Howdy! It’s my first post on the forum so I’d like to thank you in advance for community and staff, you all provide a lot of motivation and inspiration, send positive vibes and it’s always good to read your thoughtful posts. I’ve been a lurker for a month already but wanted to finally share some thoughts and experience with the rest of community. It’s gonna be a high wall of text to climb on (I’m sorry for this, it’s my bad habit) and hope I don’t make too many typos, I’m not English native-speaker.
It’s nice to meet you all~ I’m rather new Hueligan on the horizon, 40-year old male from Poland.
I’ve started my adventure with Huel on June 26th this year when I registered account on the main website and subscribed to newsletter, it’s been very engaging and satisfying ride so far-- to the point that I regret the fact that I haven’t found out and tried products earlier.
I’ve made my first purchase on July 4th and the next batch of goods (which I turned into recurring subscription) on July 27th, the next one is planned for September 5th. I didn’t think that I would get to like Huel that much and notice improvements within 1 month, all products have a special place at home already. 
I know that taste is very subjective aspect and matter of personal preference, I may sound like another old broken record among hundreds of reviews but I’d like to share some experience with everyone and maybe it’ll help someone new, even the one with medical condition (after consulting with your doctor, of course), to give it a try.
First batch of products included:
- Huel Black Edition: Vanilla, Banana, Chocolate
- Huel Hot & Savoury: Mexican Chili, Tomato & Herb
Second purchase included:
- Huel Black Edition: Vanilla, Strawberries & Cream, Salted Caramel, Cookies & Cream
- Huel Hot & Savoury: Mac & Cheeze, Korma Curry
Batch expected for September:
- Huel Black Edition: Banana, Chocolate, Cinnamon Swirl, Coffee Caramel
- Huel Hot & Savoury: Thai Green Curry, Pasta Bolognese
Main goals for testing period:
- switching to products that will be able to provide nutricionally complete composition without soy and allergens as well as lower amount of fats and carbohydrates, also to fill stomach for long time and keep energy flowing
- support weight loss process, I feel like Huel is another chance for natural way of my lifetime battle against extreme obesity and excessive weight gain (both driven by health conditions with pituitary gland and endocrine system since birth)
- to test whether my body is gonna accept Huel products in the long run and adapt without side effects or not
- provide enough proteins to keep as much muscle mass as possible during weight loss process
How much Huel in my daily diet plan?
Intermittent Fasting 8/16 (eating from 8 AM until 4 PM, then only water for the next 16 hours)
I tend to plan meals one day ahead with Fitatu app and weigh everything before consumption so I’m able to figure out how much I eat to keep calorie deficit in check. Definite NO to alcohol, coffee, drugs, nuts, smoking. I’ve been avid tea enthusiast and juice drinker however I haven’t touched them since the start of adventure with Huel, only water so far.
Calorie deficit: 1400 - 1600 kcal
Water daily intake: 3 - 3.5 liters
Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays:
- breakfast (8-8:30 AM): 2 scoops of Huel Black Edition with 500 ml of cold water (400 kcal)
- dinner (around 1 PM): usual meal with family (400-600 kcal)
- supper (3:30-3:40 PM): 2 scoops of Huel Black Edition with 500 ml of cold water (400 kcal)
- 1-2 snacks within day to reach upper limit for calorie deficit
Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays:
- breakfast: 2 scoops of Huel Black Edition with either 500 ml of cold water or 250 ml of cold water and 250 ml of cold milk (400-500 kcal)
- dinner (around 1 PM): 2 scoops of Huel Hot & Savoury with 210-250 ml of boiled water (400 kcal)
- supper (3:30-3:40 PM): 2 scoops of Huel Black Edition with 500 ml of cold water (400 kcal)
- 1-2 snacks within day to reach upper limit for calorie deficit
products for additional snacks:
fruit bars, fresh fruits, veggies or 200g of cottage cheese with chopped radish, diced tomato, chives and minced onion
What have I observed so far?
