I’m in my third week informing myself about shakes that can replace healthy meals. On my second day I ordered a small batch of Joylent just to get things started and now I’ve ended up here There are lots of things that make me interested in Huel and I would like to hear some feedback what made you decide to go with Huel instead of the gazillion competitor products? I’m not sure how much talk about other products is allowed here, so why not stick to your personal Pros of Huel instead of the Cons of others
First of all, I feel like informing myself about healthy nutrition is a real pain in the butt. I’ll find 50 sources that say one thing until some famous nutritionist comes around and tells me it’s all a lie. There’s just such a huge amount of people who seem to know what they’re talking about and yet stand on completely opposite ends of the spectrum. Am I the only one who thinks that way?
My body type is mesomorph and I want to maintain my overall weight. My goals are to eat more healthy food, building up muscle and losing a bit of body fat. Probably in that order. I know (by now) that it can be more effective to bulk up muscle first by gaining weight and then going back a few months after to concentrate of losing fat. but i still feel better of trying a little bit of both. This is also why I feel like the 40/30/30 ratio of Huel is a great fit for me. Do you agree?
I’ve been taking whey protein shakes after my workouts for quite some time and I do like to think they make a big difference. Now, I’ve stumbled upon books like “The China Study” that suggest animal protein are quite bad for you in the long run. another plus for Huel! im thinking about taking 100% huel in some occasions and in others mixing it with whey isolate. what do you think of that? my first idea was to get a whey based shake in the first place but than i wouldnt be able to control how much animal protein i consume. also, regular whey protein (like it is found in Joylent and most others) makes me fart a lot. i noticed it to be much better with the higher grade whey isolate.
Huel contains a lot of protein, but isnt the biological value also part of the equation? plant based proteins usually have a lower BV, so 30g of whey can be as “helpful” as 50g of some other plant based protein. isnt that something to consider?
another positive aspect in favor of Huel is no gluten. im not allergic, so the regular version is good enough for me, but based on books like “Grain Brain” id like to cut back on my gluten consumption. especially because us germans eat a huge amount of bread. I really like the tone in this forum. The Huel team responds quickly and the discussions have a very friendly and yet scientific level. other forums dont live up to this approach. you surely know what i mean.
alright, that was a lot of text. id love to hear some feedback on my initial houghts and why you personally have decided to go with Huel. Thanks for your time!
For me the primary reason for choosing Huel was oats rather than sugary carbs (maltodextrin/dextrose) that most other products seem to be based on, and the pea+rice protein. This is primarily for the sake of my office mates rather than my preference - I feel OK with whey but it gives me terrible gas.
I went with Huel as the forum was a great source of honest opinions and after reading a lot of posts I decided to give it a try. I was surprised that I liked the taste (V1.2) and look forward to the shakes as using the flavours and making it the night before it tastes great when cold.
You know how may calories your getting and is very balanced and plenty of protein so overall the best meal replacement for me (breakfast and lunch).
If I go to work on my bike (19 miles) it’s a great recovery drink.
I can make 4 shakes in about 10 minutes using a nutribullet and the Blendactive bottles for the next day for me and the missus so easy to prepare
I have just been on holiday for 4 weeks and made Huel pretty much every day and the product kept fine even in hot weather so no wastage
Good value for money, especially when ordering a subscription
Great forum for feedback and ideas, the team are listening to people opinions
The China study isn’t worth much. If you don’t believe me, I suggest you try re-reading it, and whenever you encounter a claim that sounds surprising, do the following:
if there isn’t a source, be very skeptical;
if there is a source, look it up. Is it a peer-reviewed scientific study in a quality journal? How does it compare with other findings in the scientific literature?
Do this, and you’ll find that the claims they make in the book often don’t reflet the actual studies, or that the studies aren’t worth much in the first place.
Regarding the biological value of vegetable protein - it’s true that plant protein isn’t absorbed quite as well as animal protein and may be a bit lower in certain amino acids, but that’s not something to worry about with Huel.
Firstly, because the amount of protein they’ve put in means you’re guaranteed to get plenty of all the essential amino acids. And second, because as it’s in powdered form, your body won’t have to break down the cell walls and thus it’ll be easier to absorb.
Please note, however, that I don’t have any qualification in nutrition, so take everything I say with a pinch of salt
Thank you. That was really helpful and informative. Since you dont have any benefit in what you shared with me, Ive no trouble beleiving thats your honest opinion
So, whats the main reason that Huel doesnt come with whey protein? Was it always the plan to make it vegan? Im not asking because i want a whey version of it, but id like to understand the decision behind it
Big selling point for me is that it is manufactured in the U.K. I also liked that it was within the EU too but that pro has all but disappeared since the referendum!
Firstly, because the amount of protein they’ve put in means you’re guaranteed to get plenty of all the essential amino acids. And second, because as it’s in powdered form, your body won’t have to break down the cell walls and thus it’ll be easier to absorb.
I don’t think that generating a powder out of any whole foods or isolates actually destroys structural components down at the scale of cell walls, or at least not a lot of them.
We’re meant to drink Milk when we’re babies. Animal milk… just a bad fit. I started on Huel because I needed to lose weight and portion control just never works for me. So weighing a powder and adding water seemed a bullet proof answer.
The guys behind Huel are local to me and known by mutual friends. I read all the nutritional stuff, liked the lack of Whey and once I’d gotten past the sweetness of the Vanilla flavour, realised the U&U formula is just a great taste.
Lost most of the weight but now just carrying on with it as part of a routine. Feel healthier (skin, eyes and gums too), more energy.
All around it’s a great product, still getting used to the new version which appears to be variable between bags and just not as nice to taste as the previous one, but not planning to stop anytime soon. Saves a lot of time money and energy.
I heard about Soylent in 2014. I was frustrated that it wasn’t available in the UK, so I used the DIY Soylent site to try to create my own meal drink, but I was never happy with the result, so eventually I gave up.
Then in August 2015 I did a Google search for UK alternative to Soylent, and Huel came up. I was delighted.
Since then, I’ve consumed Huel nearly every day. I’ve had very few non-Huel days. I’ve had some 100% Huel days. Mostly I still have evening meals, though.
I like it for the time-saving way it enables me to have my breakfast, lunch and snacks. No need to worry at all about food during the day, just shake up some Huel and drink it whenever I feel like it. I’m not looking to lose weight, gain weight, or anything specific like that.
Before I got into meal drinks, I tended to have some kind of oats for breakfast, such as porridge. For lunch and snacks I would usually eat oatcakes, rice cakes, nuts, seeds, etc. So Huel is still oat based but it gives me a better balance of protein and fat.
similarly like you im not planning on changing my bodyweight (by much). but did you notice some positive side effects by using huel? like gaining muscle and still losing fat at the same time?
There are lots of things that make me interested in Huel and I would like to hear some feedback what made you decide to go with Huel instead of the gazillion competitor products? I’m not sure how much talk about other products is allowed here, so why not stick to your personal Pros of Huel instead of the Cons of others 