I’m a complete newbie and am hoping to lose weight. I have been having 2 shakes a day for breakfast and lunch and I have 2 scoops with half water and half choc oat milk, with half banana.
I’m using MFP but having the shakes like this doesn’t leave my many calories left for my main evening meal. According to MFP I should only be consuming 1260 calories a day. Am I doing something wrong??
Is there a way of making my shakes taste better I find them a bit bland hence the adding choc milk. Should I drop to one scoop instead of 2??
Exercise wise I have started the couch to 5k app which I do 3-4 a week
I currently weight 14st 7lbs and would like to get to 10.7lbs
Adding raw cacao powder is a great way of adding flavour and nutrients without adding many calories.
Also instant coffee granules in Huel is delicious (don’t make the coffee and pour it in, just add the dry powder at the same time as your Huel powder)
As for 1260 calories per day… that could be right depending on your age height weight and activity level and current muscle mass.
I’d suggest just monitoring your weight and hunger for a couple of weeks and if you’re losing more than 0.5 to 1kg per week, increase your calorie intake by 250 per day.
Just seen you are 14stone and doing exercise… 1260 is quite low. Did you set your goal to cut 1000 calories a day?
A good deficit is 500 calories per day - it’ll be easier to maintain and will give you a nice steady weight loss of 1lb per week.
Hi Lucy
Yep that makes sense. 2lbs a week equates to a 1000 calorie deficit.
It’ll be pretty difficult but possible in the short term. You might struggle with a lot of hunger and low energy levels. If it’s too hard to maintain then you can always change to 1lb a week loss which is 500 calories a day deficit and would give you 1760 a day and would feel a lot easier.
Just see how you go! @Bee did a consistent 500 calorie deficit and lost 1lb a week til she hit her goal and is the perfect example of steady consistent weight loss!
1000 a day is possible but will be hard.
Good luck with your goals and keep us posted on how you get on
1 scoop would be a tiny meal but I don’t see why not.
Water amount is personal preference really. Some people only like it really thick. Personally I really like it watery.
If you like it super thick, try adding a small amount of alpro coconut milk. You don’t need much (and it’s fairly low calorie) and the gums make it go really thick. Also refrigerating your Huel overnight thickens it up and makes it smoother and tastier.
we’re in similar situations although I started somewhat heavier than you, I’m currently 15 stone.
I also track my calories using MFP and follow MFP’s guidance for a 2lb a week weight loss with a daily limit of 1200 calories, as for me too I have an office job so I’m not overly active.
I replace breakfast with 1 scoop of vanilla Huel in 200ml water, generally have a banana or other fruit midmorning, and then 2 scoops of Huel with 400ml water for lunch. If I’m hungry before dinner then it’s another piece of fruit or occasionally ‘sensible’ crisps or a biscuit bar if I feel like a treat, then a healthy dinner. I’m on week 7 now and I’m actually not finding it an issue at all sticking to 1200 calories - my initial thought was to do it as a kick start for a few weeks and then up my calories when I started to struggle, I haven’t started to struggle yet so I’ll carry on at 1200!
I’m also doing C25K - week 3 run 3 tonight! I only do it twice a week but do a brisk 30 min walk in my lunch break on the other days of the week and I swim on Saturdays. At the moment I’m managing some exercise 5-6 days a week.
In terms of flavours the flavour boosts are good, I try to avoid any flavour adding that also involves calories (like banana). Have you tried any of the other Huel flavours like berry, chocolate, coffee?
My losses have been good and steady and I’m beyond thrilled, Huel has made life so much easier, I no longer have to worry about what I’m going to find for lunch when I’m away with work or out and about, or plan lunches to take to work. I just make up my Huel and go!
Definitely check out some other flavouring methods. Huel is more nutrient dense/varied than the oat choc milk and banana so you’ll be adding a fair few additional calories. No problem if you’re monitoring calorie intake. But I guess if you can find a mix that works for you without having to add extras then you’ll be getting more nutrients in pro-rata. Our Flavour Boosts are great (shameless self promo), but yeah cacao powder is a popular one, adding coffee is great (fresh or instant).
This thread is pretty vintage but has some great suggestions in:
