Where is hamstring located in leg

DeLee JC, et al. Hamstring injuries. Philadelphia, Pa. Accessed Sept. Hay WW, et al. Sports medicine. New York, N. Sprains and strains. Fields KB, et al. Hamstring muscle and tendon injuries. Keeping your muscles in good shape is the best way to prevent hamstring injuries.

Here are some ways to help protect yourself against them and other sports injuries! The good news is that only the most severe muscle tears require surgery. Most hamstring strains will heal on their own or with some physical therapy. If you have a complete tear of one of your hamstring muscles or tendons, your doctor might want you to have surgery to reattach the tendon to the bone or fix the tendon. Not overdoing things is key when it comes to this type of injury.

Many people have a hamstring strain come back because they returned to play too quickly. So follow your doctor's advice and don't push yourself or feel pressure to get back into sports or other activities too soon. Larger text size Large text size Regular text size. What Is a Hamstring Strain? What Are the Symptoms of a Hamstring Strain? Other symptoms of a hamstring strain include: pain in the back of your thigh when you bend or straighten your leg tenderness, swelling, and bruising in the back of the thigh weakness in your leg that lasts for a long time after the injury Page 1 How Is a Hamstring Strain Diagnosed?

The examination will help figure out what grade of strain you have: Grade 1; this is a mild strain. You may experience some pain when you use your leg, but it will be minor and there will be minimal swelling.

Grade 2; this is a partial tear of one or more of the hamstring muscles. This may cause you to limp when you walk and feel some pain during activity.

You might see some swelling and bruising, and you might not be able to straighten your leg all the way. Grade 3; this is a complete tear of one or more of the hamstring muscles. You'll feel pain and not be able to straighten your leg all the way, and you'll notice swelling right away. A hamstring injury is a strain or tear to the tendons or large muscles at the back of the thigh.

It's a common injury in athletes and can occur in different severities. The 3 grades of hamstring injury are:. The length of time it takes to recover from a hamstring strain or tear will depend on how severe the injury is. A minor muscle pull or strain grade 1 may take a few days to heal, whereas it could take weeks or months to recover from a muscle tear grade 2 or 3. The hamstrings are tendons strong bands of tissue at the back of the thighs that attach the large thigh muscle to the bone.

The term "hamstring" also refers to the group of 3 muscles that run along the back of your thigh, from your hip to just below your knee. The hamstring muscles are not used much while standing or walking, but they're very active during activities that involve bending the knee, such as running, jumping and climbing.

A hamstring injury can occur if any of the tendons or muscles are stretched beyond their limit. They often occur during sudden, explosive movements, such as sprinting, lunging or jumping. But they can also occur more gradually, or during slower movements that overstretch your hamstring.

Recurring injury is common in athletes and sportsmen, as you're more likely to injure your hamstring if you've injured it before. Regularly doing stretching and strengthening exercises , and warming up before exercise , may help reduce the risk of injuring your hamstring.

The semitendinosus is another long, big hamstring muscle. At first glance, it is situated medially, or toward the inside of the back of the thigh, relative to the biceps femoris.

The semitendinosus originates at the inner side of your sitting bone. As with the other hamstring muscles, the semitendinosus muscle crosses the knee. It attaches at the upper part of your tibia bone the shin bone on the inner, or medial side.

It also attaches on the deep fascia of the leg. The semitendinosus, along with the satorius and gracilis muscles, is one of three muscles that come together to form the pes anserine tendon that terminates on the anteromedial the area to the front and side of the tibia. At the hip, the semidendinosus extends the thigh back and also helps or assists with medial rotation of the thigh.

At the knee, this muscle bends and medially rotates the joint. The semimembranosus, the third of the hamstring muscles, is a broad muscle like the semitendinosus.

Unlike the semitendinosus muscle, at first glance, it seems a bit tucked away. Like the other two hamstrings, it originates at the ischial tuberosity your sitting bone , but the attachment site is located higher up and more to the outside called lateral than either one. It attaches on the posteromedial i. At the hip, the semimembranosus extends the joint, and helps with medial rotation i.

It also flexes the and medially rotates the knee. Sign up for our Health Tip of the Day newsletter, and receive daily tips that will help you live your healthiest life. Common posture mistakes and fixes.