Athletic Greens Review: Ingredients List, Iron Content, & More! (Is Athletic Greens Worth It?)

Athletic Greens is a superfood powder that beats out nearly every one of its competitors with an excellent formula and highly potent ingredients. The benefits of supplementing with greens powders are endless if you are taking the right one. Take a look at this comprehensive Athletic Greens review to see how we determined this nutritional supplement to be one of the top three best superfood drinks on the market.

However, also be aware that there is a tremendous quality gap between Athletic Greens and the greens powder that we have ranked above this one, which is Total Living Drink Greens. Total Living Drink Greens provides 50% more superfoods per serving at 15,000 MG, while Athletic Greens only provides 10,000 MG per serving.

View our top rated greens supplements here: BEST GREENS POWDERS

Athletic Greens review 2023: How good is Athletic Greens?

How good is Athletic Greens really? Athletic Greens is one of the better superfood powders on the market, ranking amongst our top five green drinks of all time. So, yes we certainly believe it’s pretty good, but it has some major weaknesses as well. The key weakness to remember here is that Athletic Greens provides 50% less superfoods than our top ranked greens powder even though they’re the same price.

For that reason, I would strongly recommend checking out our #1 ranked Total Living Drink before falling for Athletic Greens. The TOTAL LIVING DRINK is WAY more potent in every regard, meaning it has more nutrient dense raw superfoods, more fruits and vegetables, more probiotics, more digestive enzymes, more amino acids, more everything! I actually drink it myself every morning, and I love it. It has truly changed my life.

As a Certified Nutrition Coach, a lot of clients ask me about greens powders and which one to choose. For some reason (I’m assuming it’s just because they spend the most on marketing), I get asked about Athletic Greens more than any other superfood powder. My answer is always the same…Athletic Greens is way overrated and overhyped, and I do NOT recommend it.

Are there any Athletic Greens coupon codes or promo discount vouchers?

Unfortunately, there are currently no active Athletic Greens coupon codes. However, several of the other greens powders that we have reviewed do currently have promo codes available. Our top ranked Total Living Drink Greens is currently offering a limited time discount to our readers, plus they have a bunch of awesome deals if you choose to bundle your supplements or stock up, so be sure to check out that review (link provided above).

What is Athletic Greens & why take Athletic Greens?

Athletic Greens sounds great on paper, but you should be aware of exactly what it does…

So, what is Athletic Greens exactly?

Athletic Greens contains a blend of non gmo organic ingredients including nutrient dense raw superfoods, greens, fruits and vegetables, herbs, digestive enzymes, and probiotics designed to improve your overall health. It is our opinion that the Athletic Greens ingredients are pretty severely under dosed, which means they are not likely to produce many health benefits…this is why we recommend going with the Total Living Drink instead.

If you were to choose an Athletic Greens alternative such as the Total Living Drink, which actually has sufficient dosages and full transparency when it comes to the formula, the list of potential health benefits is truly endless. Just think about it…with the Total Living Drink specifically, you are getting 7-10 servings of fruits and vegetables, 15 grams of raw nutrient dense superfoods that are pre juiced and powdered to maximize the amount of phytonutrients, 11 grams of non gmo vegan protein powder, probiotics, amino acids, and TONS of vitamins and minerals.

And why take Athletic Greens?

Well, it’s our opinion that you actually should not take it because the Athletic Greens ingredients are under dosed and the formula is not transparent. Rather, it is proprietary, so you don’t know exactly what you’re taking. However, if you were to choose a truly high quality greens powder, the health benefits can be absolutely tremendous.

Greens powder supplements can help improve immune function, digestive health, gastrointestinal function, gut health, gut microbiome, energy levels, brain health, cognitive function, weight management, and more. The effects superfoods can have on your body should not be underestimated, but you need to make sure the dosages you are getting or sufficient, or you can’t expect to experience the benefits.

I personally take my greens powder every day as part of a morning smoothie. It’s no secret that fruits, vegetables, vitamins, minerals, grasses, algae, and pretty much anything that’s good for you does not taste good. However, if you just mix your scoop of greens powder in with some orange juice, bananas, and blueberries (that’s my personal green drink recipe), it actually tastes amazing. You can’t taste the greens at all because the fruit masks the taste so well.

