2 minute read
Mens Medicine
Man on a mission
WHAT STARTED AS A WALK IN NATURE ON THE GOLD COAST HINTERLAND HAS BECOME A POWERFUL MOVEMENT FOR HELPING MEN, WOMEN AND COUPLES LIVE THEIR BEST LIVES
Health and fitness coach Lino Hola says three lightbulb moments led him to create Mens Medicine, a wellbeing support organisation that prides itself on creating a safe space for men to talk and connect while walking in nature.
“The first was talking to a guy at the gym who had lost his wife,” Lino, 38, says. “I could see the impact of his loss was still affecting him years later.
“I thought then that even though I was predominantly coaching women as a personal trainer, that I could create a oneday workshop to help men.”
The dad of two from Queensland’s Broadbeach says the second trigger was a walk he took with a friend in the Gold Coast hinterland.
“As we were out there my mate said to me, ‘Brother, we need to get more men out on walks like this’, and that’s where the idea started.”
The third and final part of the puzzle fell into place when they returned to do the same 20km walk with a small group of men. A video taken along the way was posted online and went viral.
“The raw emotion and expression captured, sparked something,” Lino recalls.
“We started getting messages from men everywhere about doing walks in their cities, and from that one video Mens Medicine was born.”
The best medicine
In Australia the statistics show one in eight men will experience depression and one in five anxiety. Men also make up an average seven out of nine suicides every day in Australia.
Lino believes it was the image of a group of big, strong men against the backdrop of lush rainforest allowing themselves to be vulnerable that struck a chord.
“Our workshops start off as a walk with strangers in nature but people come back as brothers,” Lino says.
“We’re creating a safe space where they can be seen and heard without judgment. It’s like a permission slip to share.”
Believing breath is medicine, the walks also include breath work and mindfulness exercises “and the barriers come down”, he says.
In two years Mens Medicine has exploded in popularity, with walks and workshops now held for men, women and couples across Australia and New Zealand.
“Our aim is to help people live their best life, whether that’s having better relationships or creating businesses or just living
CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE: The nature walks can include men and women; Lino Hola and his daughter Kayilah face each other during one of the experiences; Lino went for a walk with a mate and Mens Medicine was born; The Holas: Lino, Kayilah, Ocean (now aged 1) and wife Sarah.
their purpose,” the fitness coach says of the program.
“We hope that through connection we’re able to build community, and that through a sense of community we’re able to create a stronger, better culture and way of living.
“If less men are taking their lives, if there’s less divorce, less domestic violence — if those things which are tearing society apart are decreasing in even a small way and men are taking better care of themselves and their families, we’re doing our part.”
