Gift of Injury

The gift of injury is a great reference book for any strength and conditioning coach. Its especially useful for anyone that trains for strength sports and has suffered a back injury.The book describes Brian's severe back injuries, all the mistakes he had made trying to train through the pain and getting to the point where Doctors/Surgeons said he would never lift again. It takes you through his initial meetings with Stuart McGill, describing how they got him on track to not only be pain free but to top powerlifting performance (without surgery!). Alongside the story of Brian's recovery the book arms you with tools required to build a balanced base and return to your sport after back injury. There is a lot of useful information discussing technique and spine sparring training.For me this book was very useful as it gave me hope that I can return to training after back injury (a Weightlifter coming back from disc injury). Ive been using the key methods of rehab in the book (interval walks and the big 3) I can already feel an improvement after a few weeks of sticking to them.I would definitely recommend this book, it uses Brian's rehab and return to competition as a case study showing the effectiveness of Stuart McGills methods.

Gift of Injury by McGill & Carroll is a must read for anyone wanting to take their performance to the next level. Given how common back pain is and how most people will experience it at some point in their life this becomes mandatory material for anyone with a spine.As a healthcare practitioner that deals with both acute and chronic pain on a daily basis this book has added more wisdom to my repertoire that I pass along to my patients on their rehab journey every day. I learned years ago that with every injury you experience there are always two ways to look at it. You can take the negativity and victim approach or you can look for the silver lining or gift contained within. The only reason I got into medicine was because of my own health challenges and injuries. I assure you that nothing will teach you more about the human body- the muscles, tendons, bones, ligaments and joints than getting injured will.You must realize that if you want to achieve greatness in the athletic performance arena, that part of that journey will involve setbacks, tweaks, injuries and pain. That is what makes this process and journey such a beautiful one. Reading the narrative by Brian and Stu in this book spoke to me in a deep way. You'll be reminded that the end goal and destinations are fun to hit and amazing to achieve. However, the real pay dirt comes from the journey and steps you took along the way and the growth you gained from that entire process.Brian and Stu give you actionable steps to deconstruct what injured you in the first place and how you can go to work quickly on building yourself back up brick by brick. If you want to treat back pain, spinal issues and become the strongest version of yourself grab this book immediately.

Anyone who has broken, fractured, injured etc their back should read this, including trainers assisting someone rehab. I smashed my L1 and currently rehabbing at the moment - this book has provided very helpful insights.I will read more of Stu’s books after this.

As an athlete myself, I struggled with back pain and injuries for many years. Part narrative and instructional, this book brought both Brian's and Dr. McGill's stories into one to give it a unique take on the emotional side of overcoming an injury along with actionable methods you can apply to your own recovery journey.Been doing Dr. McGill's Big Three for a few weeks now and my SI joint pain has completely subsided!Athlete or not, give this book a read if you want to know more about injury prevention and rehabilitation.

This book arrived with a deep crease in the cover. Packaged in bubble wrap. Now considering how very expensive it was that's not cool. The book itself has extremely small print. I may need a magnifying glass to read it. My final gripe is that the ebook version is not available in my country which is absurd. The ebook price also is absurdly high. Regret having bought it now. Wish the ebook had been available.