Hunching over screens is ruining your posture — this gizmo aims to fix that

By Luke Dormehl January 25, 2018

FitNeck Video

There is a whole lot to love about today’s world of constant connectivity, in which the smartphones in our pockets are thousands of times more powerful than the computer that put a man on the moon. Something that is not so great? The fact that we spend so darn long staring at these screens that it’s easy to ruin your posture.

A new product available on Kickstarter promises to help us fight that problem, however. Called FitNeck Pro, it’s a neck exercise device that is designed to correct forward head posture and neck pain caused by hunching over cell phones and laptops all day. It does this by strengthening the neck and back to pull the head back in line with shoulders, using a cervical retraction device with a resistance hinge to add extra intensity. The result, its creator claims, releases tension on the spinal cord to reduce pain and inflammation.

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OK, so messing around with your neck with a gadget you bought on Kickstarter sounds like it’s a bit risky. But FitNeck’s creator James McNulty assures customers that it is based on a regularly employed exercise, created by physiotherapists, that consists of a chin tuck movement, using a towel or elastic band as resistance behind the head. The wall or chair-mounted FitNeck was developed in collaboration with industry professionals and athletes.

“After suffering for years with neck pain from sitting at my laptop all day, I finally went to the chiropractor, who sent me home with neck exercises doing the chin tuck,” McNulty told Digital Trends. “It worked well at first, but wasn’t very easy or convenient to do, so I thought to myself, ‘There has to be a better way.’ I couldn’t find any products online, so I began to develop my own.”

If you would like to get your hands (and, eventually, neck) on a FitNeck Pro, you can currently back its Kickstarter online. Prices start at $56 for a single unit, which McNulty says represents $66 off the eventual retail price. Shipping is set to take place in March. That’s just in time to start correcting your posture for summer!

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