Eccentric Training
Movement & Exercise
Eccentric training emphasizes the lengthening phase of a muscle contraction — the descent of a squat, the lowering of a barbell in a bench press, the downward phase of a pull-up. Muscles can produce greater force eccentrically than concentrically, which means eccentric-focused training can overload tissue beyond what conventional training allows. Specific eccentric protocols (Nordic hamstring curls, tempo squats, accentuated eccentrics with bands or manual resistance) target this quality directly.
What Coaches Should Know
Eccentric training has one of the strongest evidence bases in sport science for hamstring injury prevention — the Nordic hamstring curl specifically has been shown in multiple large-scale RCTs to significantly reduce hamstring strain incidence in team sports. For any program with sprinting athletes, eccentric hamstring work is not optional. It should be a year-round component, not just a pre-season block.
Eccentric work produces significant DOMS, particularly in athletes unaccustomed to it. Introduce it progressively, especially at the start of a training cycle. The protective effect — the repeated bout effect — develops quickly after the first few exposures, and DOMS will decrease substantially after 2–3 sessions.
Also related to: DOMS, Tempo Notation, Progressive Overload, RFD, GPP