In Australia, around 1.5 million men report lifting weights regularly, with countless young guys in their teens, twenties and beyond structuring their lifestyle around building their body in the gym.

For many, the gym is a safe haven providing structure, growth and community providing huge physical and mental health benefits. But there is a dark side… with research showing one in ten gym-going men may experience muscle dysmorphia, a body image disorder based on an obsession with not being muscular enough.

The dramatic rise of young fitness influencers, and constant exposure to extreme, often steroid-enhanced physiques on social media, has raised the standard of what’s now considered impressive to heights that would’ve been unthinkable a few decades ago. Making it harder and harder for young men to separate their expectations from what’s realistically attainable.

For gym rats, bodybuilders, and teenagers just starting their fitness journeys, the drive to get bigger and leaner can easily become all consuming if not tempered with a healthy perspective.

Oli and Rayan are 21-year-old natural bodybuilders prepping to compete for the first time. Their journey started like many others — as overweight school boys chasing confidence and control. Years later, they’ve built the bodies they used to wish they had, but it’s hard to love the way you are when the goal posts keep moving.

This is Oli Wright and Rayan Abou-Hamdan.

Research shows around 30% of male suicides are linked to separation, and men who are separated or divorced are up to 3 times more likely to die by suicide compared to those in stable relationships.

Scott knows this pain all too well. Enduring a brutal six-year divorce, he was dragged through the family court, given limited access to his children, and found himself stuck in a storm of depression and pressure that threatened to consume him.

Exhausted, with suicidal thoughts running rampant, Scott was at the end of his tether when he made a commitment to rebuild — starting by finally opening up. It’s the reason he’s alive today, and a big part of why he founded Kokoda Centurions — a community-driven project that’s much more than a trek through the jungle.

This August, Scott will lead a group of 100 on a transformative journey along the Kokoda Trail, building resilience, fostering emotional strength, and taking a stand for men’s mental health. At its core is a movement promoting healthy masculinity and putting the responsibility on men to speak up and call out disrespect toward women.

This is Scott Matthews...

Before his chest was cracked open on the operating table, Nick Hudson was already battling something less visible — depression.

He refused to talk about it, pushed people away who tried to be there for him, and wouldn't admit the truth to himself...

Then came the life-saving open-heart surgery that forced everything to stop. Recovery was brutal. The silence got louder. And the darkness got darker before it got better.

Years earlier, Nick had kicked off a casual push-up challenge with his mates — just a fun way to stay active. But now, faced with his own mental health spiral, he realised it could be something much more.

He reimagined the challenge as a national movement to raise awareness and funding for mental health — tying each push-up to a powerful statistic, breaking down stigma one rep at a time.

Today, The Push-Up Challenge has raised over $50 million, engaged hundreds of thousands of Australians, and helped spark honest conversations in homes, schools and gyms across the country.

The Push-Up Challenge's success is rooted in it being a fun way to spark mental health conversations and foster a positive culture of looking after yourself and others - turning a physical challenge into a shared mission.

This is Nick Hudson...

In his early twenties Brodie felt invincible, approaching life like the world revolved around him as he chased one high to the next.

It wasn’t long till Brodie had his first child unplanned, at a time he was far from ready to accept responsibility, refusing to change his party lifestyle.

His recklessness carried on, and before long he fathered a second child with another woman, and then a third.

Still, it wasn’t the wake up call he needed to grow up and settle down and the tumultuous relationship ended with him walking out - much to his regret.

Brodie had never given his mental health the time of day, thinking it was a waste of time and living by the traditional Aussie throwaway line, “you’ll be right", but eventually he wasn’t…

When the party finally ended, the lights came on and Brodie was left with nothing but his mistakes, and the realisation that he had only himself to blame.

Living back with his parents, alone at 29 after another break up Brodie, was in such a hole he didn’t think he’d see 30, that’s when he finally reached out and started climbing.

This is Brodie Toomey...

He was labelled the best in the world at 12 years old — a tennis prodigy bound for greatness, striving alongside a father who was obsessed with his success.

Todd describes his younger years as Groundhog Day, an endless 24 hour cycle hell bent on high performance, in which every tiny detail was put under constant scrutiny.

After many years of knowing no other way to live, Todd hit a wall and had the realisation he was done with the sport that had made him a machine.

He soon spiralled into self destruction, trying to annihilate the identity he couldn’t stand.

Todd’s twenties were a blur dominated by alcoholism, with drinking becoming a foundation of the next chapter of his complicated relationship with his father.

Eventually Todd got sober and has managed to stay that way for 5 years, thanks in part to the environment provided by Alcoholics Anonymous.

He doesn’t have the answers and he hates the idea of telling anyone else how to fix their problems. What he does have to share is a real experience and he’ll give it to you straight.

This is Todd Ley...

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Find more info about Todd and order his book 'Smashed' here: https://toddley.com.au/

In Australia, 1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage, 1 in 100 are ectopic, and thousands of babies are born still each year.

Child loss during pregnancy is utterly devastating for the people who experience it—and despite being so common, the grief that follows often remains hidden. This is especially true for men, who can feel obligated to suppress their own distress in order to stay strong for their partner, unintentionally sidelining the magnitude of their own loss.

Through her work as a clinical psychologist and CEO of Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia, Julie Borninkhof has dedicated her career to supporting people through pregnancy loss, postnatal depression, and the quiet, often unseen struggles that many parents face.

In this episode, we chat about what it’s really like for men to lose a child—the isolation, the strain on relationships, and the pressure to move on too quickly. We explore why so many men struggle to give themselves permission to grieve, and where to begin to process a loss like this.

Julie blends clinical insight with human understanding—and she might have some of the answers you're looking for.

This is Julie Borninkhof...

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PANDA Helpline on 1300 726 306 (9am-7:30pm Monday-Saturday) or panda.org.au
PANDA also offers an online mental health checklist for new and expecting parents to check for possible signs of perinatal anxiety, depression, and well-being concerns.

Zach Green was going to be a dad, Three times...
Each time, he imagined life as a father and each time his hopes were shattered.
In just 18 months, he and his ex-partner lost three babies during pregnancy.

The world around him kept moving, but inside, he was stuck— grieving in silence, burying himself in work, and trying to pretend he was all good.

In reality, he was living in a cycle of manic depressive episodes he couldn't escape, causing him to push people away and isolate himself, very nearly costing him his life.
Alongside therapy, the kitchen became his lifeline to recovery. Cooking was often the only thing that made sense, giving him an outlet that's become a career.

Now a stepfather to four boys, Zach is navigating fatherhood in a way he never imagined and advocating for mental health support in remote communities.

This is Zach Green...

Life has thrown everything at Adam—crippling financial hardship, devastating loss, and more than his fair share of personal demons; heartbreakingly losing both his mum AND his brother to suicide.

Adam's struggles began in childhood, living on the poverty line after his mum lost her house and never got it back, leading to her death. That tragedy was repeated by his brother years later when the stress of divorce overwhelmed him.

Through grief, legal trouble and immense pressure, Adam's found a way to persist and a method of working towards the financial stability that his family's always wanted.

This is Adam Gaunt...