• ABOUT
  • ADVERTISE
  • SUPPORT
  • CONTACT
  • WORK
Monday, February 18, 2019
Shanghaiist
8 °c
Shanghai
7 ° Sat
6 ° Sun
6 ° Mon
5 ° Tue
5 ° Wed
9 ° Thu
  • NEWS

    Trump praises China’s use of death penalty for drug dealers, implies that the US should follow suit

    Chinese billionaire calls Australia a “giant baby” after having his permanent residency revoked

    Air NZ flight to Shanghai was forced to turn back because of Taiwan reference in paperwork

    China releases video of Uighur musician to show he wasn’t tortured to death in re-education camp

    On mock cooking show, Taiwan premier trolls China with Winnie the Pooh doll

    China does even worse than usual in latest global freedom ranking

    “Exploitation.” Awkward translation faux pas spotted at China-Africa friendship event

    US hits Huawei with 23 criminal indictments for violating Iran sanctions, stealing trade secrets

    Canada’s ambassador to China fired after making more controversial comments about Meng Wanzhou case

    George Soros calls Xi Jinping the world’s “most dangerous opponent” to open societies

    Bing is back! Microsoft’s search engine is no longer blocked in China

    Chinese meat giant’s stocks surge after founder returns home following 3-year “disappearance”

    Canada’s ambassador to China says Meng Wanzhou has a “strong case” for fighting extradition

    China has blocked Bing

    Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun detained in China

    McDonald’s accused of supporting Taiwan independence with “controversial” commercial

    Massive sky corridor connected atop four skyscrapers in Chongqing

    Huawei founder says his company does not spy for China and would refuse if Beijing asked

    China issues travel alert of its own, warning its citizens about visiting Canada

    Canada issues China travel warning after Canadian is sentenced to death for drug smuggling

  • L!FE
  • FOOD
  • GALLERY
  • VIDEO

    This is what a ¥10,000 seafood dinner looks like in Guangzhou

    WATCH: Heroic firefighter drags burning gas cylinder out of house

    WATCH: How to run a tea scam at Starbucks

    WATCH: Dude writes Chinese calligraphy on stone with power grinder

    WATCH: Rodrigo Duterte, Kim Jong-un impersonators mobbed in Hong Kong

    WATCH: Incredible synchronized performance from Shaolin students at this year’s Spring Festival Gala

    WATCH: Aerial footage of massive 5 km long traffic jam on Guangdong expressway during CNY rush

    PLA soldiers celebrate Chinese New Year by forming the shape of Peppa the Pig

    Photography Friday: An interview with Huang Xiaoliang

    Hangzhou hotel opens up hot pot-style hot spring for hungry guests

    Boy puts lit fireworks down manhole cover, blows up sidewalk

    Meet the kids who grew up in Chinese restaurants

    WATCH: Apple marks Chinese New Year with short, sweet film shot by Jia Zhangke on an iPhone XS

    Chinese internet falls in love with big fluffy emotional support dog on passenger plane

    WATCH: Bull escapes slaughterhouse, charges woman in restaurant

    WATCH: Aerial footage of Wuhan’s mindblowingly massive bullet train maintenance center

    WATCH: Shanxi principal replaces boring morning exercise routine with super cool dance moves

    WATCH: Laowai rents a Chinese dad

    WATCH: Chinese passersby get asked if they live in a democratic country

    Space-saving inclined parking lot opens for business in Chongqing

  • EVENTS
    • DINING
      • BRUNCH
      • AFTERNOON TEA
    • NIGHTLIFE
      • LADIES’ NIGHT
      • HAPPY HOUR
      • MUSIC
    • EXHIBITIONS
      • ART SHOWS
      • TRADE FAIRS
    • COMMUNITY
    • EDUCATION
    • ★ LIST YOUR EVENT
    • ★ BE A VENUE PARTNER
    • ★ SUBMIT A GALLERY
  • TICKETS
    • FAQ
No Result
View All Result
Shanghaiist
No Result
View All Result
Shanghaiist
No Result
View All Result

Michael Phelps is a big believer in cupping, shows off his purple bruises on the Olympic stage

by Shanghaiist
May 5, 2018
in News

phelps-4.png
Superstar American swimmer, Michael Phelps, left spectators bewildered during the 4x100m freestyle relay at the 2016 Rio Olympics earlier this week.
phelps-5.png
And no, it wasn’t because Phelps yet again led the US team to victory. Instead, the gawking stares were directed at the athlete’s back. Adorned with bulbous purple bruises, making him look like something straight out of a sci-fi film.
phelps-7.png
michael_phelps_cupping3.jpg
michael_phelps_cupping2.jpg
However, anyone familiar with traditional Chinese medicine knows that those marks are not the result of an alien abduction, but instead come from cupping therapy.
phelps-1.png
Cupping therapy has been around in China for a long time. The theory is that toxins from within the body can be gathered and sucked up to the outer layer of the skin. Practitioners claim that the treatment promotes good blood flow and psychological balance in order to ensure natural healing of the body and muscles. More recently, cupping therapy has become all the rage among celebs and athletes alike, who swear by its effectiveness and healing properties.
“Imagine if you have a tent and some of the cords are too tight, it’s going to distort how the entire tent functions,” explains Kevin Rindal, one of only four chiropractors in the world that Phelps will allow to work on his body. “The athlete’s muscles have to be in perfect tension. If it’s too tight on one side, neurologically it can cause other muscles to not fire as well.”
phelps-3.png
It’s impossible to say whether the therapy has given Phelps an advantage or not, he was already pretty good at swimming before. But, the swimmer himself remains convinced that cupping gives him an edge, and he just won his 19th Olympic gold medal, so who are we to argue?
“I have done it for a while but I haven’t had bad ones like this for a while. That’s where they usually hurt the most,” Phelps says while rubbing his right shoulder. “I’ve done it before pretty much every meet I go to. I just asked for a little cupping yesterday because I was sore and the trainer hit me pretty hard with one and left a couple of bruises.”
Will Phelps purple-dotted back help bring cupping even more into the mainstream?
phelps-6.png
Well, whatever Phelps is doing, the athlete remains unstoppable. Lets just hope he doesn’t get carried away with cupping like this 63-year-old man from Sichuan.
By Robin Winship
[Images via People’s Daily / NetEase]

Share this:

  • Pocket
  • Telegram
  • Print
Shanghaiist

© 2005-2018 Shanghaiist - China in bite-sized portions!

Navigate Site

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Join the Community
  • List Your Event
  • Be a Venue Partner
  • Submit a Gallery
  • Work with us
  • Privacy & Terms
  • Contact

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • NEWS
  • L!FE
  • FOOD
  • GALLERY
  • VIDEO
  • EVENTS
    • DINING
      • BRUNCH
      • AFTERNOON TEA
    • NIGHTLIFE
      • LADIES’ NIGHT
      • HAPPY HOUR
      • MUSIC
    • EXHIBITIONS
      • ART SHOWS
      • TRADE FAIRS
    • COMMUNITY
    • EDUCATION
    • ★ LIST YOUR EVENT
    • ★ BE A VENUE PARTNER
    • ★ SUBMIT A GALLERY
  • TICKETS
    • FAQ

© 2005-2018 Shanghaiist - China in bite-sized portions!