Whole month was full of surprises, overly positive ones. Adjusting to new diet plan was a success and I didn’t experience any side effects reported by majority of people whose reviews I’ve read on the internet much earlier. No diarrhea, no headaches and nausea, no stomachache, no vomiting, no constipation, no bloating and no killing farts, it’s probably because I haven’t switched to 100% Huel (like the team used to recommend many times) in order not to put body under shock but let it adapt slowly to new circumstances. The only inconvenience I noticed was stomach grumbling every midnight for the first week. It was more like battle against willpower and thoughts imprinted into brain. I wasn’t hungry but my body wasn’t used to liquid meals at all (even though I love soups) so it tried forcing me into compulsive eating but I didn’t catch a bait, it stopped grumbling after 7 days.
Shake in the morning has been very filling, it’s been providing energy for a lot of time. I could have drank one and I felt like I had to force myself to eat the rest of meals when my eating window was open. Craving for sugar and highly-processed unhealthy food (which I avoided as much as I could anyway) vanished immediately, my mood has been great from the beginning and I lost 7 kilos within 30 days without any workout and excessive spontaneous activity. Now, that I’ve started doing some basic exercises, it’s keeping the weight at the same point but I feel difference in other parts of body as fat from waist, torso, legs and face is getting smaller. I bet muscle mass is at work so I’ll give it 2-3 more weeks and do the best I can, patience is a key when it’s about losing weight and I was already taught not to be demotivated when scales don’t go lower with numbers.
It didn’t matter whether I made Black Edition shakes with shaker or blender, both objects did great work and I didn’t experience any lumps inside as long as I stuck to instructions given by producer.
I prepare Black Edition shakes in the evening, the day before I’m gonna drink them. I cool 500-520 ml of water down in the fridge for 2 hours before shaking (I don’t put any ice cubes inside hence why cooling water before making food), pour it into shaker or blender, add 2 scoops of powder and turn the switch on (or shake the shaker bottle intensely into many directions like a mad man) for 2 minutes.
Prepared food is put into the fridge overnight and ready with thicker consistency for meal in the morning, flavor and taste for evening shake remains the same as when it was made day before (putting it into fridge is vital).
Experience with flavors and service so far.
Packaging and delivery, overall service: Superb so far! First order came in less than 24 hours and package was complete (T-shirt, 2 scoops for BE powder, 2 scoops for H&S meals, pot for H&S, shaker with instructions), the second one also kept a promise to arrive in time. All delivered products were in top-notch condition. Really good experience with DPD courier service in Poland and I hope it’s gonna stay this way as long as possible. Introductory pamphlet with all presented products and instructions, “thank you for being with us” leaflet made a positive reaction. If Customer Support is as good as the team responsible for packaging and marketing, it’ll be a total blast - I’ve yet to experience contact with support! 
The only thing, which irked me with purchase, was a blind shot with flavors as there are no samples (like sachet with 2 scoops) offered to customers, to be honest I would even pay for them if price was affordable but would be delighted if Huel team added some extra with random purchases so people could try different flavors. I think it would be a nice promotion of product and bow towards customers.
Website is clean and simple, I didn’t have any issues so far. Good work overall but I really miss history of previous orders in my account profile since “We are currently migrating historical orders, this information will be available soon.” message has been appearing all time there in Order History tab, I keep all e-mails so I’m able to find every order I made and it’s not a big problem to me. I know I’m able to contact support anytime but I would feel like wasting their time with something trivial while they could help someone with serious issues.
Onto flavors then~
Take a note that my taste buds may be different than yours.
I’ve tried Huel Black Edition and Hot & Savoury meals so far, I’m kind of resistant to protein bars since I’m allergic to nuts (peanuts mostly but walnuts give me a solid skin rash) but looking forward to other products.
