Hey there. Recently, I’ve been getting back into the gym with a structured upper body/lower body split, focusing on exercises that allow me to work around my foot injury. One of these exercises, the hamstring curl machine, has always been a bit of a struggle for me.

I had mostly avoided the seated hamstring curl machine because using both legs never felt effective. The range of motion seemed off, and it didn’t feel like the weight was doing much throughout the entire movement. But yesterday, I decided to approach it differently. Instead of using both legs, I adjusted the settings and tried it single-leg style.

This was new territory for me, especially with my left leg. Due to cerebral palsy (CP), my left side is significantly impacted, and my body compensates by placing more workload on my right side. When I attempted this movement, I started with the bare minimum—just 10 pounds. After completing a handful of sets of 15 reps (I lost track of the exact set count 😁), something incredible happened.

When I stood up, I felt balance in my gait that I hadn’t experienced before. As I walked away from the machine, I noticed something even more surprising, my left glute was actually working. It’s hard to put into words how significant this was for me. I’ve never felt my left glute engage like that. It was a game-changer.

By the time I walked from the locker room to the gym’s front desk, my left glute was fatigued. That kind of muscle activation might sound minor but for me, it was monumental!! It was a reminder that progress starts with small, consistent steps. 💪🏻🦥