So… Why do we want to train our posterior chain? And what is it?
First things first, if you are unsure of what your posterior chain is – it is the muscles on your posterior side (back), including erector spinae, hamstrings, calves and glutes. Training our posterior chain sets you on the right track to injury prevention in your training. Common issues with a weak posterior chain is a weak lower back and knee pain.
Why is it important to train our posterior chain?
As of recent times, with more and more of the population having sedentary jobs and spending 8 or more hours per day seated, we tend to have weaker glutes as we are not using them as often as we could be. Weak glutes can lead to muscle imbalances and lower back pain along with an increase in risk of injury.
Its also important to have a strong anterior, but with it becoming more and more common to spend most of your day seated, it leads to the posterior chain being forgotten about.
With correct strengthening work, you can improve the strength of your posterior chain and within time, reduce your risk of developing the common lower back and knee pain.
A couple of exercises which focus on building the posterior chain are;
Hip thrusts
Deadlift
Romanian Deadlift
Hamstring curl
Good mornings
Glute bridges
Try adding some of these into your programming if you don’t already!