Hi! New to Huel as I didn’t know it existed before an ad on Facebook a while back.
I recently got sucked into the mlm (pyramid scheme) that is Herbalife and was willing to spend almost £120 a month on products that were not only creating an illusion of health and well-being but also non vegan, non environmentally friendly and just generally harmful (I real studies about it causing liver damage!) and I quickly realised I was sucked into nothing other than hype over a restricted calorie diet and some sugar pills.
Now I’m trying Huel and it’s totallt different for me in terms of taste and sense of well being. I just have the vanilla flavour and haven’t indulged in any flavour packs yet as I’m enjoying the taste and texture of it as it is, but I’m a bit worried as I was easily fooled into thing Herbalife could solve all my weight loss problems. So I would like to hear from people who have actually lost weight sticking to the Huel plan (I also exercise as well so any tips there would be good) and just a bit of reassurance that I’m not about to go down the path of mlm or hype over nothing again! Thank you in advance!
Huel is not a weight loss product. Huel is normal food, like salad or chiken. It’s only pre balanced so people like me don’t have to think about what to prepare to have an healthy meal. It’s already done, by experts. So, Huel is not made to loose weight. But being in powder, it’s super easy to weight it and calculate calories. So it’s perfect for who want to loose weight.
That said, I can put my personal experience on the table: I’ve eaten mainly 2 Huel meals a day (Granola in the morning and a 100-110 gr Huel shake for dinner) with a normal non vegan non healthy non dietary meal, and I’ve lost like 8Kg in two months. Without going to gym and without feeling hungry. Why? Mainly beause I stopped craving for sweets, and eating disorderly because I’m lazy.
Some people are great at working out exactly what they should be eating in order to get the right nutrients while reducing their calorie intake.
For me, Huel takes all that effort away. I’m having 2 Huel shakes a day, 1 for breakfast and 1 for lunch; I started off making my shakes with 400ml water, 100ml milk and 100g Huel and have reduced it to 300ml water, 100ml milk and 80g Huel because I was full for too long and then not ready to eat an evening meal until too late at night!
As @danosavi says, its not a weight loss product but it does help with weight loss if that’s how you want to use it because there is no messing about with getting the right macros etc.
I feel so much healthier since I started using it 6 weeks ago, I sleep better, I have a lot more energy, my hair is thicker and feels so much nicer; and I finally feel in control of my eating because I’m not spending all my time thinking about the next meal!
For me it is the convenience and the environmental impact that attracted me. I too am a vegan and spent SOOO much time squinting at lists of ingredients to see if a food product was suitable for me.
With Huel I don’t have that worry. I know what I’m having and how much.
It is also enjoyable to have and frees up so much time with food prep, washing up and with making decisions about what to eat.
It also keeps me away from supermarkets and all those naughty temptations!
Huel isn’t specifically for weight loss but can be a great tool to aid in weightloss in a more sustainable manner.
If taken as complete meal replacement its likely your weight would remain stable as will consuming the same amount of calories in conventional food. If you do use huel while in a calorie deficit you will certainly lose the lbs, I did it for my wedding last year and had great results (i had 2x huel’s per day and a healthy dinner). I found getting over the fact i wasn’t ‘chewing/eating’ was the hardest part for me initially. Huel is also the first ‘shake’ type food i’ve consumed that hasn’t been a diet meal replacement and I can honestly say it keeps me full almost more than the breakfast and lunch i was eating before i switched. My cravings for junk food/ salt and sugary stuff has pretty much gone away in the past few weeks. I think this may be because my body is getting more of the nutrients/minerals it needs instead of me living off food with not a lot of nutritional value . I’m a very happy huel’er and recommend to everyone!
@OneStep I have noticed my hair is also shiner, longer and thicker! Thought i was imagining it
Me personally, I have started using Huel as breakfast and lunch for work because I was eating poorly and spending £3-8 a day on food while at work.
Now I either prepare both before I go to bed and refrigerate overnight or just make them up in the morning, takes literally 5 mins start to finish.
I then have meal in the evening, usually meat with veg or pasta or rice.
I don’t really do any exercise other then walking around (I average 6-8k steps a day so not much) and started playing football for 1 hr a week (only done one week so far).
Today is my 15th day and as of this morning I have lost 3.5kg. Without ever really being hungry. Friday and Saturday nights I have a drink still (try to keep Kcals to a min though). The biggest problem I’ve had is simply craving naughty food!
But I figure once I’m at a weight I’m happy with I can start to have the odd treat here and there. I am also trying to get the motivation to start a bit more exercise even if its just the 7 minute workout every night or Yoga at home, anything is better then nothing!
I’ve been really shocked with how easy it has been to be honest and plan to keep with it long term. I do keep some “Perkier” vegan quinoa bars in my desk draw or fresh fruit for if I feel a bit hungry between shakes but very rare I need to do this.
Me personally I struggle to avoid lumps when hand shaking so I also use a blender even when not adding fruit to the mix. So my way is this;
300ml water
115g (using scales) Huel
Mix in with fork
(Add fruit or flavor if wanted, I usually add t tsp of instant coffee for breakfast)
Blend for 15 seconds
Top up with around 100ml water
Mix in with fork (or could hand shake)
Refrigerate overnight or add ice as I prefer it as cold as poss!
So, Huel is not made to loose weight. But being in powder, it’s super easy to weight it and calculate calories. So it’s perfect for who want to loose weight. 
