Huel? Anyone tried this alternative to food?

[Dick Montage]

19 minutes ago, Jack W said:

Putting weight on.  My metabolism is, well, not satisfactory. I need something that will make it much easier to actually put weight on, because real food thus far, has not worked out.

Gotcha.  I would recommend a few things.

 

1 ) Eat real foods, fresh foods - sorry but this is good advice for anyone.  Eating junk food does put weight on, but not in ways you want.

2) Work out.  Muscles look better than anything else, and the weight you gain will be better distributed.  Plus it just feels awesome anyway.

3) Whey!  It will help you bulk up in good ways rather than anything like crud.

[BinaryData]

49 minutes ago, Nik L said:

What's your motivation here?  I will comment that it it's any kind of dietary desire (such as weight loss), you know what works really well?

 

Real food.  Kill the junk and cook things fresh.  Lost a shedload that way

I struggle with the cooking part. Haha.

[Dick Montage]

2 minutes ago, BinaryData said:

I struggle with the cooking part. Haha.

I used to, living alone I struggled with the motivation to cook also.  But man, once you get used to it and switch away from junk... wow, flavours are more real!

[Jack W]

14 minutes ago, Nik L said:

Gotcha.  I would recommend a few things.

 

1 ) Eat real foods, fresh foods - sorry but this is good advice for anyone.  Eating junk food does put weight on, but not in ways you want.

2) Work out.  Muscles look better than anything else, and the weight you gain will be better distributed.  Plus it just feels awesome anyway.

3) Whey!  It will help you bulk up in good ways rather than anything like crud.

I do eat real foods, probably not as much as I should - but that's mainly due to work, although I've improved it slightly. Working out is definitely something I'm planning on... possibly will order some equipment for home. With whey, I assume you mean in a protein shake form?  

[BinaryData]

2 minutes ago, Nik L said:

I used to, living alone I struggled with the motivation to cook also.  But man, once you get used to it and switch away from junk... wow, flavours are more real!

Yeah, I have to watch what I cook too. I've got High Cholesterol and Type 2 Diabetes. Cooking really sucks when you're not used to it. However, the benefit is; I can learn how to cook things that are GOOD for me, and I can build habits. Got any good crockpot recipes?

1 minute ago, Jack W said:

I do eat real foods, probably not as much as I should - but that's mainly due to work, although I've improved it slightly. Working out is definitely something I'm planning on... possibly will order some equipment for home. With whey, I assume you mean in a protein shake form?  

If you want something healthy; I make this for breakfast every morning.

 

I bought a bullet blender. I fill it up 3/4 of the way with Frozen Strawberries from Costco. I fill it up 3/4 of the way with water. The rest of the way with Light V8 Juice. I let it sit for about 5 - 10 minutes to "thaw" a little. I blend it up, add a banana and some whey protein. Some times peanut butter is good to add to it.

 

That 20oz cup of this, fills me up pretty well. My other struggle is, I work a lot, and cooking before work really sucks. I'm trying to figure out things I can cook and it'll keep for 3 - 4 days. I'm looking into crock pot recipes.

[Jack W]

Just now, BinaryData said:

Yeah, I have to watch what I cook too. I've got High Cholesterol and Type 2 Diabetes. Cooking really sucks when you're not used to it. However, the benefit is; I can learn how to cook things that are GOOD for me, and I can build habits. Got any good crockpot recipes?

If you want something healthy; I make this for breakfast every morning.

 

I bought a bullet blender. I fill it up 3/4 of the way with Frozen Strawberries from Costco. I fill it up 3/4 of the way with water. The rest of the way with Light V8 Juice. I let it sit for about 5 - 10 minutes to "thaw" a little. I blend it up, add a banana and some whey protein. Some times peanut butter is good to add to it.

 

That 20oz cup of this, fills me up pretty well. My other struggle is, I work a lot, and cooking before work really sucks. I'm trying to figure out things I can cook and it'll keep for 3 - 4 days. I'm looking into crock pot recipes.

Oooh, nice recipe.  I like everything there except... peanut butter, so definitely won't be including that.  I have the same problem as you- work a lot, so it is difficult getting enough sleep, eating properly, getting work done, etc, my amount of free time is zilch most of the time.

 

Will definitely look into that though for breakfast. Better get adding some blenders to my Amazon wishlist.

[BinaryData]

4 minutes ago, Jack W said:

Oooh, nice recipe.  I like everything there except... peanut butter, so definitely won't be including that.  I have the same problem as you- work a lot, so it is difficult getting enough sleep, eating properly, getting work done, etc, my amount of free time is zilch most of the time.

