For nearly four decades, Kirk Windstein has been the immovable object of sludge metal, a figure synonymous with physical resilience and sonic heaviness. However, the Crowbar frontman and guitarist recently faced one of the most physically challenging periods of his career, forcing him to perform the band’s late summer tour entirely from a seated position.
In a candid new interview on “The Jasta Show,” the video podcast hosted by Hatebreed frontman Jamey Jasta, Windstein opened up about the severity of the back injury that derailed his mobility, his unorthodox pain management during the tour, and the strict rehabilitation regimen he is currently undertaking.
The issues began late in the summer of 2025, just as Crowbar was preparing for a U.S. co-headlining trek with NOLA peers Eyehategod. Windstein suffered what he described as a severe sciatica flare-up or a potentially ruptured disc in his lower spine. The pain was debilitating enough that he required a cane and a walker off-stage, but he refused to cancel the dates.
Reflecting on how he survived the rigors of the road while unable to stand, Windstein revealed to Jasta that he relied on a specific, albeit admittedly unhealthy, coping mechanism, while turning down illicit help from well-meaning fans.
“I’ll say one thing: I appreciate it, but I’ve never had enough people offer me pain pills and get me w**d because I don’t smoke,” Windstein said. “I don’t even need edibles or anything. So I’d be, like, ‘Thanks, man.’ I’d have a whole bunch of s**t and I’d just give it to Tommy [Buckley, Crowbar drummer] and Matt [Brunson, Crowbar guitarist]. And Pat [Bruders, Crowbar bassist] smokes too. I’m, like, ‘Whatever, man. Y’all have fun.'”
Instead of narc**ics, Windstein admitted to self-medicating with alcohol to numb the nerve pain, a strategy he has since abandoned in favor of recovery.
“All I did was I tried to drink a lot… Some people are, like, ‘Well, you really ought to not drink beer.’ I’m, like, ‘I get it. I shouldn’t.’ But that was my pain pill,” he explained. “But I really just did electrolytes and a lot of water every morning and all day. And I took four Ibuprofen at one time, maybe in mid-afternoon, and as far as pain medication, that was it.”
Since the tour wrapped on August 31 in Pensacola, Florida, Windstein has shifted his focus entirely to physical therapy and lifestyle changes. With the help of his wife, Robin, he has sought MRI scans to pinpoint the damage and has overhauled his gym routine to accommodate his limited mobility.
The musician, known for his dedication to fitness, has had to abandon his usual high-intensity training in favor of low-impact movements to repair the damage done by weeks of immobility.
“My thing now is I’m extremely limited in the gym in lifting. I can’t press anything overhead. I can only lift sitting down, only exercises sitting down,” Windstein detailed. “So dumbbells, seated dumbbell curls and things like that for biceps. It’s very limited. I don’t stand up for any of the exercises.”
He continued, highlighting the severity of the physical toll the injury took on his legs: “I had a lot of muscle atrophy in my legs from not walking correctly for f**king six weeks or something.”
To combat this, Windstein has become a fixture on the recumbent bike, utilizing a “seated Life Cycle” that offers back support, keeping the setting on the lowest possible resistance to avoid stressing his spine. His routine now consists of 30 minutes of cycling followed by extensive stretching sessions.
“The difference from… Like today, for instance, or yesterday… when I walked out of the place, I felt amazing,” he shared. “Every day is just improvements. I haven’t been drinking at all. [I’m following a] really clean diet and I gotta just pretty much stick to it.”
The recovery update follows Windstein’s initial statement released in August, where he first broke the news to fans that he would be performing seated. At the time, he expressed a “show must go on” mentality that defines his career.
“I don’t call in sick. I’m there to give y’all a hundred percent and please the fans the best I can,” he wrote at the time. “I can’t walk right now, and that’s the truth. I’ve got a cane, I’ve got a walker, and I’ve never had this kind of pain in my life. I’m 60 years old, and I’ve never had this pain in my life.”
Despite the lingering “dull pain” in his back and the shooting nerve pain in his legs that tests his balance even during mundane tasks like grocery shopping, Windstein remains optimistic.
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