Projects that get men moving to share their knowledge at Men's Health Connected
The Australian Men’s Health Forum is highlighting some of the best projects in Australia that use sport, exercise and social connection to improve men's health as part of the Men’s Health Connected online summit on 16-20 May 2022.
The event is free to attend and explores a range of topics and themes including “Getting Men Moving”, which is the focus of Day 2 (Tuesday 17 May).
Starting at 1.30pm, the first session focuses on “Connecting Through Exercise” and features three great projects: Mongrels Men, Penrith Men’s Walk and Talk and the men’s health app Greg.
Billy Beggs, one of the founders of Penrith Men’s Walk and Talk which promotes physical, mental and social health by bringing men together for a free weekly walk around the Nepean River. Dozens of local men take part in the walk every week and around 10,000 people follow the group’s progress on social media.
Tim Hewson began Mongrels Men on the Northern Beaches of Sydney and the group now has a presence in Manly, Dee Why, Bondi, Terrigal, Kingscliff with more to come. It works to improve the mental and physical health and wellbeing of men through a range of activities including walk and talks, beach runs, swimming, surfing and competitive soccer.
Simon Luhrs of the company Mensana for Life will provide an update on “Greg”, a tech platform that makes it easy for men to get active and connect, to catch up with mates, find new ones, and find activities and events to do.
Session 2 (Yes, Real Men Do Yoga) brings together Yoga instructors who specialise in making yoga accessible to men. Steve Jeff of YogaJak on the Sunshine Coast; Greg Cawley, who offers men-only yoga in Toowoomba and Tim Oddie, who runs Yoga For Men sessions in Geelong, will share their experiences.
Session 3 (Getting Physical) highlights three projects with a particular focus on men’s physical wellbeing and addresses issues like weight loss for rural men and helping men recover from prostate cancer.
Dr Jo Milios is a men’s health physiotherapist who founded PROST!, a community-based not-for-profit exercise program which aims to to educate, inspire and support men in their experiences with prostate cancer. PROST! is committed to serving men in their quest for better health, through their focus on enhancing Muscle, Mateship and Mood.
Tess Colliver is the Executive Officer at Fat Farmers, a South Australian project that works to inspire and encourage farmers and those living in rural communities to improve their health and wellbeing through physical activity.
Fat Farmers started in 2010 on the Yorke Peninsula and now has numerous groups across the state catering for a variety of fitness levels and ages, from school children to retirees!
Anthony Lett is a renowned Pilates teacher who runs the StretchFit Studio in Brisbane and author of the book Stretching for Stiffies. Anthony runs a men's-only Stiffies class which as catering for “men who are stiff in all the wrong places’!
The final session of the day focuses on the theme “Working It Out” and brings together three inspirational men.
Warren Leppan is an exercise coach who has built a community of like-minded men who are focused on getting into shape and living happy and healthy lives. His Modern Man Project provides an online coaching program for men with a specific focus on building muscle and losing weight.
Michael Murphy is the founder of Beyond the Barbell, a Melbourne-based mental health support group for people who want to meet, work out and chat. The project emerged out of Michael’s lived experience of struggling with mental health challenges and finding that the gym provided mateship, banter and friends checking in when he didn’t show up for a workout.
Lachie Stuart is the founder of The Man That Can project in Toowoomba, a community of men working towards health and fitness groups through small group training and performance coaching. Lachie will talk about his Strong Man of Value 12-week program which combines online physical training with coaching and support to help participants improve their wellbeing by working on all areas of their life.
As well as learning about the work of a dozen great men's health initiatives, we will also be selecting one project to win a prize of $1,000 thanks to a generous donation from Bulk Nutrients.