So I’m very new to Huel, been doing it for a week and lost 3lb which I am thrilled about. I followed the instructions and introduced it slowly into my diet, I am currently having porridge made with water and oats for breakfast, 100g Huel shake for lunch and 100g Huel shake for dinner and I haven’t been too hungry, my only issues have been that I’ve had a lot of headaches and I’m the last 2 days have found the shakes hard to stomach. It’s like there’s a horrible aftertaste that the flavours (I’ve got chocolate and banana powders) aren’t masking and I’ve started to feel nauseous and kind of miserable. Any advice would be great as I want to lose a stone and a half and this is working.
I am not sure if you have tried refrigerating them overnight but this can help with both the taste and texture. How much liquid per 100g? More liquid can again help to soften the flavour.
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I’ve tried extra water but I prefer the texture a little thicker plus it’s less to drink as I’m not currently enjoying it. I will try the refrigerator over night. I was also thinking of maybe using just 50g and then having another 50g Shake an hour or so later as i thought it may be easier to stomach
I see what you mean, but it can actually taste nicer with more liquid and therefore not be so arduous to drink. How much liquid do you add? You can also substitute some of the water for milk (plant based is my recommendation) although bear in mind this does add more calories per serving. If you are trying to keep to a certain amount of calories then of course it doesn’t matter if you have one 100g or 2 50g meals.
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I second the suggestion of adding plant milk. It definitely makes it thicker and creamier than just using water. If you are concerned about additional calories, Alpro unsweetened almond milk is only 13kcal per 100ml and so a low calorie way of adding liquid and changing the flavour without adding loads of calories. Substituting 200ml of water with 200ml of plant milk makes a big difference.
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You’re getting a lot of fibre relative to the calories you’re consuming. Up your fluid intake throughout the day as fibre acts like a sponge in the gut.
I’m not sure about the aftertaste but to be honest, I would be pretty miserable on that diet too. Try and have 2 Huel meals and one homecooked meal. It will be easier to sustain, tastier and better nutritionally. Huel is nutritionally complete at 2000kcal so only 800kcal plus porride and you’re going to have a low intake of some nutrients.
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I was in exactly the same situation as you - first few days my stomach would turn at the thought of having have another shake and I looked at the two large bags of Huel and thinking I’d thrown money away. But small changes made a massive difference:
- Refrigerate - top advice from this forum and with the chocolate one in particular, it makes a massive difference
- Plant milk - again great for the chocolate shake and I now do half water, half almond milk
- A handful of frozen berries in the vanilla makes life so much better
I still find them grainy but after 3-4 days, I am now absolutely fine with them. When I think back to those first couple of days, I was so nauseous, I would just try and choke it down without gagging. Now, all is good!
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I had a headache the day before yesterday. I’m now on day five with Huel, and my weight loss journey in general.
Yesterday I felt the after-effects of the day before when I had three Huel shakes. I hadn’t planned on going in so heavily so quickly, but it was convenient for that particular day. I had the headache that night and the next morning, so I took a paracetamol and vowed to drink more. The next day I lay off the Huel shakes, calorie counted, and am using it again today. I knew from experience when I transitioned over to being Vegan almost exactly a year ago, that the headaches were a sign of being dehydrated due to the new intake of fibre I was consuming and therefore needed to adjust my fluid intake. Huel is the same kind of transition. Although I’m used to all the fibre now, being a vegan, I wasn’t ready for three shakes in one day. I definitely needed to drink more. And eating only solid food yesterday, allowed me to be happy to have a shake again today. Mixing it up is key I feel, well, for me at least.
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Hunzas and Dan gave great advice, I’d also add that I think you’d be happier if you had huel for breakfast and lunch and a cooked meal in the evenings instead of how you’re eating right now.
Psychologically it’s just much easier to slot huel in that way and you’ll probably find you enjoy the evening meal that much more.
It will help to have one meal a day and two shakes. Doesn’t have to be fancy - when I was doing 2 Huel and 1 meal I had a bowl of rice and beans and whatever veg I wanted on the side. And lots of water. 1.5 stone isn’t a great deal of weight to lose so there’s no reason to do it drastically IMO.