Today, I want to give my “two cents” to the shake or greens powder that is currently under hot debate: Athletic Greens. I want to talk about my own experiences with Athletic Greens, its ingredients, whether a voucher/discount is available, and my opinion on alternatives to Athletic Greens. So here is my Athletic Greens review:
For a few months now, I am a paying and, I’ll share this much, a satisfied customer of Athletic Greens. I was familiar with the name for some time, but then chanced upon it again by coincidence. After I took a closer look at the product, I did finally decide to try Athletic Greens for free. Exactly, for free. I thus had basically nothing to lose. But first things first.
Order Athletic Greens now and get 20 travel packs for free!
(As long as supplies last!)
alternative (also as long as supplies last!)
Athletic Greens Ingredients
Many manufacturers of nutritional powders claim to provide the best there is. Makes sense. I believe that Athletic Greens takes it a step further. It is not as though the claims are incredible – but rather compelling. And as a physically active person, you are always careful not to get sick so you don’t have to interrupt your (Freelitics) training. But it is even more important to give your body the nutrients it needs, especially with daily exercise. No wonder that the powder and shake industry is booming – there is certainly a lot of demand. Aren’t we all looking for that ‘magic pill’ that will take our training results and wellbeing to the next level? Of course, admit it 🙂
What is important is that such a powder doesn’t have the exact opposite effect, for instance, because it is of poor quality. Furthermore, you need to ensure that these nutrients are actually absorbed by the body, that they can be absorbed by the body. This requires healthy intestinal flora that enables effective nutrient absorption.
All ingredients of Athletic Greens are quality ingredients. It truly appears to contain all substances associated with a ‘superfood’ label, including spirulina, green tea, ginger, cocoa, Siberian ginseng, acerola, seaweed,… etc. In total, Athletic Greens boasts 76 (!) ingredients. These also include dairy-free probiotics which help balance intestinal flora so that all these good and useful nutrients can truly be absorbed and used by the body, instead of being returned to the environment in a poorly digested state . . . Protein, of course, is also included in the ingredient list, which is highly desirable for active adults.
But please keep in mind that Athletic Greens is explicitly not a protein shake. It is Athletic Greens’ mission to provide your body with the necessary nutrients so that you feel good all over. 100% Happiness is the motto of company founder Chris ‘the Kiwi’ Ashenden.
Per the manufacturers, Athletic Greens is produced in accordance with the highest quality guidelines at a facility in New Zealand. Production standards reportedly exceed requirements imposed by the health department. Only the best is good enough 😉 Additionally, the food products are immediately shock frozen after harvesting in raw condition in order to preserve all valuable nutritional content.
Here is the label on a package of Athletic Greens:
All in all, there seems to be real substance. Honestly: no one can really verify all ingredients, just like we cannot really verify if the food that is classified as ‘organic’ or ‘regional’ truly is organic or regional. You just have to trust the manufacturers and hope that you won’t be disappointed.
There should be no doubt, however, that consumption of the actual fruit or vegetable is better than drinking a greens shake. But that raises the following question: if I have a choice between a greens drink that is reportedly manufactured in accordance with the highest quality guidelines and contains no processed ingredients and a processed fruit, would it not be better for me to choose the greens drink over the fruit, whose quality is questionable? An interesting question . . . but also one that leads to a sense of frustration because you can’t be sure as to what you should do. Under the same conditions, surely always the actual food product, I would say. But given differing conditions, a greens shake may also make a lot of sense. Complicated subject, no…?
But is is important to note that Athletic Greens is not a substitute for food per se. Company founder Chris Ashenden also points this out in his newsletters. It is a supplement that you take in addition to a normal diet.
