QueenAqua's Huel Diary (Huelary?) - Day X of Huel

Hello everyone using Huel for weight loss! This is my ultimate goal and so here’s where I’m going to begin a semi-regularly updated diary of myself while on Huel. (Semi, in this case, being the Latin word for ‘whenever I feel like it’).

I’ve struggled with weight loss my entire life and I built Huel up in my mind to be this grand solution to where I could actually control my eating and work on myself in a lot of ways. In hindsight, that was a bad idea because now I’m terrified I won’t like it and all that hope got built up for nothing. But, I won’t ever know until I do it, so here’s my real-time experiences with this stuff.

Trying my first Huel meal today.
Age: 31
Gender: Female
Starting weight: ~370lbs

Opening the bag - OMG this stuff smells AMAZING! I look and it’s a lovely light brown sugar color that smells like vanilla through and through. I’m EXTREMELY happy so far.

Mixing the Huel - I follow the instructions in the booklet using a bottle of Sam’s Club 20oz water, cold - 400mL, 3 scoops of Huel, mix, top off with rest of the bottle (around 197ml), shake. I shake a lot longer for 10 seconds both times, because of stories I’ve heard about lumps and just because I want to make sure everything’s blended. I kept the grid inside (no idea if that’s necessary). I also notice that it takes me a few tries to screw on the lid to make sure the threads are seated properly. But I do it because I don’t want to be covered in the stuff.

Drinking the Huel - Moment of truth. Let’s sip it. sip Immediate first reactions - this tastes like chalk. I’m frowning. The sugar hits me in the aftertaste, but initially, I have a chalky sensation. Not great.

Second drink - More of the same, except now there’s a few crunchy bits that I feel in my teeth. Meh? Also the cold isn’t staying cold for long, which is a turnoff to me. I go to the freezer and grab some ice cubes (probably should have done it from the start). Shake the bottle again vigorously. I also notice there’s a large lump floating in the top of the mix before I add the ice. Blending is probably the way to go but I don’t have a blender so there we are.

Third drink after ice- Thicker, slightly colder, chalkier oat taste. I taste very little of the vanilla. The cold is nice but it’s not lasting. I decide to refrigerate and try again later. (This is at 18:48 EST)

(Note while chilling - From the few sips I took, I actually did notice that (I woke up hungry) and now I’m not as ravenous. This stuff works amazingly fast. I’m VERY pleased with this portion. Now I just need to make it palatable :()

Fourth drink after refrigerating (19:55 EST) - Bottle is cold now. Some of the ice is even left, which is nice. I shake vigorously (I’m sensing a pattern). Sip - the cold makes a difference but I’m REALLY still tasting the chalk on my tongue while I’m drinking it. I can make it through but I don’t want to just suck it down for the sake of it - I want to actually enjoy what I’m tasting.

I’ll try something different tomorrow, maybe mixing it with milk and some coffee, or chocolate peanut butter powder may help. For now, those are my first impressions.

I wish I could say I’m looking forward with high hopes, but… :frowning:

-Day 1

(edit- at 20:01, couldn’t do anymore. I poured it out and put it in the dishwasher to try again tomorrow >.<)

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If you are not loving it, why sip and taste so much?

A blender will open a new and probably more enjoyable experience. You will be able to mix more thoroughly, including adding fruits or peanut butter …and such. :slight_smile:

I don’t know what is causing the “chalk” taste for you. I get none of that but I use the unsweetened and unflavored version. If/when you try UU you might want to retry some of the combinations that don’t quite work with vanilla.

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@miked, because I each time I’m trying to find ways to make it work. When I can get a blender, I’m definitely going to try to expand it a little more. Just because I don’t love it at the beginning doesn’t mean I won’t forever. I may try U/U at some point.

