Our DC Metro Soccer PT Pros Help Players Avoid Hamstring Injuries and Stay in the Game

Soccer is a dynamic and high-intensity sport that’s particularly demanding on the lower extremities, requiring rapid sprints, sudden stops, quick turns, and powerful kicks. Hamstring injuries are one of the most common injuries soccer players face, and they could keep you off the pitch for weeks or even months. Don’t let hamstring injuries take you out of the game and disrupt your athletic progress. SPARK Physiotherapy’s Alexandria, Virginia, sports fitness PT specialists offer soccer-specific physical therapy that teaches players how to avoid these painful and disruptive injuries. Discover how our experienced physical therapists could help you prevent hamstring injuries and reach peak performance on the pitch.

How Hamstring Soccer Injuries Happen

The hamstrings are the three muscles on the back of the leg that run along the thigh from the hip to just past the knee. These muscles are what enable you to bend your knee and extend your leg backward. Stretching or overtaxing your hamstrings, such as by hyperextending your knee or rapidly changing speeds while running, can result in injury. Hamstring injuries range from minor, Grade 1, tears in the muscle to moderate, Grade 2, partial muscle tears or severe, Grade 3, tears or total ruptures. Treatments and recovery times vary.

Hamstring Strains and Tears and Your Soccer Reinjury Risks

Playing a sport that requires frequent running or sprinting, like soccer, increases your risk for hamstring strains and tears. These injuries not only cause pain and limit mobility, but they also make you 2.7 times more likely to suffer another, and typically more severe, hamstring injury in the future.

Don’t risk it. Whether you want to rehabilitate a hamstring injury so you can return to the pitch safely while avoiding re-injury or are seeking training to avoid these injuries in the first place, our skilled Soccer PTs can help.

Creating Your Hamstring Injury Prevention Training Plan

SPARK Physiotherapy's licensed and certified sports fitness specialists understand soccer's physical demands and the challenges players can encounter. Our robust Soccer PT program empowers athletes of all ability levels to overcome obstacles and succeed on the pitch.

We create customized training plans after conducting thorough biomechanical assessments and soccer-specific evaluations of speed, agility, strength, and power. Your personalized Soccer PT training plan will include exercises addressing individual weaknesses and imbalances that increase your risk of hamstring injuries. We also incorporate exercises that condition the quads and the hamstrings to improve control of kicking motions and prevent overstretching.

Hamstring and Quad Conditioning Exercises

The exercises included in your Soccer PT regimen will vary based on your fitness level and the results of your biomechanical assessment and soccer-skills evaluation. Here are some examples of exercises we use to help soccer players condition their muscles and prevent hamstring injuries.

Leg Curls

Using a leg curl machine or resistance bands, bend your knees to bring your heels toward your buttocks, then slowly return to the starting position. Leg curls strengthen your hamstrings, improving stability and control during kicking motions.

Lunges

Step forward with one leg and lower your hips, bending both knees at about a 90-degree angle. Push back up to the starting position and repeat with the other leg. These classic exercises strengthen the quads and hamstrings, increasing overall leg stability and control.

Hamstring Bridges

Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Squeeze your glutes and hamstrings, lift your hips toward the ceiling, then slowly lower back down. Hamstring bridges engage your hamstrings and glutes, boosting strength and flexibility.

Get the Training and Support You Need to Succeed on the Pitch

Don’t wait until you’ve suffered a hamstring injury to discover what SPARK Physiotherapy’s sport-specific PT can do for your soccer game. We design our training plans to help you avoid injuries and stay in the game. Take the next step to learn why we’re the best-kept secret of elite DC area athletes.