Exercises You Should Be Doing: Core Engaged Slideboard Leg Curl
As a a predominantly sports training facility it’s no secret that we place a premium on training the backside of the body at Cressey Sports Performance.
While the “mirror muscles” (chest, biceps, quads, abs) get most of the love, what separates the athletes who get cut from the Varsity team to those who earn scholarships and maybe even play professionally are the ones who, outside of having natural ability, understand that training the backside – hamstrings, glutes, erectors, lats, rhomboids, trapzipidus1, etc – is what allows them to run faster, jump higher, and be more explosive.
Photo Credit: Greatist
Not to mention increases your intelligence by 717% in addition to improving your chances of dating a Victoria Secret model by 312%. Trust me, it’s science.
Even if you’re someone who’s not remotely concerned with developing athleticism and all you care about is aesthetics and not being timid to take your cloths off with the lights on, training the non-mirror muscles can have a profound effect on how you look.
Whether we’re talking about helping to offset the deleterious effects of sitting on all day (posture) or just building a well-rounded physique, training the backside of the body is where it’s at.
To that end exercises like deadlifts, squats, RDLs, hip thrusts, glute-ham raises, pull-throughs, and KB swings get a lot of play at CSP.
Another exercise we like to use is the slideboard leg curl. As opposed to the traditional prone 0r seated (machine) leg curl, this variation trains both (main) functions of the hamstrings – knee flexion/hip extension – simultaneously.
One variation of the slideboard leg curl we’ve been playing with recently is the core engaged leg curl.
Core Engaged Slideboard Leg Curl
Who Did I Steal It From: fellow CSP coaches Greg Robins and Miguel Aragoncillo.
What Does It Do: I’ll admit it comes across as a bit gimmicky, but the band does serve a purpose. Bilateral arm (shoulder) extension forces trunk flexion, which is just another way of encouraging a little more posterior pelvic tilt.
By engaging the core, we can keep people from defaulting into too much lumbar extension during the exercise. Since we work with a lot of people who are stuck in extension, this is an exercise that fits very well with our population of athletes and clients.
You can perform this both bilaterally (two legs) or unilaterally (one-legged). As you can see (and hear) from the video, the one-legged variation is hard! I did shoot this video AFTER a training session, so cut me some slack….;o)
Both variations are superb and a great way to train the hamstrings and glutes.
Key Coaching Cues: I like to use a controlled eccentric and extend my legs to the point where my butt just baaaaarely touches the floor. Finish with the glutes at the top!
This is a somewhat self-limiting exercise, so if you’re unable to extend your legs out all the way that’s okay. You can use what ROM you do have and build from there. You also have to consider that the exercise may be too aggressive compared to your current ability level.
Shoot for sets of 8-10 reps if performing with two legs; 4-5 per leg if performing one at time.
Let me know what you think!
Comments for This Entry
FreakSammy
Not a day too soon with this one, TG. Just pulled a hamstring (pop!) deadlifting last Friday. This looks like a good one to use while rehabbing and afterward.November 13, 2014 at 12:04 pm |
TonyGentilcore
I'd be careful of overloading the eccentric too soon!November 14, 2014 at 10:29 am |
Michelle Kania
What strength is the band/how strong of a contraction do you need for your arms? Def like this one!!November 13, 2014 at 3:13 pm |
TonyGentilcore
The band is the video is just a "medium (1 inch) Jump Stretch band. With the arms, you just want to get to the point where you take slack out of the band and you feel your anterior core engage. There's a degree of "feel" to it, but you should pick it up quickly.November 14, 2014 at 10:31 am |
Troy
i do them with a foam roller between the thighs too aka ben bruno...adding this extra resistance would be tension cityNovember 13, 2014 at 8:51 pm |
TonyGentilcore
Just increase core engagement for sure!November 14, 2014 at 10:33 am |
Brian Tabor
Not gonna lie. I'm a little scared of this and the painful cramping feeling its likely to induce in the ol' hammies. If my legs spontaneously combust tomorrow when I try it, I'll report back.November 15, 2014 at 12:22 am |
TonyGentilcore
Nah...you'll be fine.....;o) I think.November 15, 2014 at 5:23 am |
pooleguy2
Recommend for folk with spondy/stenosis ? Generally correcting APT? I have used a lot of your posts with good results Mr G.November 15, 2014 at 2:24 am |
TonyGentilcore
I don't see this couldn't be a nice addition for people with Spondy/stenosis.November 15, 2014 at 5:23 am |
Paul Bruce
This is a great progression to the natural GHR you showed us a while back.November 15, 2014 at 10:25 pm |
TonyGentilcore
I'd argue that the natural glute ham raise is a progression from this one!November 16, 2014 at 9:12 am |
Paul Bruce
Wow! When you said the single leg version was hard, you meant it!November 16, 2014 at 9:40 am |
TonyGentilcore
HA - told ya, Like I'd lie to my audience!?!?!?November 18, 2014 at 8:52 am |
Rory
Hi Tony, This looks like a fantastic exercise. I've been using stability ball leg curls for a while now and I love them, but this looks far more challenging! Can't wait to give it a try. Also wanted to say that I am very grateful for the content put out by yourself and others at CSP. It is so refreshing in a world where the majority of advice is either old myths or pseudoscience BS (or both). So thank you! P.S. I love your style of writing and your sense of humour that you weave into your articles. Keep it up :)November 16, 2014 at 6:29 am |
TonyGentilcore
Thanks Rory - really glad to hear you enjoyed it. And I consider myself VERY lucky that I'm surrounded by such well-rounded and like minded coaches at CSP.November 16, 2014 at 9:13 am |
Jake Stephenitch
Do you find that athletes/people that are overextended generally have a tough time feeling hamstrings in dead lifts? And if so is isolated hamstring work a good way to get them to "feel" them working?November 16, 2014 at 10:35 am |
TonyGentilcore
No, not really. If anything I'll get my hands on them (non-creepily) and put them into the position I want them in. Once they feel it once, it's a lot easier to get back into that same position. But in general, I haven't had much issue with people feeling their hamstring when deadlifting (correctly).November 18, 2014 at 8:54 am |
Shane Mclean
This is awesome. Love it.November 16, 2014 at 8:51 pm |
Alexander Silva
Nice Post Dear..... I Like Your Post.... Generic BactrimNovember 18, 2014 at 4:50 am |
Gareth Keeping
I love this exercise. Have you ever tried it with weight plates under your feet for extra resistance on the concentric? I once saw Mike Boyle teach it this way and I invested a lot of time into it during the summer of 2012 when I couldn't deadlift as much as I wanted to. I found it to be a fantastic option for building more posterior chain strength and it had a great carryover effect when I started deadlifting again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1-d1gg7er8November 18, 2014 at 3:20 pm |
TonyGentilcore
Yep, sure have!November 20, 2014 at 8:06 am |