 

Will definitely look into that though for breakfast. Better get adding some blenders to my Amazon wishlist.

Get the Ninja Bullet over the Bullet Blender. It has a better motor. I work 12 hour shifts 3 - 4 days a week, I do have a few hours before work, but generally that time is taken up showering and getting ready. The peanut butter gives you some extra protein, but more whey could counter that, and it gives it more of a "shake" feel than a smoothie feel.

[Jack W]

6 minutes ago, BinaryData said:

Get the Ninja Bullet over the Bullet Blender. It has a better motor. I work 12 hour shifts 3 - 4 days a week, I do have a few hours before work, but generally that time is taken up showering and getting ready. The peanut butter gives you some extra protein, but more whey could counter that, and it gives it more of a "shake" feel than a smoothie feel.

Is this the one?

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Nutri-Ninja-Auto-IQ-BL480UK/dp/B00QB7G10Y/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462713661&sr=8-1&keywords=ninja+bullet

[vcfan]

1 hour ago, Jack W said:

Putting weight on.  My metabolism is, well, not satisfactory. I need something that will make it much easier to actually put weight on, because real food thus far, has not worked out.

if its just for a meal replacement, i guess its ok, but if you're trying to put on weight, I would use a weight gainer instead. better protein source, better carb formula, better bioavailability and absorption.

[Jack W]

20 minutes ago, vcfan said:

if its just for a meal replacement, i guess its ok, but if you're trying to put on weight, I would use a weight gainer instead. better protein source, better carb formula, better bioavailability and absorption.

Hm, I'll look into weight gainers. I just saw Huel as a good method, as people on their site were saying that if you ensure you take more calories from Huel than needed, then you'll put weight on.

[DConnell Member]

On 5/8/2016 at 9:02 AM, Jack W said:

I do eat real foods, probably not as much as I should - but that's mainly due to work, although I've improved it slightly. Working out is definitely something I'm planning on... possibly will order some equipment for home. With whey, I assume you mean in a protein shake form?  

I can vouch for the value of eating "real" food. My cousin is a stickler for eating healthy and as all-natural as possible. Since moving in with her I've dropped 2 inches off my waistline.

[soniqstylz]

[Jack W]

Bit the bullet and have ordered some Huel today. It should arrived tomorrow or Friday I believe, 28 meals of it + a free shaker and t-shirt.  Will keep you all updated on how it is once it arrives. Also ordered a blender, although not the Nutri Ninja as suggested, decided to stick with good ol' Phillips.

[Jack W]

It arrived today!

 

Here's some pictures:

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gallery of Huel: http://imgur.com/gallery/iknmP/

 

Also, the Phillips HR2020/50 blender:

 

 

[Jack W]

Just made Huel... (vanilla). It is quite oaty, but nice. I think I'd prefer another flavour though, so I've ordered a toffee flavouring and banana flavouring from Huel.  

[+Gary7 Subscriber²]

On 5/8/2016 at 9:06 AM, BinaryData said:

Yeah, I have to watch what I cook too. I've got High Cholesterol and Type 2 Diabetes. Cooking really sucks when you're not used to it. However, the benefit is; I can learn how to cook things that are GOOD for me, and I can build habits. Got any good crockpot recipes?

If you want something healthy; I make this for breakfast every morning.

 

I bought a bullet blender. I fill it up 3/4 of the way with Frozen Strawberries from Costco. I fill it up 3/4 of the way with water. The rest of the way with Light V8 Juice. I let it sit for about 5 - 10 minutes to "thaw" a little. I blend it up, add a banana and some whey protein. Some times peanut butter is good to add to it.

 

That 20oz cup of this, fills me up pretty well. My other struggle is, I work a lot, and cooking before work really sucks. I'm trying to figure out things I can cook and it'll keep for 3 - 4 days. I'm looking into crock pot recipes.

My aunt use to do stuff like this with a Blender. She lived to be 93 and was working at 82.

[Simon Veteran]

I ended up biting the bullet on Huel, as well, but I went for the £4 100g sample. It seemed like a good deal - if I end up buying more, they'll knock £4 off my first order.

 

I made a snack size: 40g Huel to 200ml water. I don't own a blender, and didn't want to buy one for a cheap experiment, so I went the manual route: a glass and a spoon. Hint: don't go the manual route. 