Huel Black Edition:
- Vanilla - I’ve finished the first bag today. It’s really nice flavor and I feel like it can’t go wrong when it’s mixed with other powders; it smells and tastes like subtle vanilla to me.
- Banana - noticeable aroma but it was very sweet and overpowering taste of rippen banana in the beginning, so I had to mix it with either 250ml milk and 250ml water or 1 scoop of Vanilla for the first week; it tastes really good when I got used to it.
- Chocolate - I expected something mediocre after tons of reviews found in the internet, somehow it’s one of positive surprises and tastes great, it has a smell of subtle bar of chocolate; it’s even better really good when mixed with cup of milk.
- Strawberries & Cream - great smell and the same taste, it feels like not-too-sweet strawberry with noticeable aroma of cream, really subtle flavor and the more I drink it, the more I like it!
- Salted Caramel - definitely not good, it’s even better! I would say it’s a BIG BOMB, very sweet one I have to add! First sips and I felt like going back to childhood memories of Polish fudge candy melted in my mouth, it brought up so much joy. It’s really great taste and probably my personal favourite at this moment. I love it, my sweet tooth is happy too~
- Cookies & Cream - edible but not that great experience so far. It smells like chocolate biscuit cookie crumbs and sadly I’m unable to notice any taste of cream inside, mixing with 1 scoop of Vanilla helped a bit but still it’s not something I would like to drink with appetite. I thought it could be nice with milk but nope, tried also mix with Banana BE or Strawberries & Cream but that’s not it… I’d really appreciate if anyone had any tips how to enhance its taste, for the time being - BE Chocolate tastes better to me. :<
Huel Hot & Savoury:
- Mexican Chili - I was worried about spicy taste (since I’m not used to spicy food at all) but I gave it a try regardless and it’s been a really good experience. It was spicy only at the first try but still edible, quite thick consistency of risotto when I mixed 2 scoops with 210 ml of water. Spicy flavor killed my taste buds in the beginning so I couldn’t tell apart what I sensed inside, it had to sunk in within time before I noticed all ingredients. Definitely lots of bean inside, dried bell pepper and chili, I sensed coriander there. I liked it, it’s good~
- Tomato & Herb - I was very skeptical about this one, reviews in the internet didn’t keep this meal in high regards as people considered it rather bland so I was struggling with decision whether to order it or not… and I’m glad I bought it, it’s a total BOMB! Lots of flavors inside, taste of tomato, plethora of basil, coriander, I felt onion there too. It can be watery with 250 ml but turned into risotto when given 210-220 ml and left with closed lid for 10-15 minutes. I love it so far, it’s one of meals that I prepare often!
- Mac & Cheeze - lots of funny mini noodles inside bag, powdered cheese sauce that smells like something similar to cheese, scent of sweet tomatoes and garlic. Its structure is thick when mixed with 215 ml of boiled water and left for 15 minutes to let overall taste sink in. I’m not a fan of noodles, but experience with Mac & Cheeze is okay so far.
- Korma Curry - one word I can think about when I eat it: “Ugh!”, this one is hard to consume and I’m still looking for any good way to enhance its flavor. There’s a lot of raisins inside bag and I feel them all time, they overpower the taste of whole meal. Unfortunately I don’t sense anything else even after solid shake of bag, meal is edible but not my taste in the long run. I mix it with 1 scoop of Mexican Chili for now and it’s slightly passable but definitely not my favorite at this moment. Any recommendations on what spices to add in order to make it better experience?
Sorry for long post once again, it’s my bad habit when thoughts flow into mind and I don’t know when to stop. Without further ado, I’ll definitely continue my journey with Huel, I’m looking forward to try other products, reap what I sow with effects and see what team has yet in Store to hit everyone with in the future!
Thank you all for being here (both staff and community), for your continued work, inspiration, motivation and hoping this sense of mission you’re all part of, is gonna last indefinitely with the same blast~
Have a great time!