Justifying Shakeology?

the_wild37
the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been using Shakeology for about 4 months and have great results however I just cannot justify the cost (being a family of 5, gotta be smart in the grocery department!) I am curious what others out there use that is a little gentler on the wallet.
Warmly-Tracey
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Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    What benefits do you feel it is providing? That will help people understand what to suggest for alternatives.
  • the_wild37
    the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
    Good question JJR! It keeps me full, it's healthy and not full of fake stuff so I feel good about drinking it and it's convenient. I love that I can have breakfast made in under a 2 minutes!
  • Jruzer
    Jruzer Posts: 3,501 Member
    I don't "use" anything. I just eat food. For breakfast I generally grab a tub of Greek yogurt or some fruit. Breakfast is ready in seconds.
  • the_wild37
    the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
    That's been my thought too...should I just break away from the entire shake kick...it's just easy, portable and I can drink my breakfast on my way to work.
  • the_wild37
    the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
    Thanks psuLemon...what a great reference!
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,426 MFP Moderator
    the_wild37 wrote: »
    That's been my thought too...should I just break away from the entire shake kick...it's just easy, portable and I can drink my breakfast on my way to work.

    Depends. If you like the quickness, you can look at other meal replacements or a protein shake (understand it lacks most of the fortified vitamins) or have a protein bar available.

    Personally, I have whey, bars and Greek yogurt in my house at all times.
  • the_wild37
    the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
    Mt store sells a powdered whey in the dairy section made by Cabot Cheeses...only 2 ingredients, Whey protein concentrate and soy lecithin.
  • twistedingenue
    twistedingenue Posts: 38 Member
    the_wild37 wrote: »
    That's been my thought too...should I just break away from the entire shake kick...it's just easy, portable and I can drink my breakfast on my way to work.

    I would. One thing you could do is prep your breakfast for the entire week on the weekend, that way all you need to do is heat and eat.

    I'm currently prepping a sweet potato hash with chicken, apples, and onions. Since I can eat at work, I just heat it up when I get hungry.

  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
    Green smoothies with a protein powder. It will be cheaper, taste better, and be healthier overall.
  • the_wild37
    the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
    That's bpotts44...I am searching recipes now!
  • happysherri
    happysherri Posts: 1,360 Member
    Agree. I'm sure shakeology has vitamins that are great but I spend less on 2 to 3 weeks of groceries (and I'm talking fresh produce, lean protein, oats, etc.) I believe that if you eat a variety of veggies and fruits, lean protein, good carbs, drink plenty of water and exercise that a person doesn't necessarily need all of the extra fluff. Maybe a really good multivitamin. I drink a protein shake maybe once or twice a week.
  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
    I use a simple formula works great that I got from Abel James podcast:

    1 or 2 doses of each of the following.

    1. Green ingredient (1 head of romaine, handful of spinach, etc)
    2. Liquid (water, milk, etc) enough to blend it up
    3. Fruit (berries, banana, apple)
    4. Extras depending on goals (protein powder, chia, flax, nuts, etc)

    I usually do the head of romaine, 12 oz of water, 2 cups of blueberries, and 2 scoops of whey.
  • the_wild37
    the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
    This is perfect, thanks again! Definitely makes more financial sense...again...$100 a month for a meal replacement powder...I just can't justify it no matter how hard I try.
  • jayv85
    jayv85 Posts: 142 Member
    edited March 2017
    http://www.modwedding.com/2015/05/juicing-recipes-for-detoxing-and-weight-loss/amp/

    I'm going to try that. And eat a hard boiled egg later. Mostly because I eat at 4:30am and I'm starving before lunch. So that will get some veggies and fruit in me, then I can eat my breakfast later in the day and not have such a big gap in meals

    ETA: And by that I mean a little down the page the green smoothie guides. You can use superfood greens powder instead of kale or spinach or whatever
  • TheCupcakeCounter
    TheCupcakeCounter Posts: 606 Member
    Just make a smoothie as bpotts44 suggested - I have them several times a week and always get a ton of protein, fiber, and vitamins for way less than $100/month. I usually do baby greens, 1 cup liquid (varies depending on the flavor profile I am going for but usually unsweetened almond milk or half milk, half water), half frozen banana, 1/2 cup other frozen fruit, ground flax seed and protein powder.
  • the_wild37
    the_wild37 Posts: 12 Member
    All great info, thanks ladies!
    Need to master a great chocolate one :)
  • CoolBoyMom6
    CoolBoyMom6 Posts: 10 Member
    I love Shakeology also. Currently not using it. But I do drink a shake every morning also. Very easy to prep and drink on the way to work. I use Thrive shakes. But thinking about going back to Shakeology. It's worth it financially if you use it, not worth it if it sits in her cabinet untouched.
  • Leenizi129
    Leenizi129 Posts: 133 Member
    Vega is cheaper and it is plant based and comes in alot of flavors.
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
    the_wild37 wrote: »
    That's been my thought too...should I just break away from the entire shake kick...it's just easy, portable and I can drink my breakfast on my way to work.

