@miked - Mike - Thanks for the post… I haven’t given up … you are right - the all-or-nothing approach (to include the full-stop on so many things at once) did not work well for me … I indicated my intent to stop posting in the chain/string because It seemed disingenuous to continue the discussion under the heading of “365 day journey …” - if i can, I will change the post title to something more akin to “My Journey towards Huel as my …” - for me, I tried to “full stop” on too many things at once - and - I failed to fully appreciate the inconvenience (inconvenient for me) of ensuring I had access to 2500 calories of Huel per day (in light of the fact that I am away from home much of the day) - as well as - dealing the awkwardness (awkward for me) of sharing meals with others who are not using Huel as a primary source of food …
RE-SET / RE-Boot / Realistic 
… Revised approach … GOAL: Huel “products” only for a year beginning January 1, 2019. To address “non” Huel related challenges (primarily Caffeine & Nicotine (nicotine pill and patch form), I plan to do the following: Reduce caffeine to zero over the course of of the 24 days remaining in November (past experience tells me I can realistically do this) - - Reduce the oral consumption of Nicotine (slightly in November, more aggressively in December) to zero over the course of 55 days remaining in calendar year (my fall back will be to transition to nicotine patch as of January “if necessary” so that I am not “consuming orally” nicotine when restart Huel “product” only Journey on January 1st - my nicotine physical dependence is a real challenge for me right now). Regarding Huel only, changing approach to allow for Huel “products” only so that I can incorporate Huel flavor boosts for variety “and” will try to find someone in the UK that I can make an arrangement to secure Huel “Bars” (via that person sending them to me (for a fee) so that I have more variety (I really need the variety if this experiment will work for me). I know this is Huel “US” forum, but if any UKers are seeing this and will to work with me to secure the Bars (for a fee) I would appreciate the help (I will also explore this option on the Huel FB page as that page appears to have UKers as active users. The use of Huel “Bars” will help with portability of Huel “products” when away from home. So, that only leaves (only leaves for the “big challenges” - how to address sharing meals with family, friends, and business associates/clients who don’t use Huel - - Would welcome any thoughts others may have on how to address this “big issues” (big issue for me )… thanks everyone!
If you’re required to go to dinner with clients or business partners, you really shouldn’t plan on a Huel-only diet. Just don’t even go there, it’s not realistic. You’re running the risk of putting off people who are there to help you earn your livelihood. Stick to Huel-only most days, but if you’re doing any business entertaining, then just look at that steak dinner as part of the cost of doing business.
I can see the attraction of a Huel-only diet, I just don’t want to see you set yourself up for a string of stressful evenings while you’re out of town.
I have personally never smoked, but I have many friends who have gotten over it via vaping. Not sure if it would work for you.
This is going to be a costly choice, honestly. I know you love Huel, but I would strongly advise against it (I would assume sending a parcel will cost you between $50/100 depending the weight):
-
Do DIY bars
Ingredients:160 gr oatmeal.
80 gr Huel U&U.
80 gr Huel Vanilla.
40 gr cacao powder.
1 tps Mocha Huel Flavour Boost.
1 tsp vanilla extract.
30 gr almonds.
30 g cashew nuts.
30 gr coconut chips.
80 gr dates (plus soaking water).
Method:
Put all together in a food processor and blend it.
Make the dough with the hands.
Make balls and leave it in the fridge to settle for 2h.
same recipe
1 cup (85g) oats.
1/2 cup (80g) U&U Huel.
1/4 cup (20g) cacao powder.
15g desiccated coconut.
15g pecans.
1 cup (140g) medjool dates (soaked in 400-500ml water).
Pinch of salt.
1/2 tsp vanilla extract.
2 tbsp cacao nips.
Method:
Tear dates up into halves, put them into water to soak.
Put oats into the processor and blitz them to powder.
Add the Huel and cacao powder to the oats.
Then the desiccated coconut and the chopped pecans Save a bit of these for later.
Now add the dates, the pinch of salt and vanilla extract. Blend it a little.
Slowly add water and blend. As soon as it makes a dough like texture, add a little extra water and take it out into a bowl.
Knead it a little just to check the texture. You can tell the right texture because it should feel like a little like clay or playdough thats a little dry.
Roll into the shape you desire, balls or bars! Add the extra pecans and cacao nibs
another recipe:
½ cup(s) Huel Vanilla.
¼ cup coconut flakes.
¼ cup coconut flour (or personally I would put more Huel).
¼ cup milk of choice (coconut?).
30 g dark chocolate.
Method:
Put the powder ingredients in a bowl and bind them together with milk.
Mix and bind until you get a dough. You can add peanut butter if you want.
Shape the dough into bars. If you are struggling to shape them, add more Huel.
Melt the dark chocolate in a bain-marie and put it on top of the bars.
Put them in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Look at the competition (sacrilege!).
Don’t worry. Every Hueler is with you in this journey (pretty sure many in admiration)!
I admire your bravery (or stupidity).
Several years back I stayed off of caffeine for over a year. I suggest people to give it a try because you will quickly realize how much you can be relying on it. I wanted to be self motivated and positive regardless of how tired I may feel. To experience and realize this in your own body is hugely beneficial and is better than being addicted to it. It may not be crack or speed but addiction is addiction and not being in control of your own body is not a good thing.
Full disclosure… I did have a coffee one time during that time to help relieve constipation.
I believe that you can get JimmyJoy Twennybars in the U.S. Not Huel, but same concept. Fairly similar nutritional content.
Edit: it appears they are out of stock at the U.S. shipping point, but in other social media they have touted new stock on the way.
Shipment for Twennybars is arriving mid november. Together with Plenny Drink and new JJ products.
Otherwise, you could order Queal GoBars ($25 shipping cost, unfortunately).
