Supported Nordic Curl (Bench)

An advanced hamstring strengthening exercise where you kneel on a bench and slowly lower your body forward, resisting gravity with your hamstrings. This movement is exceptional for eccentric hamstring loading and injury prevention.

Instructions

1. Kneel on a bench with your knees at the edge and your feet anchored or held by a partner.
2. Keep your hips extended and your body in a straight line from knees to head.
3. Engage your hamstrings and slowly lower your body forward in a controlled eccentric motion.
4. Lower as far as you can control while maintaining tension in your hamstrings.
5. At some point, you will need to catch yourself with your hands or regain the position.
6. Use your hamstrings to pull yourself back up to the starting position, or use your hands to assist initially.
7. Return to the starting kneeling position.
8. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Tips

• This is an advanced exercise; master regular hamstring curls first
• The eccentric (lowering) phase is the most challenging and beneficial
• Start with partial range of motion and progress gradually
• You can use your hands to assist initially as you build strength
• This exercise provides excellent eccentric loading for hamstring strength and injury prevention