I have two lots of Huel Black Edition, the banana and the strawberry, and I’ve tried both to make sure it’s not just one of the flavours that affect me.
I’ve been trying to use Huel to replace breakfast and lunch, with a proper dinner, and I’m really struggling with it.
I can not feel too hungry when I have my Huel (two scoops in 400ml water, and sometimes I’ll add in fruit and blend it) but about half an hour after I’ve had it, I’m gripped with a raging hunger - my stomach feels completely empty - and I start to feel really light-headed and lethargic.
Is this to be expected when using Huel like this, or is it possible I’m intolerant to it? I made a bit of a gamble by buying two bags, and I’d hate to waste them, but after a few days of the raging hunger and then binge eating my dinner… I just don’t know if I can carry on.
I can’t say I have much issues. I tend to have porridge for breakfast with a banana which seems to keep me going and a Huel shake for lunch with half water and half oat milk. Sometimes i’ll eat a small bag of popcorn but this normally lasts me till dinner where I have a chicken salad more often than not.
Like anything I think it takes time for your body to adjust.
Hey Jenny, welcome to the forum! I’m honestly surprised to hear that, we usually hear the exact opposite. Just double checking, what scoop are you using?
If it looks like this, it’s the wrong one and is too small and you will not be eating as much as you thought.
Another thing, what were you eating for breakfast and lunch before Huel? It’s possible you were eating more than the 400kcal your two scoops is providing. If your previous breakfast/lunch was more calories then you just need to eat a little more Huel!
How fast are you consuming your Huel? Perhaps try slowing it down if you’re drinking it in <5 mins.
I can’t say that I feel any hungrier on Huel than I did on other food but I do wonder if, psychologically, our minds are telling us that, because we’ve drunk rather than eaten our food, we haven’t eaten anything.
Make sure that you’re having enough and give your mind and body time to adapt. It’ll definitely be worth it.
It took me a little while to find the right portions and ratios for me. Before that I was similar.
Now I mix 1000ml with about 200g of Huel UU. I’ll have one of these for breakfast, one for lunch, and then 500ml of the same ratio for a snack and a traditional main meal of 800kcal. Taking me to about 3000kcal a day.
I struggled with this myself at the start too, but I found a workaround that works for me when using Huel for Breakfast + Lunch.
I’ll always pair my Huel with a snack of some kind (usually toast and/or some fruit if i’m at home). I’ll then drink my huel shake very slowly (generally over the span of ~1.5 hours). I found that this way, I was able to get through the day without feeling hungry :~)
If pairing it with snacks isn’t an option for you, i’d recommend adding a little more powder to each shake and trying to drink it a little more slowly
It could also be your body craving/ addicted to stuff in processed foods, sugar, fats, salt and things I can’t pronounce or spell.
It takes a bit for your body and mind adjust. You know Huel is nutritionally complete and how many calories you are eating, if what you ate before was really poor quality, it is a mindset initially- tell your brain and stomach all is good and you’re not listening.
Great to hear you’ve found what works for you! Question, isn’t this just you eating more? I.e. you were hungry having just Huel, so you’ve increased the amount of food you’re eating and that’s helped? Or did you reduce down the amount of Huel so the calories were the same?
I definitely find drinking Huel over a slightly longer period helps though. I have it faster than 90 mins but even 20-30 mins is great.
