Episode 495

Exploring the Root Causes of Chronic Back Pain and What to Do About It with Dr. Stuart McGill

With Dr. Stuart McGill

Download MP3

Back pain is a common affliction exacerbated by our modern and sedentary lifestyles. This discomfort frequently hinders work and daily activities. Our guest today delves into the back’s anatomy, identifying movements—or lack thereof—that contribute to pain and discussing factors contributing to its increasing prevalence.

Today, on The Dhru Purohit Podcast, Dhru and Dr. Stuart McGill delve deep into back pain. Dr. McGill shares insights into why back pain is so prevalent, dispels myths surrounding it, and discusses the types of repetitive stress and strain that can lead to chronic pain. He also outlines his approach to treating back pain and highlights the limitations clinicians face in treating their patients.

 

Also mentioned in this episode:

This episode is brought to you by Birch, Plunge, and AquaTru. 

To get 25% off your Birch Living mattress plus two free eco-rest pillows, head over to birchliving.com/dhru today.

Right now, Plunge is offering my community $150 off cold plunges and their core products. Just go to plunge.com/dhru or enter code DHRU to revolutionize your wellness journey today. 

AquaTru is a countertop reverse osmosis purifier with a four-stage filtration system that removes 15x more contaminants than the bestselling water filters out there. Go to dhrupurohit.com/filter/ and get $100 off when you try AquaTru for yourself.

I hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as I did.
Wishing you health and happiness.
Dhru Purohit

In this Episode, you will learn

  1. The prevalence of back pain
    (00:00:36)
  2. Drivers of back pain in our modern world
    (3:17)
  3. Repetitive stress and strain that leads to back pain
    (12:00)
  4. Types of training and how to choose what is best
    (22:00)
  5. Dr. McGill’s origin story
    (34:00)
  6. The myth of non-specific back pain
    (49:00)
  7. How to find an appropriate clinician
    (57:00)
  8. The Big Three principles to prevent back pain
    (1:04:00)
  9. Ancestors ability to engage in a variety of movements
    (1:15:00)
  10. Training in cycles
    (1:23:00)
  11. Advice for Dhru’s pain
    (1:33:00)
  12. Dr. McGill’s Seven-Day Approach
    (1:37:00)
  13. Strengthen what is weak and stretch what is tight
    (1:52:30)

Guest

 
Dhru Purohit

Dhru is the host of the Dhru Purohit Show, a top 30 health podcast with over 30 million downloads. His interviews focus on the inner workings of the brain and the body and feature the brightest minds in wellness, medicine, and mindset.

Dhru Purohit is also a serial entrepreneur and investor in the health and wellness industry.

 
Dr. Stuart McGill

Dr. Stuart McGill is a distinguished professor emeritus at the University of Waterloo and the chief scientific officer at Backfitpro Inc. McGill has written more than 300 scientific publications on the topics of lumbar function, low back injury mechanisms, investigation of tissue loading during rehabilitation programs, and the formulation of work-related injury avoidance strategies. He has received several awards for his work, including the Volvo Bioengineering Award for Low Back Pain Research from Sweden.

Send this to a friend