Back to our Roots: Fishing and Men's Wellbeing

Well known fishing guide and now health coach Carl Muir has combined the best of these two spheres in a men’s wellbeing retreat, which offers participants a fresh view on life and a great few days on the water.

I want to start this article off with a hard hitting question: how many people do you know who have died before their time from cancer, stroke or heart disease? Or, how many of you know a person whose life is negatively impacted currently by obesity, diabetes or mental illness? I am going to guess that everyone could think of someone. 

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I imagine there might have been a few tears come to people’s eyes when they think of what it would be like to still have some of those they loved still here on earth in a healthy state. For me, my thoughts immediately go to my Dad dying of a brain tumour in 2014 at the age of 63. I would give anything to still have him here today, for him to spend more time with his grandkids he loved and meet my partner who has never seen his smile, heard his laugh or experienced his gentle nature. 

I’ve been wanting to get a touch more philosophical in a fishing magazine for a while now. I read with interest Sam Mossman’s NZ Fishing News article about how fishermen evolve over their lifetime and I concur with what he had to say. I might take the liberty of delving a bit deeper.

Because, you see, I think being fishermen connects us back to our true purpose as human beings. Putting our bare feet in the sand, gazing out to sea, casting a line in the water, catching our own fresh nutritious sustenance, sometimes after an epic battle, and even better, providing this healthy kai to people we love – these are the things which give meaning to fishermen.

Nothing beats catching your own fresh kaimoana.

Nothing beats catching your own fresh kaimoana.

As fishermen, we are so, so close to leading long healthy lives. I would say we are 85% there. Yet, why do we still have our mates falling over way, way too early? Humans are meant to live well past 100. And when I say live – I mean really LIVE. This doesn’t mean spending the last thirty years of life having hips and knees replaced and relying on medication.

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We live in a society where we have largely forgotten why we are here in the first place. Recent times might serve as a reminder of just how much longer we have left here as a species if we don’t rediscover some fundamental truths. As a planet, we are still squabbling over the colour of our skin, imaginary lines across country borders, who’s got the best of this and that, and more pertinently, how we should protect ourselves from ‘illnesses’ that mother nature is throwing in front of us.

We’ve put money, things and pleasing and impressing other people over our own wellbeing and the wellbeing of our planet. Our destiny is often placed, way, way too much in the hands of multinational corporations. It is time we took our own power back.

Our ancestors, and I am talking thousands of years ago, never had the morbidity (or rate of disease in a population) us modern humans have. That is because they moved, lots, every day. Humans are the endurance animal of the planet. Hunting, foraging, gathering, we used to travel miles every day. Our ancestors ate largely unprocessed diets of animal and plant protein, and animal and plant fats. Our DNA has not changed but our way of life and environment has and it is no wonder we are getting sick.

Fast forward to the modern day, and I can reflect on ten years of seeing guys jump on my boat, often hungover, with pies, processed carbohydrate-loaded lunches, sugary energy drinks and cigarettes. To top it off, they head off to the pub on the way home after the day’s fishing. I’m not going to point the finger, because that has been me over the years as well. I’ve definitely been blessed to meet some amazing people in my career as a fishing guide. I’ve always hoped the experience on the water has been good for them, giving them the opportunity for good quality relaxation, a place to connect with nature and for taking healthy protein and animal fat back to their families and friends. But I’ve felt it could always evolve a bit further.

My journey over the last five years has seen me drawn towards studying and experiencing new diets and lifestyles which are very in tune with our way of life as fishermen. I’ve needed to heal myself at times. More and more I tweak my offering as a guide towards experiences that will help serve my valued customers and the people around them. I’ve just finished a six-month health coach course, and an epiphany for me is how closely linked wellbeing is to hunter gathering. Who would have thought that going fishing or diving for a few days is as good as going to the gym or going on a diet? It can be – if we do it the right way.

Fishing and diving is good for the soul.

Fishing and diving is good for the soul.

I would love to still be around, casting a stickbait, diving for crays and cooking a feed while my great grandchildren are there to join in the fun. From what I am currently learning and studying, this is not only possible, but our fundamental birth right. And it shouldn’t take a magic pill, surgery, or a jab in the arm to achieve; it means doing what we love and what we were here to do in the first place. 

I shared my journey recently on one of our Provider Men’s Wellbeing Retreats. Ironically, it was held the week before the first lockdown of 2020. We kicked things off by grounding ourselves, harvesting a patch of kumara I planted last October. This nutritious plant was the basis for many meals, and was matched with our catch over the next few days, along with other green goodness from our garden. Together with the three awesome human beings who signed up for my first retreat, we reflected on our own journeys as Kiwi blokes over the years, and ways in which we wanted to grow in years to come. And, of course, we caught some cracking kingis. But most importantly, we went into the lockdown as very strong human beings who were determined to still be there as very powerful forces in the lives of our loved ones, for many years to come.

Fresh scallops and sashimi.

Fresh scallops and sashimi.

If you’re intrigued by what I have written and you’d like to delve into some of this stuff a little more, enjoy some banging fresh cooking straight out of the Coromandel ocean and from my garden, and connect with other like-minded good buggers, give me a call and jump on one of our upcoming Provider retreats. I can guarantee you will feel better for it.

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   This article is reproduced with permission of   
New Zealand Fishing News

January 2021 - Carl Muir
Re-publishing elsewhere is prohibited

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