Per the company, one serving of Athletic Greens contains the antioxidants of 10 to 12 servings of fruits and vegetables. That is certainly a statement. This is why they call their product a “superfood cocktail” and “nutritional insurance”. What it means: you can be relatively assured that you are covering your main daily nutritional needs with Athletic Greens, and you are doing so in a natural way as opposed to a synthetic way, which is the case with other nutritional products. Because: just eating fruits and vegetables does not mean getting the many nutrients your body needs to function properly. Variety is also required. And if I am honest, then I fall short of achieving that variety… not always, but unfortunately quite often. Perhaps you are experiencing this yourself.
My Athletic Greens Experiences
Inside view: Green 🙂
So much for general information on Athletic Greens. Let’s continue with my own specific experiences and my opinion of Athletic Greens.
Of course, I spent a little time reading other people’s reviews prior to testing Athletic Greens. I find that, overall, reviews are predominantly positive. But I will admit that I did not search the entire Internet 🙂
What you do read over and over, are claims that Athletics Greens improved (Freelitics) training results – and that it did so instantly.
Hmm… honestly: if you expect that a serving of Greens powder shaves 5 seconds off your 100 m dash in the next Freelitics training session, or gets rid of all that abdominal fat and reveals a six pack, you were sold a bill of goods.
I personally cannot say hat I achieved better results with the product with a high degree of certainty. Really: how could I possibly prove it? I would have to conduct a parallel test on myself: train with Athletic Greens and, at the same time and under the same conditions, train without Athletic Greens, to get a 1:1 comparison of results. Unfortunately, the technology to do just that has not yet been invented. Maybe Elon Musk will get around to that after he rids the world of emissions and has colonized Mars… 🙂
But improved training results are not that important to me. Of course, I want to achieve good results. But what is important to me about training is that I improve and get more fit step by step – even if, like many, I want to look better at the beach, in my underwear, or naked ;). If a powder helps me attain better training results, then I know one thing for sure: as soon as I stop taking the powder, I am back to where I started. Usefulness: absolutely zero. That would be something like doping.
Feeling good is much, much more important to me. And that includes the optimal sustenance of my body and the nutrients this requires. And this is where Athletic Greens meets my needs. Even if I try to “eat well”, I believe that supplemental nutrition such as 1 glass of Athletic Greens a day makes a lot of sense. With a regular diet, I can’t always be sure that I provide my body with the nutrients it actually needs to function optimally. Of course, I am not a competitive athlete who analyzes everything the body needs to the nth degree of minutiae. I am a recreational athlete and someone who considers training or an active lifestyle simply to be a part of feeling good and healthy. I think that the majority of physically active people out there see it the same way.
Athletic Greens Taste-Test
How does Athletic Greens taste?
Alright, it’s not a delicious chocolate dessert, but I was pleasantly surprised that Athletic Greens tasted very good from the first moment I tried it. Not all powder manufacturers achieve this successfully. I find the taste refreshing. A buddy of mine said that when he tried Athletic Greens, it was the first time he did not grimace in disgust after drinking one of these powders. In his opinion, it had a slightly sweet taste, so that he took a closer look at the ingredients list. But it does not contain any sugar or artificial sweeteners.
But just try it for yourself 🙂
Athletic Greens Newbie bonus
Is it your first Athletic Greens order? To make it even easier for you to place your first order, you can use one of these two special offers (as long as supplies last!):
Athletic greens with 20 Travel Packs for free (saving of € 69.95)
or
order now and get a FREE Omega 3 can of fish oil (120 capsules) (saving of € 39.95)
Summarized: Athletic Greens currently (2018) offers two free offers:
Order and order Athletic Greens:
- 120 free Omega 3 fish oil capsules worth € 39.95
or - 20 free Athletic Greens Travel-Packs worth 69,95 Euro
Athletic Greens Preparation and Recipes
What I also really like about Athletic Greens is that it hardly clumps. That is generally not the norm but the exception, as you probably know from experience with other powders, whether greens or proteins. Athletic Greens keeps its promise that you can prepare a shake in less than 30 seconds.