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Hey! I just got my Huel yesterday and tried it for the first time too. I’ve also hyped it up for weight loss in my mind, so I was really hoping it would taste okay. I had a really similar experience overall: opened the bag and it smelled deliciously of vanilla but when I blended it up and tasted it, I only got a sort of aftertaste of vanilla…? I definitely got that chalky oat taste too.
I’m not sure if you added any sort of flavoring, but that definitely helped for me. I first tried it without the flavoring just to get a sense of it, but I quickly added the banana flavoring in after my first two sips of regular vanilla. Without the flavoring, I don’t think I would have made it through the whole serving to be honest, but the flavoring made it much easier. I wouldn’t say the flavoring tastes great or even very good, but it’s definitely manageable and makes the shake pretty meh overall. I can see myself drinking this twice or thrice a day for a while.
The first day I blended it up, and today (the second day) I used the shaker bottle. Hoenstly, besides getting a few small chunks, it’s not that different. But then again, I think I shook it for a good minute each time I added water! Also, I’ve used a powder called Phood before intermittently (very similar but has a bit better vanilla flavor) so I think I was a bit more accustomed to the taste.
Also, I usually have really bad cravings in the evenings, but after I drank the whole 3 scoop serving of Huel, I noticed the cravings were manageable enough to ignore! So in the long term, I’d say as long as you can find an add-in to make it taste decent, Huel is looking like one of the best weight loss methods for me. Since you don’t have a blender available, I’d suggest trying to add in flavoring powders like peanut butter powder or cocoa powder since they’ll mix more easily in the shaker! Also, I think instant coffee is pretty popular for people who like that flavor (unfortunately not me). I’m not sure if you do much baking, but I’m thinking of using flavor extracts as well, like vanilla or peppermint extract.
Good luck with your weight loss journey, and I really hope you find a flavor mix you enjoy! Please keep up the posts :slight_smile:

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Day 2 of Huel - 16-4-18 - 08:22

I got up and chilled some water and the Huel bottle before mixing. Today I followed the recipe for the coffee and ice in the Huel booklet - same as before, except adding a teaspoon of instant coffee. Mixing with 3 ice cubes (I found I REALLY need to use more, or freeze the shaker bottle).

Drove to work - first sip. The bitterness of the coffee REALLY helped with the chalk taste. It wasn’t great but I can handle bitter far better than oaty chalky. Today our truck with donuts and coffee arrived so I decided to see if I could maybe dress it up a bit.

I got a couple of shots of Torani chocolate syrup. Poured in, shake. Sip 2 - OH MY GOOD GRAVY. THIS STUFF IS AMAZING! It’s not PERFECT yet (three more sugar packets and more ice helped, I REALLY need this stuff to be cold apparently), but the Torani syrup helped a TON.

Now I’m convinced I will adore this stuff with chocolate in it, so I am planning on buying some of Torani’s chocolate syrups or drizzle dark chocolate sauces, as it’s only another 100 calories for 2 tablespoons which should be plenty for a 500 calorie Huel meal.

I’m excited now. :smiley:

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The blender makes the Huel experience as different as night and day compared to manually shaking.

I almost think Huel as a company does themselves a disservice by providing a free shaker, thus implying that shaking it is the best method.

1 packet of swiss miss hot chocolate mix added to Huel is 90 calories and makes it taste great.

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Just wanted to see it again for effect

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@miked - I’d like to just point out that right now I do not possess a blender. When I do, I will update accordingly. (I’m sure the results are better).

@Deron - I am definitely going to try the hot cocoa mix version too, since they make a dark chocolate indulgence and that’s far and away my favorite flavor. :slight_smile:

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Blender, Schmender ;0)

I have the shaker because when the wife puts ice in our blender it is way too loud. I will say that when I use the shaker I take it seriously … sake it like you expect money to fall out!

Although, no electric blender means I’m lowering my carbon footprint … right???

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Have you tried a shaker ball? I really love mine for keeping lumps at bay. Plus their pretty cheap, like $.99 on ebay.

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@ClemsonDad - I DO shake it like several Polaroid Pictures, lol. But I think I want a blender to be able to crush the ice and make sure all the ingredients are incorporated too. I want drink 1 to drink end to taste like whatever I’ve chosen for the day (really REALLY leaning into frozen blueberries and frozen mixed berries :slight_smile: )

@Carly - I didn’t actually think about that but that’s an awesome idea! I would want to try to find one that’s relatively small, as the Huel bottle in my limited experience doesn’t really have a lot of wiggle room after powder and water and other things are added. Hence, the blender option as well. Pour and go. :slight_smile:

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Am I the only one that actually likes and prefers the flavor and texture of Huel mixed in a shaker? I fill the shaker with cold water up to about 400 ml, throw in 3 scoops, shake vigorously for 20 seconds, fill shaker with water to about the 600 ml line, throw in an ice cube or two, shake like heck for another 20 seconds then drink. I get no chalky taste, no clumps, just oat/cookie dough goodness for a meal that takes more time to clean up after than actually prepare.

