Only Huel for One Week

Having never consumed Huel before I decided to undertake an experiment–I would get all my calories from Huel for a whole week.

After a 17 day expedition in Norway in 2013, I developed lactose intolerance, and since then I've suffered from various digestive issues. Huel, for those who don't know, is a 'complete nutrition' drink focused on providing adequate nutrition for your goals. I wanted to see what Huel did to my body, and whether I would enjoy the experience.

During the week I experienced no diarrhea–this is something many people warned me about who had tried Huel in the past. I consumed a combination of the Chocolate and Mint Huel, and Vanilla Huel v2.3. They may have altered the recipe to increase its fiber content, hence why I experienced good digestion throughout the experiment. Day three was the only day I experienced hard stool, and after that my digestion was far better than with my usual diet.

Hunger was something that I was concerned about before starting the experiment. I often experience extreme hunger, so I thought this may be a problem, however it was not. Each meal adequately kept me full for at least three hours. When I did get hungry it was sudden rather than gradual, as I usually experienced. Huel was so easy to prepare (I recommend using a blender to ensure it is smooth) that I could quickly fix my hunger.

I personally found the Vanilla flavour much too sweet, so I used the flavour boosts to mask the artificial vanilla taste. The pack of 10 flavour boosts you can buy are a great way to try different flavours, however many of them may not be to your liking–the three I liked were pineapple and coconut, strawberry, and banana.

At the end of the experiment I thought I would crave solid food; that was not the case. I really enjoyed the Huel, and wanted to carry it on the following week. I'll admit that eating only Huel is not the most social dietary choice, however if you are willing to sacrifice the social aspect of food, it is an excellent option. I lost 3.7 kg in one week while doing the experiment–I deliberately had slightly less Huel than I knew my body needed to create a calorie deficit (I had 2.5 scoops 3 times a day).

Since finishing this experiment I have continued to consume Huel, but don't eat it for all meals of the day–the guidelines given by Huel say to have it for up to two meals a day, and snacks if desired, but to continue having a normal dinner.

I love Huel, and definitely think it was a great experiment–it helped me work out how many calories my body needs and resulted in some weight loss. The biggest two positives of the experience were the digestive regulation, and the time that was freed up by not having to prepare food. I'll admit it was a little strange having an empty fridge for a whole week! I also produced almost zero waste, so didn't have to take the bins out–this has got to be a beneficial outcome for the environment.