Transformation coach Chief Brabon reveals the secrets to training smarter and living stronger and longer.
2 min
Chief Brabon, Australia’s original transformation coach and co-founder of The Sweat & Social Club, has spent more than two decades reshaping how people approach fitness and ageing.
Known for training everyone from elite athletes to busy executives, he champions a longevity-first approach, focussing on strength, mobility and stability to help clients not just live longer, but live better.
Kanebridge Quarterly Magazine sat down with Chief Brabon to talk about his longevity-based training philosophy, the mistakes people make as they age, and the daily habits that keep him sharp.
What are the core principles behind your longevity-based training?
Firstly, it is important to define what “longevity” really is. To some people, it is “to live as long as possible”. In my personal (and professional) opinion, longevity is “to live as well as possible, for as long as possible”. Who really wants to live to 100 if they weren’t physically able to enjoy their last 30 years?
It’s for this reason that our focus is on improving our clients’ current overall health & fitness, and laying the groundwork for maintaining it long term.
What do most people get wrong about ageing well?
They don’t adjust their fitness priorities as they age. In our 20s and 30s, it’s all about building muscle, staying lean, lifting heavy and moving fast – structure, strength and speed come first. But by our late 40s, that order should flip. Mobility and stability need to move to the top of the list, with strength and stamina still in the mix, but with a different approach.
How is functional training different from standard fitness routines?
Functional training attempts to combine three or more of the 6 Pillars of Fitness (listed above) into each exercise. For example, a standard fitness routine may see you performing a two-legged press on a machine where your body is entirely supported – the focus here is strength. A functional alternative might see you doing a single arm/single leg dead lift to target strength, mobility, and stability all at the same time.
What bad habits do you commonly see in high-achievers, and how do you fix them?
Most high achievers have often made their businesses/ careers and their families their priorities for years (if not decades), but have neglected their health and fitness. As they near 50, they often realise that without their health, they are not going to be able to truly appreciate, or enjoy everything that they have built, or at least not for as long as they would like.
What’s one daily habit you swear by for staying sharp, both physically and mentally?
Find one thing that you can do every single day, no matter what you’ve got on, or where you are. My personal suggestion is a quick 5-minute mobility flow that you can literally do beside your bed, in your pyjamas, before you do anything else for the day.
When not at the gym, how do you relax?
My wife and business partner, Emilie, and I are real foodies. As we work, train, and race together, we have made a pact to take one another out at least three times a week. This allows us to focus on each other while enjoying great food. It’s an added bonus that we train many of Australia’s best chefs and restaurateurs.
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Built up over more than a decade, Ravensdale Farm and Retreat blends luxury living, resort-style amenities and productive farmland across almost 50 hectares.
2 minWhen an estate has been carefully curated by its wealthy owners for more than a decade, the next custodian knows they’re in for a treat of a retreat.
Food-packaging entrepreneur Ted Nathan and his wife, Jenny, purchased the original 25ha Ravensdale Farm in Yarramalong Valley for $1.35 million 12 years ago according to title records.
Since then, the pair have reportedly invested more than $5.5 million to acquire several neighbouring parcels in order to create a contemporary compound now measuring more than 49ha.
Today’s Ravensdale Farm and Retreat, about 24kms from Wyong, is now a dual-estate 12-bedroom, 11-bathroom luxury landholding.
The property is expected to sell for about $30 million via an expressions of interest campaign with Cullen & Royle agents Deborah Cullen and Richard Royle.
Alongside the modern three-storey five-bedroom farmhouse, there is a long list of “must have” resort-style amenities and productive farmland primed to produce a passive income.
Framed by a 4m wraparound veranda, the sophisticated main residence has several outdoor spaces for homeowners and their guests to soak up the bucolic backdrop, lush paddocks and established gardens.
Inside, the homestead features multiple living spaces for grand scale entertaining inside and out, a library, a home office, private cinema, games room and accommodation designed for large families or a steady stream of weekend guests.
Custom made for hosting year round, the expansive estate also includes a sports bar with a commercial-grade kitchen, a championship size tennis court which can be transformed into an alfresco cinema when the mood strikes.
Additional spaces designed for fun include a sunken fire pit, a hidden garden with a European-inspired pétanque court, a pickle ball court and a private paddock dedicated to major events and functions.
There is also a separate second residence, Ravensdale Retreat, devoted to guest stays or potential short-term accommodation.
The bonus residence is set up to provide a fully self-contained experience outside of the main home when needed. It has a choice of bedrooms, a spacious living area, an outdoor pavilion, pizza deck, and its own pool.
Beyond its weekender credentials, Ravensdale Farm lives up to its name. A working farm, the estate has cattle infrastructure, fertile pastures featuring Kikuyu and Rhodes grasses complemented by high end irrigation and water systems, as well as land management systems designed for efficiency and long-term resilience.
The land can comfortably support cattle and horses – currently home to approximately 40 cows and calves, plus horses – and has productive fruit orchards, vegetable gardens, a chicken coop and a restored century-old barn.
Surrounded by the rolling green hills of the Yarramalong Valley, Ravensdale Farm and Retreat is approximately a 25-minute drive from Wyong and around 90 minutes from Sydney with coastal hotspots like Terrigal and The Entrance are within easy reach.
Ravensdale Farm and Retreat is on the market with a price guide of $30m via an expressions of interest campaign with Cullen Royle.
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