Athletic Greens ingredients list

So, what is in Athletic Greens? Let’s check out the main ingredients in Athletic Greens:

• Spirulina
• Lecithin
• Apple powder
• Wheat grass juice powder
• Alfalfa powder
• Organic chlorella powder
• Barley
• Broccoli
• Rhodiola Rosea
• Bilberry fruit extract
• Gotu Kola
• Beet root powder
• Spinach leaf powder
• Grape seed
• Ginger rhizome powder
• Licorice root powder
• Burdock root powder
• Kelp
• Reishi mushroom powder
• Shiitake mushroom powder
• Milk thistle seed extract
• Hawthorn root extract
• Multivitamin complex
• Adaptogens
• Carrot root powder
• Cocoa bean polyphenol extract
• Citrus bioflavoinoids
• 75 Vitamins and minerals including B Vitamins, Vitamin K2, Vitamin E, and Vitamin D

Athletic Greens nutrition facts

Check out this Athletic Greens nutrition label:

The Athletic Greens nutrition facts are:

Does Athletic Greens have iron?

So, does Athletic Greens have Iron? The Athletic Greens Iron content is 11% of your RDA (recommended dietary allowance) per scoop of Athletic Greens. That’s a decently high iron content, but this is actually another very good example of why we don’t recommend this supplement…think about where the iron content comes from.

The iron content comes from the superfoods, so if Athletic Greens has 50% less superfoods per serving than the Total Living Drink for example, that means it naturally has roughly 50% less iron as well. The iron is derived from the raw nutrient dense superfoods and other ingredients, so naturally, more superfoods means more iron.

Is the Athletic Greens iron content good?

There is some iron in Athletic Greens, but the iron content does not by any means make it a sufficient Iron supplement. If you are iron deficient, you should definitely consider other supplements. As I mentioned before, the Total Living Drink provides a much higher iron content due to the simple fact that it contains way more raw nutrient dense foods, which is where the iron is derived from.

Greens powders can be an excellent source of iron due to the way they are formulated, but if you have a serious deficiency, you should consult your doctor before trying any iron supplement. I highly doubt any registered dietician would say that a greens powder can hurt, but if you have a real problem, you likely need more than just a green powder supplement to fix it.

I’m not a registered dietitian, but I am something of a health expert in that I’m a Certified Nutrition Coach, and it’s my humble opinion that a greens powder supplement can help significantly increase iron intake…but you should ALWAYS by all means still consult your primary care physician before taking one. I am NOT qualified to recommend supplements, especially not for clinical conditions.

Let’s look at the Athletic Greens contents in more detail.

Raw Superfood Complex

Everyone is aware of the benefits that eating all your fruits and vegetables produces, and yet people don’t seem to care enough to make sure they are getting their fruits and veggies in every day. If you truly want to improve your overall health and well being, you should strongly consider a greens powder supplement.

The truth is, even if everyone did eat fruits and veggies every day, they still wouldn’t be getting 100% of the health benefits, especially when it comes to gut health and overall digestive health. This is because the vast majority of the phytonutrients and far nutrient dense calories are contained in the juice of the produce, and there simply isn’t a whole lot of juice in each individual piece of produce.

You would need to consume a TON of produce to get the amount of benefits you would get from the nutrients contained within one serving of a good greens powder supplement or high end non gmo organic superfood drink. This is actually the reason that juicing has become so popular as of late.

Everyone is attempting to juice their fruits and veggies now in order to make sure they are getting 100% of the benefits. However, this is just unrealistic to do every day.

As you’ll have noticed from our Athletic Greens ingredient list, Athletic Greens is loaded with quality, non gmo, mostly organic, superfood ingredients that naturally contain tons of vitamins and minerals. However, this superfood complex is severely under dosed and lacks transparency, which means you don’t know exactly what you’re getting. Suffice it to say, I am not satisfied with this superfood complex.

Spirulina

Spirulina is one of the most nutrient-packed superfoods in the world. It is very rich in antioxidants, as well as vitamins and minerals including Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Copper, Iron, omega-6 fatty acids, and omega-3 fatty acids.

There’s also an extremely powerful antioxidant in Spirulina called Phycocyanin, which studies have shown can produce very powerful anti-inflammatory benefits. It is also believed to help lower LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol) while raising HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol).

Lecithin

Lecithin is a very powerful superfood that has been known to help improve digestion, heart health, and lower cholesterol. Some researchers believe that Lecithin may help with weight loss as well due to the effect it has on dietary and blood fats in the body. It is believed to help break fats down into smaller molecules.

Wheat Grass

Wheat grass has actually become a pretty popular trend as of late. If you go to a smoothie shop such as Jamba Juice, you can often order a wheat grass shot. The reason it has become so popular is because it can produce astounding benefits as a result of its naturally very high concentration of vitamins and minerals. Wheat grass benefits can include boosting your immune system, lowering cholesterol, lowering blood pressure, increasing energy levels, and boosting metabolism.

