Chinese pensioners are turning to a bizarre exercise craze to ease pain in the neck and back that involves suspending themselves from a harness around their necks.
Seriously, it looks painful, not to mention weird as hell. Loads of people are into it, though.
Pictures and videos are starting to appear on the Internet that show people swinging their body weight around while strapped via the neck into what is called a cervical (not that one) traction device.
It's effectively a leather harness that sits underneath the chin and takes the weight of an entire person. You sling it up between two bars - in a park, for example - and then swing around until you've had enough.
That sounds dead strange, but some people swear by it as a way to get rid of back and neck pain.
According to reports in the Chinese media, it is providing a load of much-needed relief in particular to older folks.
One 68-year-old woman in Qingdao is reported to have said: "The routine has healed my spinal issues. I don't have to take medication anymore."
She went on to say that she suspends herself from the device - which can be bought and assembled from a box - for half an hour each day.
Fair enough if it is making people feel better. It still looks like it hurts, mind.
There's even a video of the woman - called Song Lianyun - putting her head through the device with one strap under her chin and another at the back of her neck, then dangling herself from a set of high bars.
In another slightly unsettling part of the video, she then kicks away a stool from underneath herself and hangs herself from the bar.
She continued: "I can even take a nap on it. It's so comfortable."
Oh, great.
As you might imagine, not everyone knows about this practice and some people are being left horrified by seeing old people hanging in the park. Particularly - you'd think - if they're asleep.
One observer said: "It just looks so dangerous and frightening, strapping in your neck like that,"
The treatment acts by stretching out the vertebrae of your cervical (again, not that one) spine and neck, easing tension on nerves. Or, at least, that's what it is supposed to do.
It can cause side-effects such as dizziness, nausea and headaches. Also, don't do it for ages because it can damage your spine, back and neck.
In fact, unless you absolutely have to, maybe don't do this at all.
How about yoga?
Featured Image Credit: bilibili.comTopics: World News, Asia, Weird, China, Health