Hello there,
So I just revived my first package from Huel and had my first shake already. It’s saturday today and i’m going to slowly ease into 100% Huel consumption. Hopefully I will achieve this in the next 3-4 weeks.
The summer of 2020 i was at 99 kg, today the scale showed 119kg Drastic change is needed.
I’m doing this to kickstart my weight loss and after 10-12 weeks of only Huel i will go back to a mixed diet. Anyone else tried it 100%, how did it feel? I guess it will be tremendously difficult in the beginning because i am so used to eat a lot. I’m expecting low energy and pounding headaches. But i am ready for it!
I’m 100% Huel (because I’m food lazy) and don’t experience any adverse effects. Keep your fluids up and make sure that you’re not too far into calorie deficit.
@Veldt85 can’t help with any advice but I’ve just placed my first order and will be on the same journey as you! Need to lost some lockdown lbs so trying Huel for the first time. Planning on 100% meal replacement but willing to adjust if i struggle to adapt.
Thanks for the post Christian. It’s good to hear how you’re planning to use Huel and the positive changes you want to make.
While I appreciate it can feel good and motivating to make large commitments to weight loss and lifestyle change (e.g. building up to 100% Huel), I do have to ask why this arbitary 100% commitment in your plan?
I’ve been on the forum for almost 6 years and the amount of people who go 100% for a bit and never return is high (although not all of them, s/o to any 100% Hueligans here). What I implore you to do is when it gets hard to continue 100% Huel, consider why it is hard.
Is it because you miss the social side of food/get strange remarks from friends and family consuming Huel when out at dinner?
If this is the case then take a break from 100%, have it 75%, or 50%.
Is it because you miss some of your favourite foods?
Then eat them. Don’t gorge on them and eat them excessively, but eat them in moderation. Food is enjoyable and Huel isn’t here to remove this pleasure from your life.
Is it because you’re hungry all the time?
To achieve consistent weight loss you need to eat 500kcal less than it requires to maintain your weight. You could go to 1000kcal less but if you overreach then you might struggle and fail. Take small steps consistently and you will have more success. I shared with you my post here, please endeavour to read it.
I can’t stop you going 100% Huel. I hope you use this community for advice that supports as well as conflicts with what you want to do to help you make the best decisions possible.
We’ll see where I end up. I’m a bit impatience and want to see quick results so that’s why i am starting so drastically. I do understand that this is not sustainable long term. But for a short while to kickstart my weight loss journey it should do the trick. Time will tell how I do. So far this week has been Ok honestly. Will need to replace some of the flavors for my next order.
As far as 100% that is just what feels easy for now, not having to think about cooking anything is kinda nice. I do expect to introduce lunch/dinner after some time and have my Huel for breakfast and evening cravings.
Just completed my first week on HUEL 100% and dropped quite a bit of weight. I suspect most of it is water weight and waste but still. I am sure there is some fat loss there. Just had my first meal of week two and i’ll keep going for as long as i feel like it. It’s not as bad as i originally thought, i do however make my shakes in a mixer to get rid of clumps. As for energy it’s also Ok, i don’t feel sluggish or slow. I’ve been going to the gym regularly throughout the week and i’ve felt strong there as well.
Week #2 111.9kg (-1.5)
Second week done. Ran out of Huel during the weekend so had three solid meals but that didn’t really affect me much. Hopefully my next shipment arrive today
I’ve been using Huel for convenance at lunch for Years. In the last few weeks I’ve been using it for rapid weight loss. I’ve gone 95% to get me down relatively quickly from over 100.8Kg to hopefully around the 75Kg mark where I should be for my age/height.
I have a Huel bar for breakfast, a shake for lunch, a savoury Huel for dinner and 3 to 4 pieces of fruit a day as well as plenty of water. Nothing else, around 1200Cal/day. On the occasion I go out or payday takeaway I wont deprive myself but perhaps go with healthier options (or not). Its been 2 weeks so far and no problems. I’m down to 93.3 about 7Kg loss. When I reach target I will go back to having normal dinner with family but breakfast/lunch huel. My only gripe is the huel bars could be nicer other than that no problems! Good luck with your plan!