Chlorella

Chlorella is one of the most powerful superfoods on the planet because of its ability to bind to heavy metals, thereby producing tremendous detoxifying benefits. Chlorella benefits include boosting your immune system, helps maintain blood pressure, and can improve cholesterol. Organic Chlorella powder is a crucial addition to any and every superfood blend and can have tremendous benefits on your overall well being.

Alfalfa

Alfalfa sprouts have endless potential when it comes to health benefits including helping control blood sugar and cholesterol. The reason it can produce so many benefits is due to its extremely high content of Vitamin K, Vitamin C, antioxidants, magnesium, and copper. Many people are deficient in these nutrients without knowing it and could use a boost.

Super Mushroom Complex

They have a blend of nutrients they refer to as their Super Mushroom Complex, which is essentially just a combination of Shiitake Mushroom powder and Reishi Mushroom powder. These are both great mushrooms and can both produce some solid health benefits, particularly with regard to brain function. However, as is the case with most of their ingredients and blends, the Super Mushroom Complex is very under dosed. Therefore, I wouldn’t expect it to produce many benefits.

Probiotics & Prebiotics

Taking dairy free probiotics on a daily basis has been proven to improve gut health and increase the body’s ability to digest foods and transport hormones that can sometimes be difficult to transport. These benefits have been known for a very long time.

What a lot of people don’t know about probiotics however is the fact that they have several mental health benefits as well. With your gut running as efficiently as it will be on probiotics, hormones are able to travel through your system more effectively and get to where they need to be in order for your body to experience the benefits.

For example, serotonin is responsible for making you feel good when it is released in your brain, and yet it is stored in your gut. Sometimes it may not reach the brain effectively, and this can lead to some symptoms of depression. Dairy free probiotics can make sure your gut effectively transports serotonin to improve your mood and relieve your stress.

Digestive Enzymes

Never underestimate the importance of digestion. If you are not properly digesting your food, there is basically no point in paying any attention to what you eat. You can’t get the benefits out of the superfoods unless your body is digesting everything at 100% efficiency. With an effective digestive enzyme formula, there is no doubt you will get the most out of every last nutrient.

Not to mention, heartburn, constipation, and diarrhea are all the results of digestion issues. If you suffer from any of those, chances are you could really benefit from taking some solid digestive enzymes. The probiotics will certainly help with this as well. Digestive enzymes also make Athletic Greens easier to absorb if consumed on an empty stomach.

Antioxidants

Antioxidants are magical, which is why green powders often contain a high concentration of them. Antioxidants are naturally occurring in nutrient dense raw superfoods, which is why superfood supplements tend to be so rich in them. If you are someone who typically doesn’t eat very healthy and you’re just starting to adjust your diet for the better, antioxidants are very important for you because they will help to undo any of the damage you may have done with an unhealthy diet.

Detoxification is important in order for the superfoods to do their job because the benefits don’t come as easily when the system has not been cleansed. The cleansing benefits of the Athletic Greens antioxidants formula play a major role in how effectively the superfoods will be able to deliver the nutrients (also known as nutrient absorption) and work their magic. Antioxidants are particularly helpful when it comes to immune function and reducing free radicals.

Athletic Greens side effects, pros & cons

Here are the Athletic Greens side effects, pros & and cons:

Athletic Greens benefits

There is a plethora of Athletic Greens health benefits users can expect to experience as a result of such a potent blend of superfoods. After all, we’re talking about ingesting 10,000 milligrams worth of superfoods plus digestive enzymes, herbs, and probiotics. That’s a powerful combination, which is what makes greens powders in general such great supplements.

Some of the most important benefits of Athletic Greens include increased energy levels, improved circulation and blood flow, better gut health, improved digestive health, immune system function, hormone function, brain function, liver function, blood pressure, cholesterol, energy production, bowel habits, and massively enhanced overall gastrointestinal function.

Keep in mind, our top ranked superfood supplement contains 5,000 more milligrams of superfoods per serving, plus twice the amount of probiotics and digestive enzymes. So, if you think the benefits of Athletic Greens sound impressive, imagine how much more health benefits you would get with the Total Living Drink! Also, keep in mind that the Athletic Greens website can be misleading with regard to health claims. Make sure to take their health claims with a grain of salt.

Does Athletic Greens help you lose weight?

Athletic Greens doesn’t necessarily directly help you lose weight, but if you use it as a meal replacement supplement, it’s possible it could help you lose weight over time. In my opinion, it is highly unlikely to help you lose weight, and I’ll give you a couple of very simple reasons why…

First and foremost, it does not contain anywhere near the amount of protein powder that the Total Living Drink contains (the TLD contains 11 grams of vegan protein powder). Adding protein powder to a greens formula has a lot of benefits, but the most important one is the fact that it makes you feel full and therefore, it can serve as an effective meal replacement supplement. Now, not only are you getting your greens in…you’re also reducing your calorie intake.

