“I was in an unhealthy cycle,” says Guy
Sebastian, toweling off after a workout in his
garage. “I was drinking too much. I wasn’t
eating well. And everything I thought I was
doing right wasn’t working.”
Was he fat? No way. But he was a little
spongy, especially around the middle. And
he’d learnt years ago – since way back in 2003
when he won the first Austraian Idol – that
strangers had no qualms about remarking on
his build.
“Wow,” they might say, “you look so much
fatter on TV!” Which you could take a couple
of ways. But Sebastian took it to heart. “For a
while you laugh it off,” he says. “As a guy you
pretend it doesn’t affect you. But it does.”
Worse than the thoughtless comments
was the pain that gnawed at him. Sore and
tight through the hips and back, he moved
like granddad in the mornings. There was
no single cause, though one was a cowboy
physiotherapist in the US who stretched
him past breaking point over Sebastian’s too-
polite protestations. “I felt defeated,” he says
of his ailments. “I thought that surgery on
my hips or back sometime down the track
was inevitable.”
Earlier this year, aged 35, he resolved to
get serious about his fitness. While he has
determination in spades, he knew he could
use a little expert help. Wisely, he teamed up
with TransformationCoach.com husband-
and-wife training duo Chief Brabon and
Emilie Brabon-Hames, who specialise in
orchestrating life-altering body overhauls.
Sebastian allocated eight weeks to the task,
with his wife Jules training right alongside
him, every step-up of the way.
Few of us can put the rest of our lives on
hold while we pursue a goal. Sebastian is no
exception. He was ensconced in the grind of
recording his ninth album, Conscious, which
entailed marathon sessions in the studio that
often extended into the small hours, as well
as other commitments that took him overseas
four times in two months. All this while being
a dad to Hudson, 5, and Archer, 3.
Fortunately, sheer will to succeed can take
a man a long way.ON SONG
While Sebastian was no stranger to the iron,
his previous forays into the gym had lacked
purpose. “There was never a plan,” he says.
“It was just as heavy as you can and no form.”
Which is anathema to how Chief
Brabon operates. Central to Sebastian’s
transformation was a system devised by
Brabon called DARC: Dynamic Aerobic
Resistance Conditioning, which involves
pairing weights moves with high-intensity
cardio exercises. In effect, you’re lighting up
a muscle group and targeting body fat in the
one brutal superset.
“If you’re looking to increase lean muscle
mass while reducing body fat, there is no
better method,” says Chief. While some would
argue that’s a physiologically impossible
combination to achieve, Chief is adamant
that it is absolutely possible, provided you get
your training and nutrition spot on.
In fact, he says, it’s his experience
that over a period of eight weeks a very
overweight man could use DARC to gain
up to 6kg of muscle while shedding 20kgof fat. Sebastian had no need to lose that
much weight. He aimed simply to unveil a
moderately beefed-up frame by stripping
away a layer of blubber.
Chief told him the task would require five
45-minute sessions a week, which sounded
onerous, even fanciful, to Sebastian, who’d
never done more than three. As it turned out,
he usually did six. Sometimes seven.
“Guy is actually very athletic,” says Chief.
“He gets competitive with himself and that’s
a great thing to tap into. I’ve been surprised at
how hard he will push himself. He will never
leave a rep undone. He will never do a half-
arsed set.”
Chief says they trained Sebastian as they
would an elite solider or Olympian. “The
focus was not aesthetics, though you will get
that anyway. We wanted him lean, with high
levels of strength and power, as well as an
ability to move, improved range of motion
and aerobically better.”
Adds Emilie: “We didn’t want Guy to be
skinny. We wanted a strong, functional body.
A body that isn’t going to hurt when he gets
out of bed or chases the kids. A body that
can cope with late nights at the studio and
dancing for six months while touring.”
Under their tutelage Sebastian focused on
form and feel over load – because one good
rep trumps 10 sloppy ones. Watching Chief
guide him through sets of dumbbell flys,
you’re struck by the controlled and deliberate
movement of the weights. It’s a study in
mind-muscle connection.
“I’ve never felt that internal crunch in my
chest before,” says Guy. “You’ve got to take
the ego out of your training.”‘‘If you’re looking to increase lean
muscle mass while reducing body fat,
there is no better method’’ – Chief Brabon
Trained eye:
Chief Brabon and
wife Emilie study
Sebastian’s form.COVER GUY