8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back – 1st Edition (English)

The original edition of the international bestseller. Why are back problems so much more common in industrialised countries than in traditional societies? Esther Gokhale studied posture and movement in places where back pain is rare. In 8 Steps to a Pain-Free Back, she brings her findings together in a step-by-step guide.

The 1st edition is the basis for the German and Spanish translations. A revised 2nd edition (2025) is now available.

What you will learn

In eight lessons, Esther Gokhale shows you step by step how to change everyday postures:

• Sitting: leaning back with a lengthened spine (stretchsitting) and sitting upright on your sitz bones without a backrest (stacksitting)
• Lying: on your back and on your side in a way that lengthens the spine
• Standing: relaxed and upright, with your weight over your heels
• The inner corset: using your deep core muscles to support the spine
• Bending: hinging at the hips instead of rounding your back
• Walking: a natural, gliding gait

Every lesson is illustrated with numerous photos and drawings. No equipment and no extra workout time are needed: you practise while doing what you do anyway.

Which edition is right for you?

The techniques are the same in every edition. If you read English, the 2nd edition is the most up-to-date and most richly illustrated version, with QR codes linking straight to videos of the techniques.

Book details

About the author

Esther Gokhale studied biochemistry at Harvard and Princeton. After suffering a herniated disc herself, she set out to understand the causes of back problems and studied posture and movement in places where back pain is rare, such as Burkina Faso, rural Portugal and Brazilian fishing villages. From this she developed the Gokhale Method®, which is now taught in courses around the world. More about Esther Gokhale and the Gokhale Method

Would you like to learn the techniques in person? Find courses and teachers near you