Hi John, while I welcome you to the forum, I’m sorry but this is not something we support. A 1200kcal diet is something that should only be undertaken with 1:1 support from a qualified dietitian. It is simply not healthy. It’s my role here to look out for the safety of this community while they are here.
For anyone else reading this post, we do not recommend you follow this method.
Off the back of this we have created a Globally Pinned Banner to explain how to use Huel for weight loss. I really hope you read it.
I have been on Huel for 12+ weeks now. One of my better decisions. I started with 2 shakes a day and half shakes for snacks, it was to much for my gut. I would do 1 per day and then gradually add half shakes as snacks. Its easy to be motivated. Depends on how you feel.
I have found, bookending the day with shakes and having my regular meal, non Huel or Huel HS, as a lunch is best. I do use the Huel protein Snacks during the day, post workout and afternoon and evening. I find the Banana Puddling one nice a few hours before bed. The snack bars I reserve for travel. Which we do alot of.
I have found it very helpful to use a firness watch that tracks your HR, activities and has a nutrition componentto the app. This provides tour KCal burn and then allows you to add your KCal input. If you burn 500kcal per day more then you input you should loose 1#/week. I did that and lost 6 #'s in 6 weeks. Then switched it to 250Kcal as I was getting tired and grumpy . It worked I loose .5#'s/week now and am not tired, much Less grumpy.
I post on my IG page alot. Fun_With_Huel if you want to check out my experiences and travel with Huel.
There are some important caveats here, though. You identify TDEE and BMR in your linked post, but for many people, for many different reasons, the calculators do not provide an accurate accounting: they are reasonable averages but useless for individuals. For example, my metabolism has radically changed in the last couple of years due to the medication I’m on and a separate thyroid condition I have developed, which has substantially reduced my BMR (and as a consequence, my TDEE) to the point where a weight loss diet 5 years ago would be a weight gain diet today. That would not be reflected in any of the figures provided by these calculators and talking in numbers of calories would be unhelpful. I could not lose >1kg/week on 1200 calories of Huel despite these calculators suggesting otherwise!
The warning is worthwhile and extreme dieting without medical support is bad, I agree, but 1200 calories are far from the inherently dangerous level you’ve suggested, and in fact, the use of the word “super” in Huel’s documentation is a little strange, it seems specifically chosen to avoid using the real term (very low-calorie diet) which refers to a diet under 800 calories.
I appreciate that you must be cautious in what information is/isn’t allowed on this forum, and you can’t provide medical advice, but it’s helpful for people to be aware that every body is different. A 1500 calorie diet could be dangerous for one person while a 1000 calorie diet could be healthy for another regardless of what these calculators say. People should not panic if they’re on a 1200 calorie diet, health is a lot more than arbitrary measures like calories.
Thanks for the comments. Let me review my post. I think broadly we are saying the same things, with small differences in the details. It’s worth noting that this post is not intended to comment on the vast range of medical conditions people may have which affects their bodies, so it could be worth clarifying this. But if doing so gives people permission to ignore our advice then I am less keen.
Edit: I’ve reviewed with the nutrition team but don’t agree with your suggested revisions, @samuel. We believe that 1200 calorie diets should not be broadly recommended and that they do require supervision. Your other points are specific and case-by-case, our advice is good for the vast majority of people.
It’s going good so far. I am currently down about 8 kgs and i’ve started to introduce normal food again. I’m eating a solid lunch/dinner and drinking HUEL for breakfast/late night snack and when i get cravings. It’s working great so far. 100% Huel was tough but doable. But it’s hard on your social life I feel.
I’m also making sure I get enough exercise and go to the gym 3-4 times/week. Focusing alot on cardio lately.
How are you doing? Are you also doing HUEL and trying to lose weight?
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. It worked I loose .5#'s/week now and am not tired, much Less grumpy.