Preparation with club soda:
My buddy always mixes the powder with club soda. I tried this once, too. With club soda, the shake gets a delicious green froth on top (for espresso fans: a delicious crema 🙂 )
Preparation with cold tap water:
Personally, I put one dose of powder in a glass and fill it with cold tap water. Stir vigorously with a spoon, and your perfect start to the day is ready!
What surprised me the most is how quickly I got used to Athletic Greens. In the mornings, I always look forward to my daily “nutritional insurance” 🙂
At some point, I will try to mix the shake with milk, warm water, or even orange juice. I am sure there are still many recipe options to boost the shake powder even more. I will keep you posted! But if you already have ideas or recommendations, please add them below!
How do I feel with Athletic Greens?
Now, if someone tells me they feel super happy and great after ingesting the drink, perhaps they should double check to make sure that not something other than Athletic Greens was mixed in… 😉 For me, what counts is this: the feeling that I am doing something that is good for me. And that is certainly the case with Athletic Greens. The rest, as I indicated above, I can’t verify anyway.
In this regard: the bottom line is that I tried Athletic Greens for free and then decided to continue to buy the product.
Athletic Greens Price
… good thing that I always get replenishments 🙂
OK… the cost. As the saying goes: quality has its price. And that also applies to Athletic Greens. In a market comparison with other greens products, Athletic Greens is in the upper echelon, and is thus the Porsche of greens powders. And a Porsche doesn’t come cheap… 🙂
The cost for a month’s supply of Athletic Greens is a whopping € 87.00. Warning: do not buy at Amazon; there, you’ll pay significantly more than € 100!! But don’t let that scare you (yet). Continue reading, because there are some good news on pricing below.
€ 87… big swallow… yes, for me, that was also a big hurdle to overcome when I heard about the product for the first time, and then decided against it – because of the cost. Fortunately, you can
order a free trial (sorry, this promotion is no longer running), whereby you only have to pay shipping charges of € 5.95 (more about that below). I also need to mention: Athletic Greens offers an awesome 60-day-money-back-guarantee, even if you have used up the whole package and simply are not satisfied (this is still valid!). The manufacturers say that you don’t have to state a reason as to why you want a refund. You get your money back without further ado. So, you have absolutely nothing to lose. Plus, this guarantee shows how much confidence the manufacturer has in the product. I have never asked for a refund!
I don’t know what it is like for you, but for me, when I am dealing with a price like that, I like to calculate my cost per day so that I can put things in perspective. So, if I take one serving every day, the cost per drink is € 2.90. Now that’s a more reasonable number. For instance, the organic coconut water that I buy from time to time also costs € 2. All the smoothie drinks you find everywhere will set you back 3 Euro. And what’s in those? The first ingredient is usually apple juice … no thank you!! And that is just one example of many for which we are willing to shell out more cash. So, don’t let the price scare you too much.
It is the price of the entire month’s pack that, in my opinion, brings out that “WTF!” reaction. Additional hint: you don’t have to take Athletic Greens every day if you don’t want to, or if you feel that on a particular day, you have supplied your body with sufficient nutrients without it. My buddy takes it every day, but by now, he only uses half a spoon for a “mini shake” in the mornings. So if money is a primary factor, this trick allows you to still do something good for your body while cutting your costs by 50%. If, in addition, he takes Athletic Greens every other day instead of every day, one pack lasts him about 4 months. That’s only 0.70 Euro per serving!!!
In regards to the 50%, I have some more interesting information for you. (And the deals below are not figured into the calculation above!!!):
As indicated, Athletics Greens currently offers
- 120 free Omega 3 fish oil capsules worth € 39.95
or - 20 free Athletic Greens Travel-Packs worth 69,95 Euro
to get a discount on top you should select the subscription option to get a discount of up to 23 percent:
The subscription model is a good deal for EVERYONE!!! You just have to decide if you will use Athletic Greens by yourself or share it with someone. But even if you just want to test the product yourself, the subscription offer with a 23% discount is worth it, because you can cancel, suspend, or switch the subscription to another one afterwards. Therefore, it is important to note:
- to get the additional discount of 18-23 %, you have to sign up for an Athletic Greens subscription.
