I have been using athletic greens every single day for just over a year now and today I want to share with you both my objective and subjective results.
The objective part is important because I am going to use actual biomarker data to show what difference, if any, using athletic greens had on my health markers.
This article has been something a lot of people have been asking me for after I wrote my first article on my experience with athletic greens after 90 days, so I am excited to make this follow-up.
To frame our discussion, I am going to make this article into four sections.
First, I am going to answer some common questions I’ve received over the year so that we have a more comprehensive understanding of everything.
Next I’ll go into the measurable results using biomarker and apple watch data, then I’ll talk about my subjective findings, and finally I’ll discuss my recommendations.
Questions About Athletic Greens
First up, let’s answer some questions I often get asked in the comments of my last article and through email.
When and how do you take it?
I take my athletic greens every morning, pretty much as soon as I wake up. I put one scoop in 16 ounces of water.
I do this because (1) taking supplements on an empty stomach usually works better since they get absorbed more efficiently and (2) starting my day off with 16oz of water has been a big goal of mine the past few years and this helps me nail it (more on this later).
How does it taste?
I think it actually tastes pretty good. Now, taste is objective, but the drink has a sweet, earthy taste. Not too strong, but it’s also not lemonade.
Personally, I kind of like it because that earthy taste just makes me feel like I am doing something healthy.
Has it changed your diet?
I’ll get into this more, but it hasn’t changed my diet at all. If anything, I actually eat more fruits and vegetables now.
For me, using greens is a way to bridge the gap for the vitamins and minerals I might be missing from less-often consumed fruits and vegetables.
But, starting my day off with greens keeps me a little more conscious of eating healthy, which is why I feel like I’ve added more fruits and veggies to my diet this past year.
My Measurable Data on Athletic Greens
Now, let’s move on to some of the measurable data I’ve been able to collect and observe over the last year.
Blood Biomarkers
Last year I knew I wanted to make nutrition a bigger focus, so I actually had my blood markers analyzed to see where I might be falling short and if I had any potential health issues I should work towards improving when it came to nutrition.
I used Elo, a supplement and blood biomarker company, to examine my blood work. Here is a look at the data.
As you can see, I was a little high in HDL, Triglycerides, VLDL, HDL ratio, Cholesterol.
I’ve been following my blood biomarkers every 4-5 months and have seen steady improvements in all these areas.
My last blood marker was last month, about 13 months after I started using Athletic Greens daily.
Now, I’ll talk about this more in the unmeasurable section, but obviously this isn’t 100% the result of the ingredients in Athletic Greens.
I am drinking more water and eating healthier overall, both a secondary benefit on my part when using Athletic Greens. But, I could have easily done these alone without Athletic Greens.
Impact on Sleep
Last year, my goal was improving my nutrition. This year, I am all about sleep.
That said, I don’t have comprehensive sleep data like I do my blood biomarkers, but I do have some apple watch data I used occasionally (mainly because it’s my wife’s watch and I only get to steal it sometimes).
The sleep data I have from before I started using Athletic Greens shows I was getting about 1.5 hours of deep sleep every night. This is despite aiming for 7-8 hours of total sleep per night.
The times this year I measured sleep quality while I was using Athletic Greens, my deep sleep increased to 2 hours per night (almost a 25% increase), on average.
The total could still use some work, but as a percentage, this was a pretty big increase.
My hypothesis is that the increase in deep sleep is due to less caffeine (which I’ll talk more about in a moment), and the inclusion of more magnesium, zinc, and ashwaganda from Athletic Greens, all of which have been demonstrated by research to improve sleep quality.
In my case, it definitely seems to have worked.
Water intake
Honestly, drinking 12-16oz of water when I wake up has been a goal of mine for 10+ years. I remember reading about the benefits when I was still running professionally.
Unfortunately, I never quite stuck with it. I would get on a roll for a few weeks and then let it slide for one reason or another.
Because I have been so religious about taking my greens every morning, the morning water intake has stayed with me.
The increased water intake overall and first thing in the morning has had a huge impact on my appetite and just feeling more hydrated throughout the day.
