Professor Stuart McGill: What everyone gets wrong when lifting weights

In 2020, low back pain affected 619m people across the world, a figure expected to rise to 843m people by 2050, according to research by the World Health Organisation. Globally low back pain is the single leading cause of disability and the highest number of cases is in patients between the ages of 50 and 55.

Non-specific low back pain, which is far harder to diagnose and treat, is the most common condition, responsible for around 90% of all cases.

It’s no exaggeration to say that if you suffer from low back pain it negatively impacts almost every area of your life, not only limiting what you can do physically but often leading to severe mental health issues.

If you’re one of the millions of people suffering with low back pain you’ll know exactly how it makes you feel. You may have even given up hope that you’ll ever look, feel and perform as well as you used to.

But help is at hand. World-renowned spine health specialist Professor Stuart McGill has helped professional athletes suffering from crippling back issues return to their former glories – in many cases setting new records and winning international competitions.

In our exclusive interview we speak to Professor McGill to discover what you can do to take better care of your back.

McGill’s “Big Three” back exercises explained

Professor McGill explains how he selected three spine-sparing and core-stabilising exercises to improve back health that have become synonymous with his name and expertise in treating low back pain problems.

Professor Stuart McGill: The signs of quality coaching

Professor McGill explains why he can no longer go to commercial gyms having seen the red flags of bad strength coaching too many times in his decades of training and rehab experience.

Professor Stuart McGill: The “biological cost” of training

Professor McGill explains the concept of the biological cost of training, why strength starts as a thought, and how lifting heavy sometimes requires you to be ready to “commit homicide” on your own body.