Nick & Annie's Remarkable Weight Loss Journey

Earlier this month Ryan and Karly, the Community Managers for The Man Shake and The Lady Shake respectively, were lucky enough to sit down with Nick and Annie to hear their shared incredible weight loss journey.

It all began in early February 2023.

Annie arrived home to see a box with Nick’s name on it sitting on the kitchen table. “What has he brought himself this time?” she asks herself. When she peeks inside, seeing a starter pack of The Man Shake was not what she expected to see.

Nick had recently returned from a trip to a Sydney water park with his support services, but it sadly wasn’t the positive experience he had wanted. At 6 foot 6 inches and just shy of 160kgs, Nick has always been a bigger guy and that comes with its challenges. On this day it meant being unable to go on the water slides. Although he and Annie had never had any consideration for his weight, he couldn’t help but feel disappointed in himself. So, in secret, Nick decided to change his life.

When asked why Nick chose The Man Shake he simply answered “Adam MacDougall”.

See, Nick is a MASSIVE sports fan. Whether it be AFL with the Sydney Swans or NRL with the Manly Sea Eagles, he’s a big-time supporter. He even has held the title of President of the Manly For Life Club. So having a former NRL player create and back the product, for Nick, the decision was simple. 

Annie wasn’t convinced in the beginning. With Nick’s ASD she was concerned about potential sensory challenges but he happily proved her wrong! In just 18 days and fuelled solely by the chocolate flavour, Nick had dropped 5kgs and left Annie having to eat her own words.

This is where The Man Shake team first heard of these two amazing people. With Annie unable to contain her pride for her son’s remarkable change, she began sending the team regular updates and who were we to stop her?!?! We were as stoked and proud as she was!

The changes kept coming!

The weight continued to drop off Nick, he became open to trying other flavours, he began exercising, and Annie was seeing a newer version of her son.

“He is always smiling and laughing!” she shared with the team. “Nothing seems to phase him” and he is no longer experiencing meltdowns. When asked Nick stated that he “feels pretty good!” It doesn’t end there either.

Since dropping the weight Nick’s confidence has skyrocketed and is now quite the socialite in the sporting circle. He is now regularly attending social events and has been seen rubbing shoulders with Sydney’s AFL and AFLW teams with everybody knowing him by name. For Annie, this is even more amazing as he is attending these events by himself without assistance from his support workers. She stated that this simply was not possible with the old Nick.

To make it even better Nick has now gained employment alongside Annie and is looking forward to his role as an Office and Warehouse Assistant.

As mentioned earlier, Nick has expanded his range of shake options. His breakfast and lunch now rotate between Chocolate, Banana, Caramel, and Cookies and Cream. All simply with water and ice. Outside the shakes, Nick has kept his food mostly the same. He does not calorie count but makes a conscious decision to focus on portion control and try new foods outside his comfort zone.

Nick isn’t alone in this journey though. 

After seeing the positive change and impact in Nick, Annie has jumped on The Lady Shake and has joined in with her own successes. Together, when Nick isn’t off at games or hanging out with the sporting elite, they rack up multiple km's on their daily walks around the Central Coast and inspire even more people. 

Annie can be seen in The Lady Club sharing photos of Nick and her walks and her shaking tips, where Nick has inspired many of his friends at his support services.

What does the future hold for these two?

Even with 25kgs down, Nick has no ultimate goal in mind and just wants to “see where it takes him”. With a drop from 6XL to 2XL pants, he is eager to start a brand-new wardrobe. He has also joined boxing classes and will be signing up for a gym in hopes of toning up. Soon enough he will be returning to that water park and riding all the slides without anyone stopping him. Annie has recently celebrated her 10kg loss and is looking forward to what comes next.

Nick believes that anyone can do what he has done. “Just do it!” he says. “It will make you feel good. You won’t regret it”.

Alongside Annie, we here at The Man Shake are incredibly proud of what Nick has and will be able to achieve. But most importantly Nick is proud of himself. As he should be!