Inside Jake Quickenden’s brutal THREE STONE body transformation as X Factor star prepares for professional MMA debut
JAKE QUICKENDEN has lost a stunning THREE STONE ahead of his MMA debut having KO’d his love for chocolate and crisps.
The former X Factor contestant will take to the cage this Saturday against comedian Paul Smith when Oktagon MMA comes to Manchester.
Quickenden will weigh in at 77kg (12st 1lb) having started his training at 97kg (15st 2lb) marking a stunning transformation.
But what were the secrets behind the 35-year-old’s weight loss?
He told SunSport: “A lot of training and less chocolates and crisps! It’s been a challenge if I’m honest because I love my food.
“There’s days when I’ve weighed in quite light and thought I can have a snack and then a snack turns into a feast and the next day it’s back up again and I need to go put more work in.
“But it’s on track this final week is the final cut and on Friday I will be there on 77kg ready to go on Saturday.”
Quickenden has been living off yogurts, fruit, chicken, steak eggs, and the odd protein bar for the last year.
And juggling a life on TV and in the gym has been the hardest part of his gruelling journey to the cage.
He said: “The mental battle of getting up to go and train at 6am when I’ve got two shows with The Full Monty on tour.
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“Or getting up when the kids are all tucked up in bed and going for a run or missing a family day because I can’t go for a Sunday lunch because I’ve got to go and train.
“Training-wise I love, I love training and keeping fit. My body’s changed but I can’t wait to eat properly! I can’t wait to have a kebab and a slice of f****g cake.
“But I’ve enjoyed it all and I can say at the end of the ten months that I’ve done it all.”
Quickenden’s late father Paul and younger brother Oliver – who both sadly passed away through illness – were boxers.
And his older brother Adam also boxed, so the Dancing on Ice winner wanted to keep the family tradition going.
Quickenden said: “I was kind of the one who didn’t do any combat sports, I stuck to footie and played a good standard.
Training-wise I love, I love training and keeping fit. My body’s changed but I can’t wait to eat properly! I can’t wait to have a kebab and a slice of f****g cake.
Jake Quickenden
“That was another reason too, I wanted to keep it in the family because they all boxed and I was always the footballer rather than the boxer.
“I wanted to do something and show them I can do that.”
Quickenden played for Scunthrope at youth level before injury and also had two years playing professionally in Australia.
And after the weekend, he can call himself a pro fighter but the result will depend on his future in the cage.
He admitted: “I guess we’ll see how it goes.
“If I get in there and get an absolute buzz for it and I feel amazing and I get the win, then potentially it could be something that I want to do.
“I’ve spoke to Oktagon already and they’re keen to get me on board but my mum is sat opposite me and she doesn’t want me to do any more!
“Plus I’m 35, I’m not deluded, I’m not going to start calling out all the big names like Jake Paul and start calling out Canelo.
“I’ve done this for me and one thing I will continue to do is the training. It’s amazing both physically and mentally.”