It might show up as a deep ache in your buttock when you sit for a long meeting, or a pull at the back of your thigh when you bend to tie your shoes. If this has started around menopause, changes in your tendons and muscles may be part of the picture. Easing the load a little, then building back gradually, can help it settle.

Why the hamstring can become sore in midlife

Your hamstrings run down the back of your thigh, from your sitting bone to just below your knee. The tendon at the top, where it attaches to your sitting bone, does a lot of work when you bend forward, climb stairs or walk briskly.

Around menopause, falling oestrogen can make tendons less able to cope with sudden or repeated load. Research reviews describe a shift: before menopause, women are less likely than men to develop tendon problems, but after menopause the rates become similar. Muscle also declines more quickly in midlife, so the hamstring may have less strength in reserve.

That means a busy week, a new exercise class or long hours sitting can be enough to irritate it.

Why sitting can make it worse

The tendon at the top of the hamstring sits right where you sit. Long periods on hard chairs, or sitting with your legs crossed or leaning forward, can press on the tendon and make it more sensitive.

Some things to try:

• Use a cushion on hard chairs.
• Get up and move every half hour or so.
• Sit with your weight even on both sides rather than leaning to one.

Easing the load while it settles

The first step is easing the movements that irritate it most, without stopping altogether. Options include taking a break from deep forward bends and hamstring stretches, shortening your stride a little when walking, and taking hills and stairs more gently for a while.

Stretching a sore hamstring tendon can sometimes make it more sensitive, because it squeezes the tendon against the sitting bone. Gentle strengthening tends to help more than stretching at this stage.

Gentle movement helps

Keeping your hamstring gently active usually helps more than resting it completely. In a trial of recreational athletes with recent thigh or calf muscle strains, people who started gentle exercise two days after their injury, rather than nine, got back to their usual activity around three weeks sooner.

Walking at a comfortable pace is usually a good place to start. If walking feels sore, shorter, slower walks on flat ground are a gentle way to begin.

Building back gradually

Once the area feels calmer, gentle strengthening helps the hamstring cope with more. Something to try a few times a week:

• Bridges. Lie on your back with your knees bent, lift your hips, then lower them slowly.
• Hamstring holds. Lying on your back with your knees bent, press your heels gently into the floor for five to ten seconds, then relax.

If you would like to follow along, VIDA has a short video of bridges you can use at your own pace. Start with a few repetitions and build up as it feels comfortable.

A mild ache during exercise that settles by the next day is usually fine. If it is sorer the following morning, ease back a little next time.

Getting back to your usual activity

Around menopause, tendons may need a little longer to adapt, so building back gradually tends to work best. You could increase one thing at a time, like the length of your walk or the number of repetitions, every week or so. If you enjoy running or exercise classes, you could return gradually, starting with shorter, gentler sessions and leaving out sprints, kicks and deep forward bends until your hamstring feels strong.

What to take away

• Use a cushion on hard chairs and get up regularly.
• Take a break from deep forward bends and hamstring stretches for a while.
• Keep walking at a comfortable pace.
• Start gentle strengthening, like bridges, as the area calms.
• Build back one change at a time.

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