Bench Nordic Curl

In SetGrip: Nordic Curl (Bench)

Secondary muscles
Glutes, Calves
Body part
Upper Legs
Position
Lying
Laterality
Bilateral (both sides together)
Category
Strength

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Performing the Nordic pattern with a bench in the setup shortens the lever your hamstrings must fight, landing it between the assisted versions and the full floor movement in difficulty. Use it once band assistance starts feeling easy: aim for slow three-to-five-second lowers and keep reps low, because even reduced Nordics tax the hamstrings hard.

How to do the Bench Nordic Curl

  1. Lie flat on your back with your legs extended and your arms by your sides.
  2. Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the ground, hip-width apart.
  3. Lift your hips off the ground, engaging your glutes and hamstrings.
  4. Slowly curl your legs towards your glutes, keeping your hips lifted.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly extend your legs back to the starting position.
  6. Lower your hips back down to the ground.
  7. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Tip: Point the toes through the curl to take the calves out of it and force the hamstrings to do all the work.

Muscles worked

Primary

Hamstrings · Legs

The hamstrings bend the knee against the pad and should feel a hard squeeze at the top and a controlled stretch at the bottom.

Secondary

  • Glutes — The glutes contract to keep the hips down on lying curls and to hold the hip open on Nordics.
  • Calves — The calves assist in bending the knee, and pointing the toes rather than flexing them takes them out of the movement.

Common mistakes

  • Hips lifting off the pad — on lying curls keep the hips pressed down; if they rise, the range is too long or the weight too heavy.
  • Yanking the weight up — drive the heels toward the backside under control and squeeze at the top for a count.
  • Dropping the weight down — the lowering half is where the hamstrings grow, so take three seconds to come back.
  • Skipping the stretch on Nordics — on Nordic curls lower as far as you can control and use the hands to push back up rather than cutting the range.

Where it fits in a workout

Leg curls go after squats and deadlifts as a hamstring accessory. Superset them with leg extensions on the neighboring machine or with a back extension.

How many sets, how heavy and how hard: see what the ACSM position stands support.

Variations and alternatives

Similar exercises

Without bodyweight

Easier and harder

When to talk to someone

  • Chest discomfort, feeling faint or lightheaded, or trouble breathing during or after exercise can be signs of a heart attack. In the US, call 911 right away; elsewhere, call your local emergency number.
  • Heart, metabolic or kidney disease, or symptoms like these when you are active: talk to your doctor before you start or step up training.
  • Pregnant: ask your obstetric care provider which exercise suits you.

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More exercises

Sources

  1. ACSM position stand on exercise quantity and quality (Garber et al., 2011)
  2. ACSM preparticipation health screening (Riebe et al., 2015)
  3. ACOG Committee Opinion No. 804 on exercise in pregnancy (2020)
  4. CDC: About Heart Attack Symptoms, Risk, and Recovery (2024)

Sources checked on October 17, 2026. Full citations are in the exercise library.

Animation and exercise data: ExerciseDB, licensed to SetGrip. General information, not medical or coaching advice.