Daniel Overcame His Secret Depression To Lose 32kg

Hey, I’m Daniel and this is how I lost 32kgs using The Man Shake.

My weight loss journey started in March 2022 at my heaviest of 120kgs with XXL shirts and 40” pants. Although I didn’t realise it at the time, I was lost and completely depressed for a long time (you can't beat a good COVID lockdown for bringing things to a head). After just starting my second job in less than 10 months, I noticed a strange mole on my body. I went to the Doctor to get it looked at and got a Full Health Check while I was there.
The results showed exactly what I feared. I needed to sort myself out. I was in denial about everything. My size, weight, mental well-being, all of it.


“My family had my back and encouraged me to seek help”

I had seen the ads on the TV for The Man Shake and decided to give it a go. I wanted to see if it could help me like it did all those guys. I had also previously been wearing an Apple Watch, not as an exercise tool but as a fashion statement. So, there started my first goals – close the Exercise Ring every day for a month, start the shakes, and see how much weight I could lose.
It was hard going at first and I didn’t really lose much weight. But I had this feeling that I needed to keep trying and to close the rings on my watch each week. I didn’t want to give up on my goal.
But then… it started to work!
I originally started by replacing just my lunch with The Man Shake, continuing my breakfast and dinner as usual. I did alter it slightly by focussing on portion control with a simple swap from a dinner plate to a side plate.
As the weight started to slowly drop my confidence started to grow again and I was able to finally admit to my wife and children that I had been battling depression. Like all men of my generation, I had kept this hidden deep inside of me and had never spoken about it… that had to change. My family had my back and encouraged me to seek help. So, I eventually took the plunge and went to see a therapist in September 2022.
In the meantime, I was really starting to enjoy reaching my exercise goals and started to ride my road bike and mountain bike again, which only made the weight fall off faster! I also started walking every day at lunchtime and was even invited by my wife to take part in a charity 42km walk with some friends in November 2022. With a new goal in mind, we took our exercise to the next level with 15-20km walks every weekend. You will never believe it, but the weight continued coming off even quicker. By the time of the Charity Event, I was down to 105kg and only just short of my 100kg by Christmas plan. Well, I beat that too. As Santa made his way around the world, I was a proud 97kgs.

Since then I have been able to drop and stay at 88kg and walks are still going. I have also done the Albury/Wodonga City2City 10km walk, the City2Surf 14km walk in Sydney, and the Tough Mudder AU assault course in October. My mental health is now better than ever, and I haven’t needed to see a therapist since February 2023.


My Man Shake Routine

My days are probably a little different from most people in that during the week I have cereal for breakfast and then have a Man Shake for lunch. Once I get home, I will have a couple of hard-boiled eggs and maybe some boiled pasta for dinner. But most of the time it's just the eggs. The weekend I have set up as Cheat Days (or Treat Days, as some call them). I will have a burger, pizza, or roast dinner, whatever I've been craving but still with a focus on portion control.
My go-to flavours are Vanilla and Coffee mixed together at the moment, but I quite like the Choc Honeycomb flavour too. I always mix one scoop of Vanilla with another flavour because I feel most of the flavours are slightly too sweet, even for my sweet tooth. I make the Shakes with 200ml water and 200ml of skimmed milk and always mix just as I'm about to drink it, so it doesn't end up too thick. I do have a muesli bar and a coffee at 10 am for morning smoko, and rolled oats and fruit yoghurt at 3 pm for afternoon smoko.
I always get the Buy 3 Get 1 Free bundle on the website and will normally get 2 Man Shake flavours and 2 Lady Shake flavours for my wife, who also drinks them and has lost over 17kg in the same amount of time I have lost my weight.
I generally feel pretty good after having a shake and normally go for my lunchtime walk straight afterwards. They certainly fill you up but also give you a needed energy boost to see you through the afternoon.

While it isn't a silver bullet or wonder drink that allows you to sit around and do nothing and still lose weight, it is very effective as a meal supplement program and works even better if you include exercise. The thing to always remember if you are starting on the weight loss journey is to set yourself achievable goals to start off with and increase the difficulty as you get fitter and lighter. Always remember that no matter how slow you are when you are walking, running, riding (or whatever your choice of exercise is), you are still quicker than the person sitting on the couch not moving at all.