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I WISH I had that experience! That’s what I do to the letter but the chalky taste is really prominent. It could just be me not being used to the taste and having never done liquid food or protein drinks before as well.

I wonder if this chalky taste comes from the water some people have while others do not. QueenAqua, can you try some bottled water for the sake of science to compare “chalkiness” with your usual water?

Yeah, I know it’s extreme - but we have varying tap water quality across the country.

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Oh, the municipal water here is flat out bad. It falls within standards of course, but all I ever mix Huel with is bottled water. Sam’s Club, 20oz. One of the best I’ve ever tasted. Chalky, grainy taste is still there and has been from the beginning. :confused:

I also dishwash the shaker and rinse out every piece by hand after the fact and let it air dry. All the other measurements are to the letter, even leveling out the scoops with a knife before I add them to the starting 400mL.

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Tomorrow I shall be experimenting with a blender, Huel, ice, frozen blueberries, frozen mixed berries, vanilla extract and Torani’s dark chocolate sauce.

I shall report how it goes :smiley:

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I tried a hot chocolate pack on my own a couple days ago, and you’re so right! I really like it, but I feel kind of bad adding in so many grams of straight sugar, so I’ve started experimenting with using different percents of the packet to achieve the perfect sugar to flavor balance.

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I had the chalky taste when I first started drinking it too, but I think I figured out what was causing it! I think one part was that the recommended amount of water is just too much. After trying it without the second water addition or only adding about half of what’s recommended for the second addition, I’ve noticed that the full recommendation just leaves it too watered down. Also, if you leave the shaker for about 10 minutes to thicken up, that helps a lot too.

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I have a specific technique I developed to cover my ears before hitting the start button on my wife’s Ninja blender. One hand over left year, and I lean my right ear into my right forearm while pressing the button with the right hand. Then during the 1 second pause after initial blend, I rapidly switch to the dual-ear-muff hand position and walk into the other room, hiding from the blender’s onslaught of death metal coming from its machinery.

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At first I thought you may have been being disingenuous but after using my new blender- holy good GRAVY those things are loud! And I like to be there at the controls for the pulse and stuff so I gotta sit there.

ANYWAYS!

Day 3 of Huel - 4-22-18

Did get a really nice blender for 30 bucks and some accoutrements- vanilla extract, cinnamon, and Torani dark chocolate sauce. Today I decided to wing it based off some suggestions (blender is https://www.walmart.com/ip/Hamilton-Beach-Wave-Action-Blender-Model-53516/38813883 if anyone cares).

So I started with the usual 400mL bottled water. 3 scoops of Huel. This time I threw in 4-5 ice cubes because I wanted this thing COLD. Then, I added a dash of vanilla extract to brighten up the flavor of the Huel a bit. Finally, I added 100 calories (2 tablespoons - tablespoons are BIG) of Torani Dark Chocolate sauce (https://shop.torani.com/dark-chocolate-sauce/p/tor-780001&c=torani@sauces - this is the stuff they use in catering for cheesecake garnishes and in coffee houses - it is POTENT).

Blended for about two minutes because I wanted to make sure I pulverized the ice cubes. I was a little worried at first about using cubes and not buying bagged ice which is easier to crush but the blender seemed fine (there was a little first-use burning smell but that’s the norm.)

Moment of truth - first sip - there’s a little of the oaty taste- HOLY COW MY MOUTH GOT SUCKER PUNCHED BY DARK CHOCOLATE!

I cannot overstate how AWESOME this stuff is. I mean REALLY. There is still a minimum of oaty-chalky aftertaste but it is BEYOND tolerable with how great this stuff is. It tastes like you’re drinking a chocolate milkshake for breakfast. I imagine if I replaced the water with milk, it’d be even more so. (NOW THERE’S An idea :D!)

Oh I can ABSOLUTELY see myself drinking this for breakfast every day. Even now as I’m drinking it, my taste buds are getting blown out of the water by the chocolate taste.

(Did I mention dark chocolate is my favorite chocolate? Could you tell? :D)

Will report on Day 4 when it happens (likely tomorrow because OMG I’M SO TAKING THIS TO WORK!)

Verdict- Huel Experiment #4 - SUCCESS!

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