Fitness trainer and bodybuilding coach Eugene Teo has been sharing a series about”2 Best Exercises,” highlighting his favorite moves that target specific areas of your body for muscle growth. Teo has shared the two best exercises for building bigger biceps, to grow your quads, to train and target your triceps, and more.
Now, Teo is going low (to the legs) and sharing which two exercises he loves most to train his hamstrings.
Exercise 1: Seated Leg Curl
His first choice is a seated leg curl, which you need a machine to do properly.
“To be fair, any exercise where you bend the knee is going to be pretty decent for the most part, but there are a few reasons I’m biased to the seated leg curl a little bit more,” Teo explains. “First, the amount of bracing support provided by the bench is unmatched by any other exercise. You’re literally locked into position with nothing to do other than put as much work as you can through your hamstrings.” This is a classic isolation-style exercise, which might be tough to do if you don’t have access to a gym.
“When you’re looking at making size gains, the more you can direct as much effort as possible to the target muscle with less energy wasted trying to keep perfect technique or to minimize momentum, the better,” he continues.
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Exercise 2: Romanian Deadlift
Teo notes this deadlift variation can be difficult for some people, who may find that their lower back fatigues quickly, or that they have trouble recruiting their hamstrings at all. If this is you, Teo suggests elevating your toes while deadlifting.
“It doesn’t do a thing for your hamstrings,” he admits. “But what it does do is offset your center of gravity slightly, and essentially forces you to hinge your hips backwards.” He goes on to explain that in his experience as a trainer, this method was effective in teaching even the most obstinate clients the movement pattern.
Keep that cue in mind if you want to try the RDL yourself—and check out this guide that walks you through the other particulars of the exercise.
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