MOVING for Movember with Shaun Hampson

movember-hero

movember-hero

 

Official Mo Bro & ex-AFL player, Shaun Hampson, shares his passion for Movember and the reason why he chose to get onboard with the charity to change the face of men’s health. Supporting Movember this year, with a huge 60 kilometre run on 30th November from Mount Martha to St Kilda, Shaun put one foot in front of the other to raise funds and awareness for men’s health. That’s 60 kilometres for the 60 men we lose to suicide each hour, every hour across the world.

Shaun talks about the personal loss of his father to prostate cancer and why it’s such an important topic for men to get behind continue to talk about beyond the month of November.

 

 

When and why did you get involved as an Ambassador for Movember?

My involvement started quite a while ago now, going back to about 2011. I found out that Dad had prostate cancer in 2009, so Movember has been on the forefront of my mind for a while. When Dad got prostate cancer I wanted to do my part and do what I could do to support so got involved with Movember! I’ve been involved quite a few times now, growing a Mo with some friends trying to raise money and more recently took a formal turn as an Official Mo Bro. I love the organisation, love the transparency of where the funds go, love their messaging and that’s what it’s mainly about for me! The money is awesome and the more money we can raise the better, but if guys don’t talk about it and aren’t honest with themselves and their friends + family then the money means nothing. In my Dad’s case, if he spoke up and was honest about how he was feeling 6 months earlier, then he’d probably still be here today. It’s getting better, but guys still need to be prompted to talk about their mental health.

 

What does Movember mean to you?

Movember is a platform where one month a year, guys will Grow moustaches, they’ll Move 60 kilometres, they’ll Host parties, to not only raise money, but also raise awareness and get guys talking. It may be only one month out of the year, but it has carry-on over the rest of the year and also in the lead up to it. For me, it’s mainly about raising awareness about men’s mental health and getting guys to be honest, because it’s something that’s very close to my heart with what happened to my old man. At the end of the day, the donations are awesome, but the money means nothing without guys being honest.

 

Tell us about your 60 kilometre run in November – why did you chose to run 60 kilometres in one-go!?

I’ve grown a moustache about 5 or 6 times, so when I was talking to Movember about being a Mo Bro again, I was wrapped to find out there are other ways you can support them. The one that spoke to me was ‘Move’ – fitness is something I’m very passionate about.  

I got a lot of inspiration to run the 60 kilometre in one go from seeing people I follow, who work 9-5 jobs, completing the Melbourne marathon earlier this year. I thought; why can’t I do 60 kilometre in a day? I like setting challenges for myself – it’s been ingrained in me from football and I need that carrot dangling there at the end for me to chase. I’d never done anything like it before, so was really looking forward to it, not only because of what I thought I could get out of it for Movember (aim of raising $10,000), but also for myself – setting a goal and a big challenge to work towards. I love that euphoric feeling you get at the end!

 

Where is the 60 kilometre run and who is running with you? 

 

I’ve threw an open invite out to anyone that wanted to join in on the run! A few mates put their hand up to run a few 10 kilometre legs with me including Alex Rance, Shane Edwards and Ivan Maric. It was great to have them onboard and break up the run with someone different to talk to each 10 kilometres. When you’re running that distance you need your support team with you! Samantha Gash, Global lululemon Ambassador, also helped out with my hydration and nutrition. Sam was unreal because she’s obviously done much bigger runs than this and gave me a heads up about what I’d be feeling mental and physically throughout the run. In terms of a track, I had a few in mind. I went with Mount Martha to St Kilda which was 60 kilometres all up!

 

How can the community support you and get behind Movember?

 

The best way people can support is by talking to each other. I would almost prefer that than a donation. If one person messaged me and says they haven’t been feeling right and they spoke to someone about it because I prompted them and they feel better – then that’s the biggest outcome I could get out of it.

 

Finally, what are your personal pipeline goals and aspirations for 2020 and beyond?

I’m taking everything in my stride at the moment, I’ve got my café Ascot Food Store which we are just finishing up renovations at and we are planning on opening up a couple of nights with a brand new menu. I’m really excited to get it up and running as a great place to eat at night, but also somewhere you can go for breaky, brunch or lunch. On top of that, I’ve got a Fitness First collaboration coming up that I’ve been working on and am open to anything else that comes along throughout the year as long as it’s something I’m passionate about! Life’s too short to do something you’re not interested and excited about!

It’s time to speak up – men are dying too young. We can’t afford to stay silent.

To support Shaun Hampson you can donate to his Movember page and continue the conversation around men’s mental health:

mobro.co/shaunhampson16

If this story has brought up issues for you, help is available via Lifeline and movember.com/findhelp