Nordic Hamstring Curl
The Elite Hockey Drills app builds drills like this into your personalized off-ice program, week by week. Your first week is free.
How to Do It
Kneel on a pad, feet anchored under a bar, bench, or held by a partner. Arms crossed on chest or ready to catch you. Body perfectly upright — hips extended, torso in line with thighs. Slowly lower your body FORWARD toward the floor — resist the fall using the hamstrings. Lower as slowly as possible. When you can no longer resist, catch yourself with hands. Push back up with the hands and use the hamstrings to pull back to the upright start.
Why It Works
The Nordic curl is the most evidence-based hamstring injury prevention exercise in existence — multiple RCTs show it reduces hamstring strain risk by 51%. It eccentrically loads the hamstring from full knee extension through flexion, exactly the position of maximum strain during explosive skating. NFL, NHL, and soccer teams mandate Nordic curls after injury data became undeniable. Two sessions per week is enough for significant protection.
Hockey Transfer
The single best exercise to prevent hamstring tears — critical for hockey players. If you can do 12 reps, you're elite. Most pros can do 6-8. Don't rush the standard.
Coaching Cues
- "Kneel"
- "Partner holds ankles"
- "Lower body as slow as possible"
- "Push up with hands"
Common Mistakes
Hips bending — the hips must stay extended. Hinge at the knee only. Dropping too fast — maximum eccentric resistance is the entire stimulus. Only doing the negative — the pull-back concentric also matters. Skipping it because it's hard — the difficulty is proportional to the protection it provides.
Progression / Regression
Add a resistance band across the back for more eccentric load on the way down.
Hamstring walkout on the floor — same eccentric demand with fully bodyweight support.
Primary Muscles
Energy System
Strength/neural
Put it to work
on the ice.
The Elite Hockey Drills app builds exercises like this into a personalized off-ice program — created by a sport scientist and former national-team coach. Your first week is free.
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