While I was in Australia, I couldn’t not take up the opportunity to catch up with one of my favourite bloggers - Nathan McCallum of bangarangblog.com. ‘Bangarang’ is what the Lost Boys say instead of ‘cool’ in the movie HOOK - Bangarang is an exercise in awesome.
I’ve been following Nathan over a year and I’m always inspired by his work ethic, dedication and, of course, his style. Nathan has amassed a huge social following thanks to his style posts, fitness tips and workout videos on Instagram and his blog. All of which I urge you to follow.
What’s great about Nathan is that even with all the attention, he’s completely down to earth, humble and genuinely in love with what he does. So here’s a little introduction to the world of Bangarang.
For those that are new to your blog, tell us a little bit a bout it?
It’s essentially what inspires me in the world, it’s fashion, it’s art, music and it’s fitness. It’s what things keep me ticking, and my way of sharing that with the world.
How did it all begin?
To be honest, it started out as an entirely personal thing. I had so many inspiration photos on my phone that my phone memory was filling up! So I started a blog as a way to put it somewhere for myself. It started about four years ago and it kinda grew and became more a of personal passion that picked up a bit of following.
How would describe your personal style?
Eclectic. I take inspiration from a lot of different places and I don’t have one aesthetic. I’m not a ‘very this’ or ‘very that’ guy, I mix it up day-to-day depending on what I’m doing and what I feel like.
I’ve noticed a huge amount of varying styles in Australia, where do you think the Australian guys sits on the style scale?
They are pretty conscious of fashion nowadays, especially when it comes to streetwear. Not so much off the runway but they is are very aware of their brands and what’s on trend, but it’s a lot more relaxed. There’s a lot of mid-price point brands that do so well. I think every guy has a sense of it, it used to be the fashion-forward guys only, but just go to a music festival or even just walk down the street and everyone has their own style and take on it.
I love your work out videos on Instagram, they’ve been my gymspiration for a while now, have you always been a healthy guy?
I grew up with sports as a kid, every sport, you name it. Then as I got older I joined a gym and got more into the conditioning side of it, but I’ve always had that love of sport. I was a big of a ADD kid and couldn’t keep still and always needed to be doing stuff so the gym was a great excuse.
A lot of guys seem to train for aesthetic these days, is that a motivation for you?
100%. It’s an interesting one, like with the rise of CrossFit. Now, I don’t do CrossFit and I don’t advocate it. I’m all about strict form and CrossFit is pure strength endurance. There’s that side of it and there are some very talented CrossFitter out there but it’s about pushing themselves as hard they can. But when it comes to peak season, it’s all about shredding and working on the six pack. My friends call it working on your ‘beach muscles’; chest abs and arms.
What are you top tips for keeping healthy?
I try to maintain a balanced diet, I eat pretty clean and healthy in the week and I will then indulge on weekends if I want, but Monday-Friday it’s about lots of water, good food and not snacking much. It’s key if you’re trying to achieve that aesthetic focus, to loose a bit of that sugar weight. It’s good for the mind and as you see yourself progress you feel better. Then it’s just about sticking to it. We all go through busy periods but exercise, even a couple of times a week, is so good for you and that positive healthy holistic approach is key.
While I’m in Australia, what’s the one place I HAVE to visit?
THE BEACHES. I live on the beach and life is good. Getting to the beach everyday is important to me, which doesn’t always work well with my style aesthetic as sometimes I want to wear a blazer and jeans that doesn’t work on the sand! But yeah, we have some of the beautiful beaches in the world.
It would be wrong of me to miss the opportunity to talk about the moustache, it’s damn near iconic on social media, did you have it before the blog started, what inspired it?
I didn’t have it when I started, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say it was one of the reasons why the blog did so well. There aren’t many guys out there with a style like it, so it gets attention. But it’s been and gone a few times now. I’m a bit of Wolverine and grow hair really fast.
What’s next for you?
I don’t know at the moment, I’m taking it as it comes and I’m just enjoying all the different avenues it opens up, from styling to brand collaborations and shoots. I’d love to do more collaboration with brands. I have my own brand, Cannibals, it’s a great outlet that started as a way to vent my creative, I have some amazing artist friends, so we collaborated and put their designs on tees and they did really well.
Welcome!
