lateral hamstring muscles.
• Teach the patient to apply self-resistance at multiple points in the Range of motion by placing the opposite foot behind the ankle of the leg to be resisted.

Neuromuscular Inhibition Techniques

Patient position and procedure
The patient’s position is Supine, with the hip and knee extended as much as possible. Resist knee flexion movement with an isometric hold using your hand proximal to the ankle; have the patient relax and then passively (or have the patient actively) extend the knee joint into the end of the range (hold–relax and hold–relax/agonist-contraction techniques, respectively).

Patient position and procedure
The patient’s position is Prone, with the hip and knee extended as much as possible. Place a small pad or folded towel under the femur proximal to the patella to protect the patella from compressive forces. Stabilize the pelvis to prevent hip flexion and then apply the hold–relax technique to increase the knee extension.

Semitendinosus muscle exercise at Home

Following list of exercises for semitendinosus muscle, we can do at home

• Stretch in the Standing position (Both Legs at Once)
• Muscle Stretching with the towel
• Wall stretching
• Muscle Stretches While Sitting
• Hamstring Sets
• Prone hamstring curl

Bodybuilding of the semitendinosus muscles

Bodybuilding of the semitendinosus muscles includes different exercises like Lying Leg Curl and seated leg curl.

Lying Leg Curl

Lie face down on the leg twist machine with the cushion resting simply under your calves. Get the side handles and keep your body level on the seat as you twist your advantages beyond what many would consider possible. Lower and repeat. More From Fitness.

Seated leg curl

The seated hamstring curl exercises you can do with a weight machine to work the muscles in the back of the thigh. As the name suggests, the seated hamstring curl focuses on the hamstring muscles here in the back of the thigh. strong hamstring muscles help to protect your ligaments in the knee joint.

What are the common mistakes to Avoid during semitendinosus muscle stretching exercise?

There is a certain mistake you shouldn’t done during stretching exercises:

• Bending your knees: If you want perfect semitendinosus muscle stretch while sitting, try to keep your legs extended. If your semitendinosus muscle is tight, so you need to bend your knees, simply do not stretch forwards as much. Remember that increasing semitendinosus muscle flexibility takes time.
• Hunching over the shoulders: Try to hinge at the hip level, rather than hunching over from the shoulders. Imagine reaching ‘up and over the legs and trying to keep your spine in a normal position. It is good to have a neutral spine and not move as far forwards as to hunch over just to touch your toes.
• Not flexing the toes of your working leg: The toes of your extended leg must be pointing upwards so that your leg stays straight.
• Not having your hips square: Keep your hips facing forwards and side by side with each other. This helps to maintain your pelvis correctly aligned and avoids unequal strain on the hips.
• Arching your lower back: Try to maintain your lower back as flat as possible to the floor and your pelvis neutral. This assures that you don’t strain your lower back and do a safe semitendinosus muscle stretch. You can even put a towel or blanket under your lower back for extra support.
• Wrong alignment: Make sure that your hips are parallel directly over your feet, rather than pushing your bum out behind you. This assures that you are feeling the stretch in your semitendinosus muscle.
• Over-stretching: There are advanced semitendinosus muscle stretches available, but be careful not to use the band too much that you cause injury. Don’t overstretch with a strap.
• Moving too quickly: During dynamic semitendinosus stretch, the motion should still be relatively slow and controlled so that you can feel the stretch in your semitendinosus muscle. The fast motion doesn’t give your muscle a benefit.
• Not engaging your core: Though this is a semitendinosus muscle stretch, it is still important to work your core to protect your lower back from strain.

What are the safety and precautions for semitendinosus muscle stretching exercises?

Here are a few tips to make this semitendinosus stretch safer and more effective:

• Don’t bounce. Bouncing triggers a mechanism called the stretch reflex. This can cause more muscle contraction, not less.
• Lift the sitting bones toward the roof. This lengthens the semitendinosus muscle.
• Assure your hips are directly over your feet. Your buttocks aren’t behind your feet. This error makes the stretch less effective.
• If the core muscles are weak, need to use a table or other surface to help you come back up to standing during the squat stretch.
• A rule of thumb for safety is only going as far as you can without feeling back pain or any insecurity.
• Don’t stretch while you’re in pain or try to force a stretch. Breathe normally while performing stretching exercises. Try to do semitendinosus muscle stretches into your routine for at least 2-to 3 days every week.

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