But McCabe, who has broken his neck twice in 14 months, is adamant his injury nightmare has made him mentally tougher and ready for a successful return next month.

McCabe and the Brumbies will start pre-season training on Monday, sevens weeks before their opening match against the Queensland Reds at Canberra Stadium.

The first session will have extra significance for McCabe after doctors cleared him to start contact training for the first time since breaking his neck in June.

The 21-Test Wallaby insists he won't modify his hard-nosed style, despite fears his career was over when he twice cracked the C1 vertebra in his neck.

''The main thing for me is getting out there and taking some hits,'' McCabe said.

''It's about getting used to that and get to the point where it's not in mind at all and that [the contact] is just natural again. I think the first couple of hits, my neck will be something I'm thinking about. But when the games start you don't have time to worry about that.''

McCabe's past 14 months have been punctuated by neck braces and painstaking rehabilitation programs. He said he would not play again if he was risking long-term damage.

But Australian Rugby Union medical staff cleared McCabe just before Christmas for his return to contact training.

The Brumbies will also be bolstered by the first Asian recruit in the club's history when Harumichi Tatekawa from Japan joins training in the coming weeks.

McCabe is targeting a comeback in the trial match against the Highlanders on January 31 to get match fitness.

The 25-year-old first broke his neck on the Wallabies spring tour of Europe in 2012.

He injured his hamstring and knee when he returned and then broke his neck again in the Test against the British and Irish Lions in June.

Still frustrated by his injury curse, McCabe said w he would not rush back and would use a head brace twice a week to strengthen the muscles in his neck.

''It was a relief to get the final tick to play again and it was nice to get it before the Christmas break so that I knew I could get straight into it [on Monday],'' McCabe said.

''Having done it before, it made the time in the neck brace a lot easier. This time I think I'm a lot better prepared, I've had a good bulk of time to get myself ready.

''Last year I rushed to get back on the field.''

The majority of the Brumbies squad will be back for pre-season training.

Some Wallabies representatives have been granted extra time for a holiday following a gruelling international campaign.