Blog by Ultimate Performance

When most people think about hitting their 50s, they fear aching joints, ailing health, and losing the vestiges of youth and physical fitness. Women, in particular, face the biggest changes with menopause and the wide-ranging effects that the cessation of sex hormone production can cause. Symptoms vary in severity and frequency but often include low […]

Many factors can lead to dietary deficiencies in older and ageing adults, and this can vary from person to person. However, a big contributing factor is that as we age, our lifestyle habits change along with the quality and quantity of food we consume. This, in combination with less physical activity, can result in fewer essential vitamins and minerals being absorbed.   If these deficiencies are […]

Protein is an essential macronutrient – even the name protein derives from the Greek word ‘proteios’, which means “first place”. Ensuring we have plenty of protein in our diet is important. However, there are still many myths surrounding protein intake. Here we debunk some of the major myths surround this important macronutrient. If protein builds muscle, then eating MORE […]

Research has shown that living through your 40s can be the toughest decade of your life both physically and mentally. It is when you are most likely to be diagnosed with chronic diseases, often associated with lifestyle habits.  In particular, excess levels of body fat are associated with decreased life expectancy, fertility and hormonal issues, poor mental health, productivity, and self-image.   The statistics for […]

Chilli Con Carne is a classic family favourite, but here we have given it a vegan twist. Bursting with flavour and packed with plant-based proteins, this dish is ideal for any body-transformation diet. Our high protein vegan chilli recipe is paired with a crunchy pomegranate and rocket salad, that can be ready and on your […]

Weight loss. It’s as simple as calories in, calories out, right?   Just diet and exercise to create the all-important calorie deficit, and you’ll lose weight.   Easy in theory, but much more difficult in practice.    Humans are messy and complex creatures subject to myriad influences that make the weight loss process anything but straightforward.    However, researchers […]

Feel like your prawns are a bit uninspiring these days? For the perfect blend of sweet and tang, try our flavoursome and unique take on a prawn stir-fry that will leave you wanting more.   INGREDIENTS:  300g raw tiger prawns  2 large garlic cloves, minced  2 tbsp ginger paste / fresh ginger, minced  Red chilli, to […]

While your 30s are the years in which you solidify your identity, it is also a time of significant change in priorities, with health dropping down the pecking order behind work, family and social commitments. Time and convenience tend to be the most common barriers to healthy eating too.   Children and marriage are key milestones, […]

A common theme we see with female clients over 40 is that they often turn to cardio training when they start thinking about their health and fitness. While they initially lose weight and feel better, as the weeks pass, their progress plateaus, hunger levels spike, and they cease to see the changes they want in their body even though they may exercise multiple times […]

There are legitimate barriers to why some older adults lose motivation and cease exercise.   We want to offer some solutions to overcome these barriers and encourage physical activity for older adults.   Self–efficacy Many adults lose confidence in their ability to complete specific tasks as they age, and unfortunately, a sedentary lifestyle exacerbates these perceived feelings of body competence.   Fear of injury  When older […]

Women are often concerned about weight gain when they start taking hormonal birth control. But we looked at the science to separate fact and fiction when it comes to weight gain related to the pill. The use of hormonal birth control is common among women worldwide, but not only to prevent unwanted pregnancy; many women […]

Androgens are a group of natural or synthetic steroid hormones that primarily influence the growth and maintenance of masculine characteristics. Androgens, such as testosterone, are vital to the normal functioning of the reproductive system, lean muscle growth, bone strength and emotional and cognitive functioning. They are often referred to as “male hormones” but are present […]

As our CEO and founder at Ultimate Performance, Nick Mitchell, states “Some men would be better to train like women and some women would be better to train like men.” So, should women train differently from men?   Physiologically, muscle tissue functions largely the same way, regardless of your sex. Fortunately, the myth of heavy weights […]

What the fork are you putting into your mouth?   Thanks to a Subway sandwich and some meal-ruining headlines, we were given a timely reminder about the importance of considering the quality and provenance of the food we eat.    If you missed the original New York Times report that went viral and got tongues wagging and stomachs churning […]

Staying motivated to your health and fitness goals can be tough, especially with sporadic lockdowns and drastic changes in routine over this past year. However, instead of digging yourself deeper into that hole and beating yourself up wishing you had have achieved more, remember that just a simple change in your thinking can make all the difference.   Our thoughts determine our […]

This topic came up again in a recent article published by the BBC about a population of people who are apparently ‘hard-wired’ to store fat.   The idea might be an alluring one for some, but there is more complexity to it than simply blaming the genes we inherited from our parents.   The BBC […]

Wave loading is based on the principles of PTP (post-tetanic potentiation) which was contributed to the work done back in the 1980s, by Dietmar Schmidtbleicher, a German strength physiologist. The outcome of his work showed that fatiguing muscle contractions impair muscle performance, but non-fatiguing muscle contractions at high loads with a brief duration may enhance muscle performance.    This […]

Are you storing fat around your waist, hips and thighs?Do you feel conscious of your man boobs or maybe even cellulite?Have you been suffering from a lack of libido and reduced performance? If this sounds familiar, it could be an indication that you are experiencing what is known as “estrogen dominance.” High estrogen levels in […]