Caffeine intake
Unlike water, caffeine intake is something I do consciously track everyday. During the pandemic, I was consuming much more caffeine than I wanted to each day – in the 300-500mg range per day (yikes).
Thus, one of my goals last year was to get that number down.
As soon as I started taking Greens in the morning, the need for caffeine reduced dramatically. In fact, most mornings I don’t need caffeine at all anymore.
This is most likely because Athletic Greens contain adaptogens (which are a class of herbs), which help naturally increase energy levels and decrease fatigue and stress.
This is definitely one benefit that surprised me the most and I am most happy about. I’ve reduced my overall caffeine intake to 100 to 200mg per day. Not perfect, but definitely more in the “acceptable” range in my mind.
The Unmeasurable
Now that I’ve gone into depth on some of the improvements I was able to measure, let’s take a look at some things that are more subjective.
The Snowball Effect
I wrote about this in my initial 90 day examination and it’s continued throughout the year.
Taking Athletic Greens in the morning has a major snowball effect on how I eat the rest of the day.
I mentally feel that because I started off so good, I don’t want to “waste it” by then eating bad.
That’s not to say I never have candy or chips anymore (my two vices), but it’s easier for me to say “no” and turn to healthier options.
More Fruits and Vegetables
This is related to the snowball effect, but taking Athletic Greens has prompted me to actually eat more fruits and vegetables throughout the day.
The first reason is that, as I mentioned before, starting off the day right sets me up to want to eat better throughout the day.
In particular, using greens in the morning has me thinking about vegetables right as I kick off my day and it kind of just stays in the back of my mind that “oh, I should have a fruit or vegetable with this meal or as a snack”.
Secondly, I think one of the main reasons I didn’t eat as many fruits and vegetables before is that I always felt like I needed to get variety and that if I didn’t, I wasn’t getting all the benefits.
So, I would buy a lot of more “exotic” fruits and vegetables, but when meal time came, I wasn’t quite sure how to cook them up or pair them with the main dish, especially with kids. As a result, I’d often just skip them.
This is where a greens supplement helps. I don’t feel the stress of going crazy with variety to add in all the micro vitamins and minerals from different fruits and vegetables. I get those from the greens. This makes me feel more able to eat the staples I know and like.
Obviously, this isn’t going to be the same for everyone (I’ll expound on this in the next section), but it’s really made a big difference for me.
Better Bowel Movements
This one feels a little silly to talk about, but for me it’s been definitely something I’ve noticed since I started taking Athletic Greens.
Before I started using greens I often had a lot of gas or just felt bloated after dinner, regardless of what I ate.
However, about 2 weeks after I started the 90 day greens challenge, those stomach issues have basically disappeared.
I really haven’t had a problem since.
Athletic Greens contain fiber and probiotics, which are likely the reasons I’ve had more consistent bowel movements and less bloating at night.
Will Athletic Greens Work for You?
Now, these are all obviously my personal results and your experience may be even better than mine, or you may be someone who doesn’t need greens at all.
If you’re someone who already has a spot-on diet and loves adding in a ton of veggies and fruits to your daily diet, I don’t think you’re going to feel much benefit.
However, if you’re like me and you try to eat healthy but have a few things you need to work on or just need to get more consistent, I think it could be a big help.
I realize the initial price tag looks hefty – $77 for a month’s supply (here is a link for a 20% discount). But when I broke it down in my head, I realized that this is only $2.50 per serving.
That $2.50 per serving seems even cheaper now that I’ve seen the benefits.
Plus, I am no longer taking a multivitamin, so that knocked out about a dollar per day.
Moreover, I am drinking far fewer energy drinks and don’t feel quite as guilty for not always having my fridge stocked with fresh greens, so that knocks off another dollar or two.
So, basically it’s costing me an extra 50 cents compared to my old routine.
In the end, I think it’s worth trying at least for a month or two. Again, here is a link for a 20% discount if you do want to try.
If you have the ability, take some actual biomarker measurements as well. Then you can measure both your subjective and objective findings and have confidence it’s working for you.
Hope you enjoyed this article and look at some of my experiences and data with athletic greens. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments.
