Exercise Guide

Towel Hamstring Curl

A sliding leg curl with towels under your heels on a smooth floor. The hamstring curl machine, improvised.

BeginnerStrengthPullIsolation
Form
Towel Hamstring Curl - Start position
Start
Towel Hamstring Curl - Mid position
Mid
Towel Hamstring Curl - End position
End

Illustrations by Bryl Lim for Workout Guide, after Everkinetic. Used unchanged under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Details

Primary Muscle

Hamstrings

Equipment

Other

Difficulty

Beginner

Category

Strength

Force

Pull

Mechanic

Isolation

Secondary Muscles

GlutesCore
How to Perform
  1. 1

    Lie on your back on a smooth floor with a folded towel under each heel and your knees bent.

  2. 2

    Lift your hips into a bridge and hold them there.

  3. 3

    Slide your heels out until your legs are nearly straight, keeping your hips up.

  4. 4

    Pull the heels back in toward your hips using your hamstrings.

Tips
  • ★The hips dropping as the legs extend means you have gone past your range.
  • ★Pull with the hamstrings rather than pushing off the floor with your feet.
Explore by Muscle
HamstringsGlutesCore