 

My first impression was that it tasted like pancake mix, which wasn't pleasant. But the more I drank, the better it got. By the end of it, I wasn't completely disgusted, but it definitely wasn't competing to be the best meal I've ever had. Not appetizing per se, but also not puke worthy. It's infinitely better than the whey-based protein shakes I've had in the past, but it's no steak dinner. As I said, the manual route wasn't the best way to go: there were some small chunks of powder left, even after a good stirring, but I imagine that would be somewhat mitigated with a blender or a shaker. What did dissolve, dissolved very well.

 

It's very filling - unsurprising, given what it is, but still jarring. You don't expect something that is lighter than a milkshake to fill you up.

 

It's definitely possible to eat better for less money with just a little bit more effort. But I've been saying for years that I'm going to eat better, and that I'm just one good grocery store trip away from doing so. It hasn't happened yet, and probably won't happen without some intermediary step. I'm also in a flat share with 6 people (temporarily - only just moved to the UK, and needed somewhere cheap to set up shop),, and one small kitchen, so preparing food is more of a challenge than it's ever been for me.

 

Huel might be a good way for me to, at least, start eating healthily - a good intermediary step. It's easy to portion, so I can adjust my weight. It doesn't make me feel terrible, so I can go for a run or head to the gym after having some. It's very easy to make. I can take it on the bus. And, once I get tired of it, I can start replacing it with healthy meals that I make myself.

 

So, my review: it's not great, but if it's good enough to get me to a healthier place, it might be worth it. I think I'm going to do a full order of it.

[ATLien_0]

On 5/7/2016 at 5:57 PM, Jack W said:

I'm just considering using this for meals at work. According to Huel, it will cost around £1.60/meal if I buy 28 meals. So £1.60 for a meal at work, isn't bad at all. I'm just hesitant spending just over £40 on 28 meals of this stuff and ending up with it not being too great.

Usually when I am in a pinch at work

I just either go the salad route or something like a Cliff or Pro bar. These powder meals would work, but just seems like there are better alternatives 

[Gotenks98]

There is no way this crap is filling. That is the problem I have with all the drinks, powders and diets you feel like your starving all the time.

[Jack W]

30 minutes ago, Gotenks98 said:

There is no way this crap is filling. That is the problem I have with all the drinks, powders and diets you feel like your starving all the time.

It seems to be filling me up, although I'm only having 3 scoops per day, and now added a scoop of Huel's flavouring too. I might up it to 4 or 5 scoops to see how that goes.

[+John. Subscriber¹]

These things are great if you miss a meal and need a quick way to catch up. 

 

However, a website (I think The Verge) did a great mini documentary where a colleague lived on nothing but Soylent for a month. He lost quite a few pounds, but it was the social aspect that really affected him. 

 

There was no socialising at meal times etc, which had a big effect on his mood. 

[Simon Veteran]

2 minutes ago, John. said:

These things are great if you miss a meal and need a quick way to catch up. 

 

However, a website (I think The Verge) did a great mini documentary where a colleague lived on nothing but Soylent for a month. He lost quite a few pounds, but it was the social aspect that really affected him. 

 

There was no socialising at meal times etc, which had a big effect on his mood. 

I definitely wouldn't be so hardcore about it that I wouldn't have a meal with people. 

[+John. Subscriber¹]

7 minutes ago, Simon said:

I definitely wouldn't be so hardcore about it that I wouldn't have a meal with people. 

Sorry, maybe I didn't explain that quite as well as I could have done. 

 

He was present at the meal, but there wasn't the experience of ordering; having your meal arrive; the sensation of chewing and tasting the food, and discussing the meal with others etc

 

I'll try and find it for you but he reported that he was unintentionally ostracized from the group, which had a big effect on his mood. 

 

EDIT: 

 

Found it

 

 

[Jack W]

14 minutes ago, John. said:

Sorry, maybe I didn't explain that quite as well as I could have done. 

 

He was present at the meal, but there wasn't the experience of ordering; having your meal arrive; the sensation of chewing and tasting the food, and discussing the meal with others etc

 

I'll try and find it for you but he reported that he was unintentionally ostracized from the group, which had a big effect on his mood. 

 

EDIT: 

 

Found it

 

 

Definitely wouldn't be me - I purely use this as a meal at work. I still have breakfast and tea as normal, with people, with 'normal' food.

[Skiver Veteran]

Glad I stumbled upon this, I suspect it's not been long enough yet but you mentioned you were hoping this would keep weight under control - do you feel like it's having an effect?

 

I could do with something that A: cuts down price of lunches at work and B: enables me to have a "healthier" and more portion controlled lunch to stop my weight carrying on the trend it was.