Staying resilient in tough times - Mens Recovery and Wellbeing Retreats
By Carl Muir
Fishermen and women are by nature geared towards resilience. Having an interest in fishing and the outdoors means we are taking a step in the right direction of being well. Wellbeing ultimately comes from being a part of nature and the web of life, and over the years the human race has really lost its way as a remembering this.
New Zealand, is going through a health crisis. And its not Covid. Over a quarter of a million of our population has type 2 diabetes. Cancer, respiratory and ciculatory illnesses are rife. 1 in 5 people will have some sort of mental health issue this year.
What is the answer? Well, I am going to say...go fishing.
Going fishing connects us back to nature. We breath clean,fresh air. We relax, de stress, rejuvenate and it means we can put fresh healthy wild, non-toxic, unprocessed food on the table for our whanau and friends. With that comes a sense of self esteem and connection. When our mind, body and spirit are well, we are better able to adapt in tough times.
Going fishing reconnects us with how our ancestors thousands of years ago lived. And at that point, obesity, diabetes and cancer, well, they didn’t exist. Nor did mental health issues.
Two years ago, observing how fishing was so intrinsically linked to wellbeing, I decided to study a Preventative Health Coaching course through PreKure, to compliment my work as a fishing guide. Now, the experience I deliver is centred around wellbeing.
The first retreat experience we’ve offered at Provider has been a Men’s Wellbeing Retreat, recognising there was a huge need to address stress and mental burn out, and not a lot of real tools out there specifically for men to address it.
Over 4 days, my clients stop and push reset and disconnect from technology and the stress of daily life. For all the good that technology brings us, sometimes the best thing you can do is switch it off for a week. We talk candidly about how we are feeling and what is going on in our lives. Having a safe and judgement free environment helps people open up and get stuff off their chest. We move, learn new techniques around mindfulness, relaxation, breathing and yoga.
Plus, of course, we have a whole lot of fun on the water fishing, catching our kai. Joy, and doing what you love, and taking some time out for yourself is a fundamental part of being well. We eat well, and I show my brothers how to ditch the carbs and eat/cook a largely paleo/ketogenic way, which is easy when there is good clean hunted protein, and foraged goodness. A good example is reinventing the smoked fish pie - normally people would make it with a floury white sauce - mine has no gluten, using a cauliflower puree instead of a white sauce and loads of veges. That way you cut out the inflammatory ingredients and add more minerals and vitamins.
I love a beer as much as the next guy, but these retreats are also alcohol free. Booze is such a rampant part of NZ fishing culture, and to be honest, not much help if you find yourself in the middle of a health crisis. Too often it can add to the stress if your life, not solve it. Taking some time to step away from it is bloody good for the mind, body and soul.
In these times is definitely time to question, how resilient are you?
Resilience doesn’t mean putting on a tough exterior. It means feeling, It means dealing with past grief, shame, regrets you have stored away inside your body.These are the things that cause chronic illness. It means being able to adapt, grow and be less reliant on systems that don’t serve us. It means getting back to basics and being present. If you’d like to know more, we’ve got more retreats coming up over the next couple of months, call me on 021 227 4354 to register or drop us a line here
What can you expect on a retreat? Over a typical work week we take a step back in time to how men used to eat, move and thrive. There's a good healthy dose of fishing involved, but its more than just a fishing escape. You'll learn a whole lot of tools to access mental calmness in your every day life. You'll learn about what constitutes a really good nutrient rich diet to fuel the mind, body and soul. Your host is a qualified PreKure Health Coach. You'll have the space to talk and get anything off your chest that you may not normally be able to do in your normal circle. We take care of everything for a week - exceptional kai, and a week of exploring and connecting with nature. We're getting great results with out clients. If this sounds like the sort of break you need now, reach out