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It’s something of a rarity these days, seeing a Dad and son working out together at a gym, and when they seem to be having heaps of fun doing so – and the son is a teenager, to boot – it’s worth taking a closer look.
Paul and Luke Mansfield seem more like mates than father and son. The Year 11 Ōrewa College student and his 47-year-old sales manager Dad work out together at Jetts Millwater, with a combination of competitiveness and camaraderie.
They’ve been doing this for about nine months now, six days a week, and both are loving it.
Luke, 16, concedes it’s not that common.
“I have friends at school who seem quite close to their parents, but for the most part it’s not very usual,” he says.
Paul jumps in. “To spend the first hour of the day together is really cool. Sometimes we talk a little bit, sometimes we talk a lot, but it’s good to get that first hour of the day together.”
As Father’s Day approaches, Luke is forthcoming when asked what he appreciates about his Dad.
“We always have a good laugh. Gym’s fun, and I love doing it in the mornings with Dad. We have a really good relationship.”
“We’re pals,” Paul says. “We never fight. If he does something wrong I normally tease him relentlessly until he gets the message.”
Luke started karate at six, and later began Muay Thai – “like kick-boxing, but with knees and elbows”, he explains – which he does four nights a week. “That’s my jam. That’s what I love.”
“That’s why he feels like steel,” Paul says, squeezing his son’s shoulder.
Luke juggles school and Muay Thai with two jobs (a warehousing gig and tutoring young children in maths), wants to study mechanical engineering, perhaps through the military, and is rather keen to join the SAS.
“He enjoys pain,” his father laughs.
Paul says the foundation for a happy family, in his view, is to “try to serve, be the best you can be. If you want to see change, do it yourself first.”
The family are committed Christians, and he describes their faith as “one of the pillars of our lives”, adding that he loves his wife of 22 years, Litza, “to bits”.
Meanwhile the sense of humour is evident, even at the squat rack.
“He beats up on me every day,” Paul says, when asked if the two of them are competitive. “Yesterday he got me in a chokehold while I was sitting at my desk. And he squeezed, and something clicked in my neck. And now I feel like I’ve got tonsillitis.”
“When they say ‘Dad jokes,’” Luke chimes in, “Dad is the peak of that.”