    You can also buy drinkable yogurt in single-serve portions. Just grab one and go!
  • CTcutie
    CTcutie Posts: 649 Member
    Shakeology tastes good- I'm not sure how much protein is in one... What I mean is: if you switch to a protein powder, you may not like the taste/texture compared to Shakeology because of the higher protein content.
  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
    the_wild37 wrote: »
    All great info, thanks ladies!
    Need to master a great chocolate one :)

    Just add cocoa powder to the formula that I gave. I use hershey powder as it is high quality and not from the dutch process so a little more micronutrients in it.
  • Afura
    Afura Posts: 2,054 Member
    bpotts44 wrote: »
    I use a simple formula works great that I got from Abel James podcast:

    1 or 2 doses of each of the following.

    1. Green ingredient (1 head of romaine, handful of spinach, etc)
    2. Liquid (water, milk, etc) enough to blend it up
    3. Fruit (berries, banana, apple)
    4. Extras depending on goals (protein powder, chia, flax, nuts, etc)

    I usually do the head of romaine, 12 oz of water, 2 cups of blueberries, and 2 scoops of whey.
    Definitely don't use iceberg lettuce. :anguished: Horrible nutritional value. I picked up a big bag of kale I used for testing out my smoothies for maybe $4. And banana is always helpful for making a smoothie have a more smooth consistency, though I will say the apple/pear one I tried (with kale, flaxseed and steel cut oatmeal) was pretty darn tasty.

    I agree, there are much better alternatives, but they do really good on their marketing. There's a thread in the Recipes forum for someone asking how to make it better, and most of the replies are "don't use it". :lol:
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    edited March 2017
    This content has been removed.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    Also keep in mind, they won't allow anyone to independently verify that Shakeology contains what they say it does, and if so, how much. So you are paying a premium for all these fancy ingredients that could be in such small doses they are useless. Just buy protein powder and pulse it up with a liquid, some veggies, and maybe some chia or flaxseed and you'll probably come out ahead :drinker:
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    the_wild37 wrote: »
    I have been using Shakeology for about 4 months and have great results however I just cannot justify the cost (being a family of 5, gotta be smart in the grocery department!) I am curious what others out there use that is a little gentler on the wallet.
    Warmly-Tracey

    Hi Tracy,

    I use food!

    I just eat less of it than I did when I was slowly piling the pounds on.

    Shakeoloy doesn't work unless you eat at a calorie deficit, so why not just shake it off and buy real food that you can share with your family?
  • Hearts_2015
    Hearts_2015 Posts: 12,031 Member
    twistedingenue wrote: »
    the_wild37 wrote: »
    That's been my thought too...should I just break away from the entire shake kick...it's just easy, portable and I can drink my breakfast on my way to work.

    I would. One thing you could do is prep your breakfast for the entire week on the weekend, that way all you need to do is heat and eat.

    I'm currently prepping a sweet potato hash with chicken, apples, and onions. Since I can eat at work, I just heat it up when I get hungry.

    @twistedingenue
    Do you have an actual recipe you use or do you just toss things together for your hash? It sounds delicious and a great thing to make ahead of time for when you need it. Please share! Thanks :smiley:
  • jayv85
    jayv85 Posts: 142 Member
    SLLRunner wrote: »
    jayv85 wrote: »
    http://www.modwedding.com/2015/05/juicing-recipes-for-detoxing-and-weight-loss/amp/

    I'm going to try that. And eat a hard boiled egg later. Mostly because I eat at 4:30am and I'm starving before lunch. So that will get some veggies and fruit in me, then I can eat my breakfast later in the day and not have such a big gap in meals

    ETA: And by that I mean a little down the page the green smoothie guides. You can use superfood greens powder instead of kale or spinach or whatever

    As to the link: there is no reason to detox at all, your body does this all by itself.

    I'm not detoxing. I'm using the smoothie recipes as a base to make shakes for my early mornings while driving and eating a breakfast later in the day at work.

    Basically I'm an idiot and I don't know how to make a smoothie without directions. And I want to get more vitamins and nutrients in my diet. That's just the link that has the smoothie recipe jpg I have saved on Pinterest

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