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This time, it's working: nine changes that will transform your body

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What's the one thing that makes the biggest difference in fitness and weight-loss? Nine Ultimate Performance clients give us their game-changing tips.

WHAT does it really take to achieve a jaw-dropping body transformation? What are the secrets that help ordinary clients get extraordinary results at Ultimate Performance?

Nine successful UP clients share the one game-changing tip, trick or piece of advice that made the biggest difference and helped them get in the best shape of their lives.

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I spent years randomly training and eating and not tracking my progress – and never got results.

1. Get professional advice from trainers who get results – Martin

The most important thing I learned was to seek out the right advice and follow it consistently.

You have to believe in what you are being advised to do. And if you follow the advice you will get the results. The support of my personal trainer was what really helped with the transformation.

It was knowing I not only had someone I was accountable to, but also that I had someone who was always there to support me and offer advice and motivation.

2. A transformation is more than just training hard – Panos

This kind of transformation comes through a package of changes that are made simultaneously.

It's never down to the one thing. It's not exercise alone. It's not diet alone. You have to combine the two things together.

It's bringing that together – along with guidance from a personal trainer who takes into account your body type and how your body behaves – that really gets results.

3. Track everything you can for measurable progress – Ben

If there’s one tip that really helped me make my transformation it’s ‘track everything you can’.

I spent years randomly training and eating and not tracking my progress – and never got results.

The moment I started at UP it was instilled in me to start tracking my progress and that’s when my body started changing before my eyes.

I tracked my workouts fastidiously, and I got stronger and fitter. I started tracking my calories, my macronutrients and my portion-sizes honestly, and I got lean.

I tracked my weight and my body fat and it gave me the feedback I needed to know that I was progressing, or if tweaks needed to be made to my diet and training.

Even learning to track things like my sleep quality, my energy levels, hunger and stress levels helped me to become more intuitive with my body. It meant I learned to better understand what worked for me and what didn’t, what caused me to feel tired or bloated, cranky or craving sugar.

These are all things that have kept me in shape long after my transformation.

4. Prioritise weights over cardio - Gemma

To shape your body, weightlifting is the way forward. I still get bits of cardio in, because I still like being physically fit.

I've learned that they both go hand in hand, really. Cardio alone isn't going to do anything for your shape. It's a good tool to lose fat but as far as shaping your body, you're going to need to create an overload and to do that you need to lift weights.

I've been doing small blasts of cardio at the end of each session. That's either the prowler or sprints on the bike or farmer's walks – fun kinds of cardio.

5. Learn how to properly retract and depress your scapula on exercises – Iain

There's one element of technique on exercises that really changed the game. It was learning to keep my shoulders down, pinned back, and locked in with the back, and engaging the lats.

It's relevant in so many exercises from bicep curls, to all the rowing exercises, to bench presses. Lock in the exercises and keep the chest tall. That's the best training tip I learned which had the biggest crossover on the most exercises.

6. Losing weight means understanding calories and really looking at what you’re eating - Kelly

To lose weight, you need to be in a calorie deficit. Previously I’d been eating foods that were calorie dense and didn’t offer much nutritional value.

I had no clue just how much I was eating on a daily basis. Tracking my calories now means I make good choices. I eat more than I did before and feel fuller than ever. It’s win-win.

There are always smart food choices you can make. It doesn’t matter where you are, there is always an option that’s better for you. You just need the discipline to reject the bad stuff.

7. Be consistent with your diet and training, and results will follow – Stuart

There is no trick to a transformation, unfortunately. 'Focus on consistency' is the best tip I had going into my transformation, both in terms of the diet and the training.

The way your body reacts is a bit different each week. So if you have a week where you're not dropping weight or getting progression, stick with, listen to your trainer, and it will come.

It’s important to talk to your trainer, too – whether it’s telling them how you're doing with your diet, how you’re feeling more generally, or if there's a niggle anywhere in your body.

8. Mastering form and technique will accelerate your results – Ryan

Learning to use and maintain great form was the most important factor for me in my transformation. I've had many injuries and niggles over the years from both training and my job, so form is really important in the gym.

Learning to properly brace my core, push my chest up and out, pull my shoulder blades together etc, really meant I was able to get more benefit out of every lift and rep.