What could cause an occasional "pop" to occur when I stretch my hamstrings?

Question

I don't feel pain when this happens. But when I stretch my hams, esp. when they are tight from a leg workout, I will get a pop from both legs right in the middle of the muscle. Could this be bad?

Answer 1

You probably have pulled hamstrings.

It sounds like you need to spend some time away from running, doing more cross-training activities such as swimming or cycling and also getting into a good rehabilitation program geared towards preventing recurrent muscle strain. Once a muscle is strained it sometimes heals with some scar tissue which is even tighter then the tight muscle you started with.

Therapy involves the use of certain modalities such as ultrasound or heat to help the healing process. Also proper preventive stretching and strengthening is essential. When strengthening the muscle it should be strengthened in both the positive (concentric) and negative (eccentric), phase. Eccentric muscle strengthening, also known as a lengthening contraction (the movement when lowering the weight), is often neglected but very useful in prevention of muscle strains. Eccentric strength training should be done slow and controlled and is great to prevent recurrent muscle pulls. Also, be sure to warm-up properly and stretch before running- and stay well hydrated.

I hoped this helped you out. Good luck in your workouts.