NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Lifestyle

Gill South: Time to man up

NZ Herald
11 Nov, 2012 08:30 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Most men are loath to consult a doctor for a niggle or injury. Photo / Thinkstock

Most men are loath to consult a doctor for a niggle or injury. Photo / Thinkstock

Opinion by

Gill South discovers that the typical Kiwi male's reluctance to admit to ailments or injuries is not good for their health.

I'm in a waiting room at the unearthly hour of 10 past seven in the morning to see Mt Eden physiotherapist, David Woodbridge. This time it's not for me, but my son Fintan, whose back has been protesting when he does too much bowling. It's the beginning of the cricket season, I want to get any niggles sorted out sooner rather than later.

David is at Functional Physio, across the road from the Auckland Boys' Grammar hockey field, and he helps lots of sporty schoolboys and grown-ups. His assessment of Fintan is that he has a couple of muscle imbalances in the way he stands, he holds his pelvis in an unusual way. If he keeps on doing his sport and overbowling, without strengthening his growing muscles, he might end up with a stress fracture. We are given five exercises to help with this.

I'm hoping we've caught things in time.

I think a lot of Kiwi boys throw themselves at all kinds of sport as my boys do, and then end up with long-term injuries later on.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

I tell Professor Grant Schofield, the co-author, with Buck Shelford, of Buck Up, The Real Bloke's Guide to Getting Healthy and Living Longer, that I see a lot of ex-sporty types at my gym and sometimes it's not pretty. They tend to look athletic but overweight and push themselves with a personal trainer. They look pretty miserable, poor loves. You can see them thinking, "I'd rather be on a rugby field."

The other problem with men and their approach to health is they are loath to consult a doctor if something is wrong, says Grant. They may not admit something like they are bleeding from their bowel until they are halfway out the door.

Women on the other hand, tend to look after themselves better, exercise more consistently and do all right with food and diet. They are able to get a bit hungry at times and not immediately eat. (Not me, guys). Men, says Grant, who is Professor of Public Health at AUT University, don't seem to be able to deal with hunger and not eating. At the same time, they have quite sedentary lifestyles and their jobs can be highly stressful. These lawyers, accountants, entrepreneurs, their jobs are never finished and they snack on sweet things to keep going.

Grant, unsurprisingly, is pretty anti-sugar - although he says I can keep eating my dark chocolate in small amounts. His challenge to men is to eat more lean protein and fruit and vegetables. Do it for a week, he says, eating nothing but. For the first three days you will feel awful but after that you will have lots of energy. I think (for a minute) about doing it with you all, then I remember Dry July. I think I've suffered enough for my art this year.

But I'll follow Grant's recommendation for exercise. This depends on how much you move as part of your everyday life, he says. Get a pedometer and see how close you get to 10,000 steps. I might just do that. There are big benefits to vigorous exercise, he says, making yourself huff and puff. He suggests doing this most days or at least three times a week. You may need as little as 20 minutes but get into it, he advises. Exercise is medicine and you earn the right to be fit and healthy by what you do each day.

Next week:

Discover more

Opinion

Rebecca Kamm: Would you trust a man to take the pill?

21 Aug 10:30 PM
Lifestyle

Fit families need healthy, happy fathers

01 Sep 05:30 PM
Lifestyle

Book Review: Richie McCaw - The Open Side

11 Oct 04:30 PM
Lifestyle

Sites for men's health

09 Nov 04:00 PM

I gave the blokes some love this week, so it will be next week that I take on aqua-pilates, a world first in New Zealand.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Lifestyle

Lifestyle

Woolworths issues major recall of contaminated mince

02 Jul 10:36 PM
RoyalsUpdated

Princess of Wales opens up about cancer recovery's 'new normal'

02 Jul 08:02 PM
Premium
Lifestyle

I’m a relationship psychotherapist – this is how to put your divorce behind you

02 Jul 07:00 PM

Sponsored: Get your kids involved in your reno

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

Woolworths issues major recall of contaminated mince

Woolworths issues major recall of contaminated mince

02 Jul 10:36 PM

Some customers found 'foreign matter' in their meals before the recall was announced.

Princess of Wales opens up about cancer recovery's 'new normal'

Princess of Wales opens up about cancer recovery's 'new normal'

02 Jul 08:02 PM
Premium
I’m a relationship psychotherapist – this is how to put your divorce behind you

I’m a relationship psychotherapist – this is how to put your divorce behind you

02 Jul 07:00 PM
Premium
Society Insider: Martin Henderson’s house with Kiwi girlfriend; Designer expands into Arrowtown; AFC star’s romantic proposal

Society Insider: Martin Henderson’s house with Kiwi girlfriend; Designer expands into Arrowtown; AFC star’s romantic proposal

02 Jul 05:00 PM
Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper
sponsored

Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP