Did ME again , but.........

[dhcsim]

is there a different exercise other than the glute raises that works the "insertion" where the hamstrings meet the buttocks? I can feel these throughout my whole leg, not just the target area. Is that normal?

This time my lower back felt a lot better doing the dead lifts and bent over rowing. I still had a hard time w/ the stationary lunges. More practice though

 

[Pedmom]

Heather, I used to have a tough time with those butt raises, too. Make sure your knees are bent enough. Your butt should be scooted up toward the high step or whatever you are using. I feel it much more now.

Be careful with the back. If your back aches at all, you might want to use lighter weights until it strengthens. I hurt my back very badly doing deadlifts using too-heavy weights.

KUTGW!

 

[melissa0528]

Heather, I also had a hard time feeling those glute raises the first couple of times I did ME. I had to really concentrate on what I was doing before I could feel it in the target area.

I agree abouth the practice. I remember when most of ME was so tough for me but as I became adjusted to it (and did it almost every week for over a month or two) things became easier (if that's possible with Cathe ;-))

 

[candi]

I love those :+

 

[CurlyQ]

hmmm, I think you mean the standing, non-weighted glute raises, correct? If so, I had a hard time with those at first too. I think it had to do with the fact that my legs weren't quite strong enough so I was feeling it in the quads more. Keep practicing they really work great in that insertion point.

Make sure you're leaning over far enough, keeping your back leg straight and stationary, and really push thru your heels while contracting your glute. Try doing it in front of a mirror (I watch my reflection in our aquarium), I think it makes a big difference when you can see what you're doing. Your front leg should be pushing your butt up into the air - torso and back leg should remain as stationary as possible.

A good substitute would be hamstring presses on the step or stab. ball.

 

[Pedmom]

Oh sorry, I thought she meant the lying down ones, with your feet on the step!

 

[kathryn]

>is there a different exercise other than the glute raises
>that works the "insertion" where the hamstrings meet the
>buttocks? I can feel these throughout my whole leg, not just
>the target area. Is that normal?
>

Yes, that's normal. You can't contract just part of the hamstring or glute, so the whole muscle contracts.

Another effective exercise for that area, IMO, is donkey kicks. On all fours, with an ankle weight on (optional) raise one leg to parallel with the floor with knee kept at 90 degrees. Lots of variations on it, like going from bent leg at the bottom to actually kicking the leg out, pushing throught the heel; or crossing the knee over the other one at the bottom; or doing pulses or other rep variations like 1 up/3 down, etc.

I wish Cathe would put more of these in her workouts. When she has, they seem to be very minimal.

The earlier Firm is good at doing floorwork that hits this area. "Sculpted Buns, HIps and Thighs" is all floor work (but should be called "Scuplted buns and abs and hips and abs and thighs and abs" because there is a lot of ab work as well). Whenever I feel like my bottom line needs some extra work, I like to get this DVD out.

If you do some of these floor work exercises before doing moves like squats or deadlifts or step-ups (what Cathe calls a leg press, which also hits that area, especially, it seems to me, if you "dip down"a bit before pushing up through the heel of the foot that is on the step), you can pre-exhaust the ham/glute area, so when you do these other compound exercises, that area can be worked closer to failure.

If you are having back pain when doing bent-over rows, try doing 1-arm rows with your non-working hand supported on the high step (or seat of a chair). Doing these with a barbell requires a lot of lower back strength.