I love doing product reviews, because well frankly if there is a product I really dislike I won’t do a review on it.  I want to review products that I find helpful and beneficial to myself as a runner and that will be beneficial to my readers as well!  If I don’t believe in a product then I won’t promote it on my blog.

Today I am reviewing Vega One all-in-one Nutritional Shake.  I received some samples from Vega a few weeks ago and didn’t get a chance to try them out until this week.

I used to drink 1-2 protein shakes a day when I was weight lifting but as I have began focusing on running I really haven’t been as good about drinking them as often.

Company Background

“Told from the onset that a plant-based diet wouldn’t cut it on the professional Ironman circuit, Brendan Brazier’s nutritional journey as an uninformed plant-powered endurance athlete began with reduced energy levels and the need to eat constantly…Over time, Brendan’s vision led to the formulation of the original all-in-one nutritional shake – now known as Vega One – which ultimately inspired the creation of the complete award-winning Vega line of nutritional supplements”

What makes Vega Different?

“Vega One (and its predecessors, Vega Whole Food Meal Replacement and Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer) has been so successful it inspired the development of all the Vega products you know and love. Each new Vega product is formulated based on the Guiding Principals of Vega and Brendan’s passion for clean, plant-based nutrition. Rooted in the shared belief that the closest you can get to perfection is constant improvement, Brendan and Vega are on a continual mission to discover new ingredients and explore new ideas on how to make existing—and future—Vega products even better.”

Vega is dairy, gluten, and soy free.  It also is no sugar added and contains 50% of your daily intake of vitamins and minerals. That in itself is pretty amazing.  The goal of Vega is to be plant based and deliver all of the needed nutrition to help your body perform and function at its best level.

Taste

Score: 4 out of 5

Protein and nutritional drinks to me have always had a funny taste.  Each definitely has its own unique flavor and Vega is no different.  At first taste and being used to your typical protein shakes, you can almost taste the “plant” in it.  That may not make a lot of sense, but you can tell there is a slightly different taste than non-plant based protein shakes.

I tried out two different flavors: Chocolate (5 out of 5) and Berry (4 out of 5).

I loved the chocolate and even though I could tell it was plant based, I still loved the flavor! I tried the Berry flavor the following night and was not quite as big of a fan.  The thing I will tell you is that I think Berry would be a GREAT additive to smoothies!

They also make a vanilla flavor which I haven’t yet tried, but I’m pretty sure i’ll love.  When it comes to protein shakes or nutritional shakes I usually tend to like the token chocolate and vanilla flavors.

Effects

Score: 5 out of 5

I took Vega each night before I went to bed.  I believe that protein taken right before bed helps your body to recover better.  I don’t normally take the entire serving size that is suggested on the package.  I usually take the amount of 1 serving and cut it in half.

The nutritional breakdown in 1 serving size of Vega One is:
15 g protein
1 billion probiotics (same as 1 yogurt cup)
1.5 g omega-3
6 g of fiber
3 servings of greens
2. cups of antioxidants (same as 2.7 cups of blueberries)

That is pretty amazing right!? I have really noticed a difference when I take this before bed each night that my body seems more alert, recovered, and ready to go the next morning.

Mixing Ability

Score: 4 out of 5

I ran into a little problem when I first tried to mix up my Vega One shake.

 I put the powder in a glass and thought I would just add the water and mix it up with a spoon.

Overall it mixed alright, but there still little chunks of the powder in the glass after I had stirred it for a couple of minutes.  I don’t know about you, but I have this thing where I cannot drink protein shakes if there is ANY kind of chunks in it.

I got out one of my protein shakers and poured the mixture into it and shook.  After just a few shakes it was all mixed up and ready to drink. Lesson learned – when mixing your Vega One shake make sure to use a protein shaker or some sort of cup that you can shake up.

Overall Reaction:

This is a product I will continue to try to drink 4-5 nights a week before I go to bed.  I have been trying to incorporate protein shakes back into my diet, and I find that the Vega One All-In-One Nutritional shake not only gives me the protein I am looking for but so much more nutritional value then your typical protein shake.

If you are interested in purchasing your own Vega One, you can visit their website to learn more.