- Don’t be alarmed. I tried this out myself and canceled the subscription immediately after the first order. Sure enough, I did not get another shipment. Everything is thus working like a charm and is extremely easy! All you have to do is contact customer support via email at support_eu@athleticgreensspecialoffer.com or by phone. This is a regular number for a land line in Europe, not an expensive 0800 number, and you will not be talking to a machine or someone at an Indian call center, but a real, english-speaking, friendly person 😉
The 60-day-money-back-guarantee was also a crucial factor in my initial decision to try Athletic Greens. There is really no risk.
With the subscription discount, you should think about whether or not you want to buy the double pack right away. You then end up with an additional 5% discount and 2 packs that will last a month each. Or if you take the above mentioned calculation (half dose every two days): The two packs last for 4 months and one daily dose costs you just € 0.40!
Brief tip:
As previously mentioned, the subscription offer is always available and part of the shopping cart. ADDITIONALLY there is currently yet another special promotion. The promotion is described below and it basically comes in the form of an Athletic Greens voucher (there are no Athletic Greens discount codes):
Order now and get 20 travel packs for free!
(Only as long as supplies last!)
alternative (also as long as supplies last!)
Athletic Greens testimonials
There are many Athletic Greens testimonials posted on the web. I embedded one of these here. The author is a diet expert and trains the odd celebrity. Additionally, he is the two-time world record holder… well, if you’re gonna go for it, go for it 🙂 the video is 4 minutes long; it is in english but the New Zealand accent may take a bit of getting used to 😉
Athletic Greens Voucher / Discount
As indicated earlier: the Athletic Greens price is not for every wallet. But that’s how it is with most products out there: some can or want to spend the money on them, others have different priorities or needs. You have to decide for yourself. The decision I made for myself is not to forgo supplements completely. But I am very selective in this regard and won’t just take anything that is presented or offered to me.
How good a product really is and to what degree it delivers on its promises can generally only be discovered if you try it yourself. This is where you find out if a product is worth the money. Because cost is one thing. Whether it is worth the cost is another. Without trying the product, it’s hard to say, and relying on the testimonials of others isn’t exactly brilliant.
Athletic Greens is currently trying very hard to conquer the European market. In the United States, it is very well known and famous names like Tim Ferriss are spokespersons for Athletic Greens. This is presumably the reason why you can currently try Athletic Greens with a free sample. How long this promotion will last, I have no idea.
Athletic Greens Alternative
Athletic Greens Experience: Tim Ferriss recommend it
Of course, alternatives abound.
I could write a whole book on alternatives to Athletic Greens. But that makes no sense to me. Because I am convinced by exactly this products, especially by the good “gut feeling” I get from taking Athletic Greens. After trying Athletic Greens, I would be hard pressed to say which other products I would recommend.
Out of curiosity, I have tried the odd other greens and shake product. But none of those gave me the feeling of doing something good for myself like Athletic Greens. So it does not make any sense for me here to describe one or another alternative to Athletic Greens. For me, there is currently no alternative. I can’t rule out that my opinion will change in the future as even better greens products come on the market. For the moment, I completely trust Athletic Greens. I feel that it particularly helps my overall condition. Which, obviously, as an effect on my (Freeletics) training. And as I said earlier: with the 60-day-money-back-guarantee, I have absolutely nothing to lose. Bottom line: I think it is definitely a positive supplement to my diet, my well being, and my training.
If you would like to try Athletic Greens with no strings attached, I would not wait too long. Because I can’t tell you how long this special free trial offer will last.
- 120 free Omega 3 fish oil capsules worth € 39.95
or - 20 free Athletic Greens Travel-Packs worth 69,95 Euro
to get a discount on top you should select the subscription option to get a discount of up to 23 percent:
Still not sure? Here you can find an additional
Athletic Greens test