Here is a simple drill to improve proprioception in your hips while firing up your hamstrings. (Proprioception is your sense of your body in space.)

Test

Range of motion (ROM) baseline:
* Forward fold with straight legs (touch your toes or the floor)
* Hip rotation to each side with feet under hips and palms together in front of you

Drill

27 good mornings – 1 good morning each with 27 foot positions.

To do a good morning, keep your back straight and bend by hinging at the hip (tilt your pelvis forward). Only bend until your pelvis stops tilting, then come back up. Here are the foot postitions:
* Feet shoulder width, narrow, wide
* Toes forward, pointed out, pointed in
* Feet side by side, left foot forward, right foot forward

Retest

After doing all 27 or after each set of 9, determine whether your ROM changed:
* Forward fold with straight legs (touch your toes or the floor)
* Hip rotation to each side with feet under hips and palms together in front of you

Improved ROM means the drill works well for you. It will improve your performance.

Decreased ROM means drill is very challenging at this time. Try slowing it down or decreasing how far you hinge. If it still tightens you up, this is a rehab drill.

How to use this drill

Try the good mornings in different foot positions to find out which relax you (performance drills) and which tighten you up (rehab drills). Do rehab drills when being a bit stressed is OK for you or do rehab drills followed by a performance drill.

How do your hamstrings feel after good mornings?