There are other brands doing them in Europe and shipping them over, but you will find the same problem with all.
The first is definitely the cheaper option. I would stick to Fernly’s advice.
“Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus”! 2018 favorite Xmas present is Huel RTD (ships in US on Dec 28) … As noted above, “my” Huel only journey got off to a very rocky start as I tried to do too much too quickly. The four areas that I tried to change too quickly were 1) removal of caffeine (addicted), removal of nicotine (addicted), 3) removal of simple carbohydrates (addicted), and 4) Huel consumption when not at home for extended periods (lazy / inconvenient). I am now on track to knock out the caffeine by end of Nov. Moving towards the goal of no nicotine lozenges by end of Dec. Removing simple carbs from diet and on track to be whined-off by end of Dec. Huel RTD ships on Dec 28th! … for a clean restart of Huel only on Jan 1 … feeling empowered!
You should feel empowered, Chris! Those are tough habits to break, but look at you taking on the challenge! Happy to have Huel be a part of your positive changes and hopefully the Ready-to-drink will help you stay on track even better!
@Chris_H I hope your second attempt goes well. You are trying a similar process as I, so I wanted to share some tips.
When I first tried Huel, I struggled to drink it. I now realize most people who have bad first experiences are simply not getting it mixed the way they will like it. For me, it has to be cold and have enough time to soak up the water. The most convenient way I figured out was to use a 72 ounce Ninja blender to mix about a half gallon at a time and I put the jug in the fridge overnight. If I will want some sooner, just blend up some ice with it and it will be close after a few hours. One jug makes about 3000 calories of Huel based on the consistency I like. A full gallon with about 2500 calories will be thinner and might be more appealing to some.
For on the go, get a Promixx https://www.promixx.com/
This will allow you to mix it smoother and avoid any potential mess from the shaker. People tend to see it as cool, so helps with some of the awkwardness from what I experienced.
Always shake anything prepared in advance. It definitely needs it after a couple of hours to have consistent taste.
The most difficult part of making the switch is the mental aspect. I went cold turkey on… well, turkey for one thing. (Thanksgiving was different this year…) I also gave up coffee, which I drank several cups daily for years. I supplemented that with green tea. After a week, I did not miss coffee, but it was hard the first several days.
I am not a smoker, so I can’t offer anything with that other than to suggest you pick whatever battle you are prepared to commit to and win. If you succeed with one thing, it will boost you to the next.
On to the challenge of getting used to Huel alone. If you don’t like it for any reason, tell yourself it is medicine, not food. Eventually you will likely develop a love for the taste and the texture is all about how you prepare it. Just calling it medicine for the first couple of weeks really helped.
On to the sugars and empty calories addictions. Those are tough,but totally worth eliminating. I fully believe those are far more damaging than is truly understood yet. The good news is all of that is likely what it causing weight gain and other health issues. That means that if you eliminate them, the problems may go away. If Huel is not filling you enough, the simple solution is to have more. I have found Huel causes my body to self regulate, so even consuming 4000 calories is hard to turn to fat, so if you are hungry on a Huel only diet, have more. I can’t promise the same results, but I used to weigh 265 lbs in my youth and am 170 lbs now. I know all about the struggles and effects caused by sugar and junk food.
If you drink Huel and it gives you indigestion, drink less at a time for a while, and eventually that will not be a problem. Drinking water with it helps too. Taking some good probiotics can help make it easier to adapt to Huel too.
In my case, I chose Huel because I needed to help me fix my digestive system. It has helped more than I can explain. I guess you could say I had it easy, since I didn’t have any good options to quit anyway. The only thing I can suggest there is to also spend time envisioning what your life could be like to be free of so much struggle. Five minutes of pleasure eating something bad is not really worth what you give up. I went from malnourished and fearing the worst for myself, to ending almost all of the real pain and much of the suffering. Before Huel, I was emaciated, but now I am still recovering, but not sickly looking. I was too messed up to do much of anything, but now can go on long hikes, with my Huel, I started jogging, my blood pressure is literally perfect now, when it was a bit high before Huel, and I go to the gym as often as I can. I embraced my fare and tried to make it into an opportunity for a better life. If you focus on that, it might help you avoid temptations.
Best of luck to you. I am rooting for you. If I can be of any help or support to you with this, I am happy to do so. Huel is a great tool for making the most out of life, in my opinion. I have seen benefits from people who use it a couple of times a day, but I think the real benefit is demonstrated doing a Huel cleanse, so to speak. In my case, I started my journey on 8/17/2018.
@JohnnieD72 - Thank you for the thoughtful, detailed, and inspired discussion. I will look at incorporating many of your suggestions - including the Promixx.
I have decided to get the remaining monkey’s off my back before 100% Huel. As of today, I am about 30 days without caffeine, 8 days without nicotine, and 6 days without refined sugar. My current goal is to get through / continue through to Feb 15 without the caffeine, nicotine, refined sugar - at which point - I will feel better prepared to jump full time into Huel.
Congrats on your run since August! Nice work!
Again, thank you for the thoughtful / kind words - I appreciate the amount of time and thought that went into yours (and other’s above) discussion/commentary/suggestions/ encouragement!
That’s an incredible feat on its own. Well played sir!
How often are you drinking Huel currently?
Also, make sure you keep a positive state of mind and remember that you are working for something good. Don’t let the cravings get the best of you!
Thx @latestfuels - only drinking one 4 scoop Huel meal per day right now. In addition to eliminating refined sugar, trying to get used to significantly lower carbs each day (primarily protein and fats for remaining meals).
New to this forum, and reading several topics. Looks like this thread was going strong then abruptly ended.
Can someone check on Chris_H?
Hey @DocRic, he posted recently on another thread attempting to sell his remaining Huel I believe. Didn’t state why he was stopping but he did post recently.