The UFIT protein shakes are so popular they keep selling out so Shopping Editor Tom Capon put them to the test – and found a way to get them cheaper than the supermarkets
Sometimes it feels like we’ve gone a bit protein mad. Take it from someone who eats a lot of it every day, we do not need ‘protein bread’ when there are other, more delicious ways to hit those goals for gains. Because I can’t eat a steak every single day – as much as my belly demands it – one of the easiest ways to hit that goal is a protein shake.
Long gone are the days where protein shakes taste like a gym bench, now we have brands like UFIT. The on-the-go shakes – sold at major supermarkets like Tesco and come in 25g or 50g protein levels and are designed for busy people who want an easy way to meet their nutrition while still getting a tasty beverage.
Well, as someone who spends their entire life trying to squeeze the gym in between finding the best deals and bargains for readers of Mirror.co.uk, this put me in a unique position of fitting both their stated goals. So I tried their four flavours of Salted Caramel, White Chocolate, Chocolate and Strawberry and ranked them accordingly.
1st Place: Salted Caramel
I have the sweet tooth of a 6ft 1inch ant, so this has coloured my ranking somewhat. But my god, I cannot stop drinking the Salted Caramel UFIT. Every time I walk past the Kaspa’s desserts where I live I stare at the milkshakes painted against their windows like a little Victorian boy saying ‘Please mista spare me a yummy milkshake’. But the gym bro in me tackles that little Victorian boy (metaphorically) – think about the gains, little boy. One of those milkshakes are, like, 850 calories.
The protein shakes are available from UFIT
They are all made with no added sugar (only naturally occurring milk sugars), a fat-free recipe, and added vitamins and minerals to support everyday energy and immune function.
But I could very well whack a scoop of Halo Top ice cream in a glass with the Salted Caramel and have essentially the same experience without sending my insulin levels into the International Space Station. It’s absolutely delicious. Not only am I getting 25g of protein, it’s a handy little travel size so I could take it into London when I was dragged kicking and screaming into the office.
The closest I’ve come to an alternative is Grenade’s Cookies and Cream flavour which, while it has 1g more protein at 26g, it has slightly more calories with 175 per bottle.
2nd Place: White Chocolate
White versus Milk chocolate is the Alien Vs Predator, or the Badenoch Vs Farage, of 10-year-olds on the playground: no matter what wins, it’s still bad for you. This is less of an issue with UFIT’s drinks as they are only 158 calories. The White Chocolate flavour just misses out on the top spot because I am not fantasising about it the way I am Salted Caramel. But second places in a deliciousness contest is still pretty good.
It stays effortless drinkable and having as an after dinner dessert works so well, because it feels naughty despite the calories. At 11g of sugar it is best to have one per day, however it’s not going to hurt at that amount either.
As an experiment and because I am a freak through and through, I did see if I could make little ice lollies out of the White Chocolate and Salted Caramel flavours. Whacking them in the freezer for about 90 minutes creates something akin to a mini-milk, but with way more protein. Honestly could be a game changer for summer.
3rd Place: Chocolate
I have bad experience with chocolate protein drinks as several years ago I bought into the hype and tried to optimise my diet with Huel’s one. However, one sip revealed the truth: to me, it was like drinking mercury. Having swiftly palmed them off to a friend who convinced me they wanted them, I’ve steered clear from choccie protein shakes ever since.
Thankfully, I can work through my trauma with UFIT. Their chocolate flavour tastes like a chocolate milkshake, rather than the nutritional equivalent of Lady Deathstrike’s death in X2. It’s good enough I could probably have this every day without flinching, but it doesn’t quite reach the heights of the other two to me. It edges out strawberry because it definitely has a more distinct flavour.
4th Place: Strawberry
The strawberry flavour of the four I tested is the least sweet and so for those looking for a dessert in a bottle, the others may suit your needs more.
I mean, it tastes like a strawberry milkshake, it’s really hard to go wrong with it. It didn’t quite blow me away like the other flavours, which I am obsessed with in ways I am ashamed to put on the internet for the rest of time. For those who don’t want the sweetness as much, this is probably your best bet.
Verdict
Yum, is the verdict. At 158 calories and 25g of protein it’s an incredibly efficient way of having a delicious protein shake. While my favourite are Salted Caramel followed by White Chocolate, I can genuinely not find much to fault with them taste-wise. The 11g sugar means I wouldn’t recommend drinking more than a one a day, but as part of a balanced diet it’s like a yummy protein bullet fired directly into my mouth.
