Trialling the new supplement, Bettermilk

I recently received samples of the new Bettermilk flavours – orange and strawberry – and I was so amazed with them that I thought it would be good idea for me to write a little review. I also thought I should share what it was like for me adjusting to an entirely new supplement after being stuck on the Cooler for so long.

To back track slightly, the supplement I previously took was the Cooler 15 in orange flavour. Over the years I tried various supplements but the Cooler seemed to be the only one I could at least tolerate. Despite me not particularly liking the Cooler to begin with, I eventually came to get used to it and actually continued to take it for about 13 years. It was only last year that I finally decided to brave something new – the Bettermilk powder in the flavour original. (For anyone who doesn’t already know, Bettermilk is a product by the American brand Cambrooke. The original flavour was the only one available in the UK until recently). I remember before I tried Bettermilk for the first time, I had been told that it would taste less like a medicine and more just like a flavoured drink and also that it wouldn’t smell as pungent as the Cooler did. I’ll be honest, I doubted that either of these things could possibly be true – yet surprisingly, it turned out that they were. For me, after being stuck on the Cooler for so many years, Bettermilk was a refreshing change. I was honestly so pleased with how it tasted. For anyone who hasn’t tried Bettermilk, I would say it has quite a sweet taste to it. Although I’ll admit, when I’d made the permanent change from the Cooler after a while I began to find the original flavour a little bland. But I found that mixing a couple of teaspoons of strawberry Nesquik powder with the drink solved this problem. I would advise this to anyone who hasn’t been able to get their hands on the new flavours yet.

A couple of weeks ago I tried Bettermilk in the flavours orange and strawberry and honestly I was just as pleased! Again I thought they were quite sweet tasting, but the best thing about them for me was that it didn’t really taste like a medicine, more like a milkshake. This was the first supplement I’d tried that I didn’t just have to tolerate, but actually didn’t mind drinking.

Although Bettermilk didn’t taste too bad, I found it difficult to adjust to this from the Cooler in another sense. Anyone who takes the Cooler will know, as they are ready made formulas they are very convenient to take on out day trips etc, provided that you keep them refrigerated, or they’re just great to quickly grab if you’re in a rush. Bettermilk on the other hand, has to be prepared. Although it is pretty simple to make up (all is required is to mix the powder with water, give it a shake and you’re good to go), I still found it a little difficult readjusting to this. I mean, after being in the habit of taking the Cooler for so many years, I guess that was expected. But I also found that being required to mix the supplement beforehand, brought back some feelings of nervousness especially when staying over at a friend’s place. Of course my friends are very understanding of my diet, but nonetheless I still felt a little awkward having to ask for a cup and then for some water so that I could take my supplement, especially knowing that when I was on the Cooler I didn’t have to worry about small issues such as these.

If you can manage to get by these few problems though, Bettermilk in my opinion is great because it’s very convenient for travelling. As the formula is packaged in slim packs it not only makes it much easier for me to carry when travelling home from university, but I’m sure that it’s also going to be much easier to fit in a suitcase and travel abroad with. This is one of the main reasons that I decided to make the switch from Cooler, as I am hoping to do some travelling in the future.  

Ultimately, I would choose Bettermilk over the Cooler any day. Obviously this might not be the case for everyone because each supplement is always going to have various pros and cons for different people. But personally, I would rather sacrifice having a ready- made supplement in order to have a much better tasting one. I am just so pleased that after many years of searching I have finally discovered an alternative option to the Cooler. I can’t say whether I’ll stick with Bettermilk for as long as I did with the Cooler, but for now I’m happy enough. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m certainly looking forward to getting a hold of the new flavours for good.