I wanted to share with the forum my experience with Huel, I hope it will help to inform those who are new to Huel as to whether it is right for them.
I am a 41 year old man who has been obese for most of my adult life. A few years ago I was diagnosed with very high blood pressure. Although I have always been fat, I go to the gym three times a week, have a personal trainer. Since learning of my blood pressure problem I have tried lots of diets to loose weight and lower my bp. I went vegan for a while, tried non dairy, wheat free, low calories, low salt, low carbs, low fat. Each of these attempts lasted a few months and rarely showed any decrease in my weight or blood pressure.
On eighth or ninth attempt I came across on Huel on my Facebook feed and thought, why not. In early January this year I ordered my first Huel. I was 16.6 stone (104kg) my pressure was high and rising and they were considering upping my medication.
Over the last six months I have maintained my exercise and otherwise my lifestyle has remained the same. But I have lost 2 and a half stone and my blood pressure has dropped so much they have removed one of my three medications. My Huel regime is not 100% Huel, I have two scoops in the morning, a light lunch, normally at Pret a Manger which comes to between 500 and 600 calories (Humus wrap, Fruit pot and occasionally a soup), on gym days I add an egg and smoke salmon pot after a work out. For dinner if I am hungry I will have two scoops at about 5pm and another 2 scoops at about 9, if not I have a three scoop at about 7pm. For snacks I may have a banana in the afternoon or a very small amount of mixed fruits and nuts <50g. My calories intake is therefore between 1400 and 2000 a day (never less or more) and means at about 1600 according to my calculator app. Due to me being me having a very high amount of muscle, my dietician recommended this was the correct zone for me to aim for to achieve steady weight loss.
What is great about Huel is not just that it is low in calories but that it encourages routine around food, removing painful choices such as; what should I have for dinner. I found that much of my evening eating was driven by a fear of being hungry. As Huel is so well composed nutritionally that, although I may feel a little hungry sometimes, I never get cravings for food and on the odd occasion I do have a “treat” meal such as a hamburger – I tend to feel very hungry and unsatisfied and not great for a few days after.
I intend to keep on Huel for life, and adjust my calories through Huel. I suppose some would say that there is a better diet out there for me, either a low calories “healthy diet” with more greens, or moving to a 100% Huel diet. They may be right, but I have found the diet that is right for me today and it is improving my health and lowering my weight. I hope this is of some help for those considering switching to Huel.
Adam