Question
Dear Lawrence,
I am 35 yo male. I was regular at the gym 2 months back and in great shape. I was doing some leg exercises (slightly aggressive on leg press). After 48 hours I felt very mild muscle twitch in my (upper I think)back muscles for few seconds. As a matter of caution I gave up weights for a week and did aerobics / running burning 600KCal per day for 7 days. On seventh day I was running on steep gradient on treadmill for 8 kms. My back felt normal after these 7 days. But I felt a jerk while bending after that on 8th day! I stopped bending after that out of caution. Soon my back stiffened. The orthopaedic surgeon thought my hamstrings and back were very stiff. He recommended MRI. No other symptoms seen- No muscle soreness but mild lower back pain while turning lying in bed and mild stiffness in left buttock which starts from morning. I have not taken MRI.
Physiotherapy is showing slow progress to overcome my key problem - hamstring stiffness and loss of flexibility in my lower back. I needed your advice on how to solve these 2 problems- will stretching suffice.
Secondly to your experience what can this problem be, since my physio thinks this is an old chronic tight hamstring problem which has got aggravated for some reason and will take some time to heal. I can bend 70 degrees and touch my knees only. The exercises recommended on your website for tight hamstrings are also difficult for me to do because I cannot hold my hands under my foot! I will be appreciative if you could guide.
Regards,
Jason

Answer
Hello, Jason,

To clarify your PT's words, "this is an old chronic tight hamstring problem which has got aggravated for some reason," you are musclebound in your hamstrings (and buttocks and back muscles); the reason:  your way of training has made you that way.

Aggressive training usually involves emphasizing muscular contraction ("strength") over relaxation.  Healthy movement involves equal ease in relaxing as in contracting.  Most people are habitually contracted and incapable of completely relaxing (muscles soft and pliant -- like those of Arnold Schwartzenegger, believe it or not).

Your back stiffened because your muscles contracted further.

Leg presses involve the buttock and back muscles as part of the movement pattern.

The conditioning that keeps your muscles contracted resides in your brain, not in the muscles, so stretching won't help in any definitive way.

No healing is involved in your recovery; just get out of contraction; get free of being musclebound.

Since your back is too tight to permit you to do the hamstring maneuver (and that's not the center of the problem, anyway), do the simplified somatic exercise at http://www.somatics.com/back_pain.htm as first aid.  Then, work with the program, "The Cat Stretch" (in which neither a cat nor stretching is involved).  See http://www.somatics.com/page7.htm  Once you have enough freedom in your back, do the hamstring maneuver.

For perspective on training regimens, please click to read "About Weight Training,": http://www.somatics.com/weights.htm

For perspective on stretching (and strengthening), please click to read "When Stretching Doesn't Work -- Beyond Stretching": http://www.somatics.com/stretch.htm

Freeing yourself from being musclebound is a challenge -- and you can do it.

with regard,
Lawrence Gold