June is men's health month in New Zealand, a chance to raise awareness of preventable health problems and encourage the early detection and treatment of disease.
A group of men in South Auckland are tackling health issues through a free group fitness programme, and they refused to allow the Covid-19 lockdown to stop them reaching their goals.
Every three hours a New Zealand man dies from a preventable illness, and Pasifika people are more vulnerable because of their poor health outcomes.
Checkmates PI began in 2018 to try turn around that trend, but as well as physical fitness, it also provides an opportunity for participants to speak about mental health and challenges at home.
During lockdown, the men joined the group workouts via Zoom.
One of those taking part is Dee Fotuali'i, who has dropped 30kg in 10 weeks.
"Growing up, I didn't want to be a statistic, I didn't want my kids to fall into that pattern," he told Tagata Pasifika.
"I just really had to dig deep and kind of correct myself for the sake of my kids."
See more from Checkmates PI in Tagata Pasifika's full report in the video above.
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