Another reason health supplements like the Total Living Drink can potentially help with weight loss is because they have a very high fiber content. Fiber swells up in your stomach upon consumption, which makes you feel full. Athletic Greens does not have as high of a fiber content as the Total Living Drink, but it still has enough fiber to help you feel full.

In summation, the main way that is possible for a green drink to help you potentially lose weight is by serving as a meal replacement supplement. If it has high protein and high fiber content, you can replace your breakfast with your green drink, thereby reducing your calorie intake. So, it does not directly help you lose weight…I’m not saying that. What I’m saying is that green drinks can potentially help IF they are utilized properly.

Athletic Greens side effects

It’s highly unlikely for side effects to occur from taking Athletic Greens. The whole formula is just a combination of organic fruits and vegetables. It’s pretty difficult to imagine that any of those ingredients would cause side effects, unless you’re allergic to a particular ingredient.

You could experience side effects if you have a soy allergy or any negative sort of reaction to products derived from soy. Athletic Greens discloses in their allergen statement that certain ingredients are derived from soy, so be careful if you don’t respond well to soy.

Athletic Greens Taste

Most green powders do not taste very good, which is easy to understand based on the ingredients they contain being vegetables, algae, and mushrooms. The bigger, more popular brands are good at finding ways to make their green powders taste good. Our top ranked greens powder, for example, uses a hefty dose of natural blueberry flavoring to mask the taste of the greens, grasses, and algae. It gets the job done very well.

However, Athletic Greens tastes pretty surprisingly bad despite the artificial sweeteners (yikes) and stevia it contains. I believe this is a result of poor choice in terms of which sweeteners and flavors to include. Usually, the best results come from adding natural berry flavors as opposed to artificial sweeteners and other non natural ingredients like stevia.

How to make Athletic Greens taste better

It’s no secret – green drinks don’t taste very good…but here’s how you can make Athletic Greens taste better. The bag says too mix in one serving of the greens with a cup of water, which is technically the healthiest way to do it I suppose, but certainly not the best tasting way to do it. Here are my recommendations…

Mix it in with juice

Instead of water, pick your favorite juice and mix a serving of the greens in with a cup of juice instead of water. It makes a truly significant difference, especially if you pick a potent tasting juice. My favorite juice to mix greens in with is orange juice because I feel it masks the taste of the superfoods the most effectively, but there are plenty of other options out there if you’re not a fan of orange juice.

Make a greens smoothie

This is my personal favorite method when it comes to making any greens powder taste better. You can make a very delicious smoothie that entirely masks the taste of the greens, and it barely adds any extra calories or anything else that could interfere with the health benefits if you do it right. Here’s my personal green drink smoothie recipe: Almond milk, organic peanut butter, bananas, and greens. This recipe is truly delicious, and you can’t taste the greens at all.

Athletic Greens Price

The current Athletic Greens price is $97 per bag, which we feel is a very high. It’s not that this isn’t a fair price to charge in this industry in general. Rather, we just don’t think Athletic Greens in particular is worth paying this price. Of course, we’ve touched on this already, but the #1 supplement on our list of the top green powders is 50% more potent and literally costs the exact same price…so it’s hard for us to justify the Athletic Greens price.

Think about that for a second…our top ranked green powder supplement provides 50% more greens per serving, and yet, it still costs less than Athletic Greens. This price is simply too high unless the product gets significantly more potent some time soon, which is not likely to happen. In my opinion, the value is just not there at this price point. The cost is absurd unless they significantly increase the amount of nutrients.

Athletic Greens reviews (complaints & praise from real customers)

At the time of writing, Amazon has a total of almost 1,500 Athletic Greens reviews posted on their website. These reviews are pretty trustworthy since Amazon only allows verified buyers of the product to submit reviews. Let’s take a look at what customers are saying.

Athletic Greens received an average rating of 4.4 stars out of 1,500 reviews, which is a pretty impressive statistic. About 70% of the customer reviews contain 5-star ratings for the product, which is another very encouraging mark. However, I always encourage people to not get distracted by consumer reviews.

Sure, it can be helpful to take consumer feedback into account, but at the end of the day, customer reviews are nowhere near as reliable as the facts and the science. It’s important to focus on the supplement facts panel (SFP), which is called the “supplement facts panel” because it can not lie! Consumer reviews can be biased or invalid, but the nutrition label can not be…just keep that in mind when evaluating health supplements.

Are there any Athletic Greens negative reviews?

On the flipped side of things, there is also a considerable amount of Athletic Greens negative reviews. Abut 20% of customers only gave it between 1-3 stars, so it appears a good portion of users are actually dissatisfied with the product. It’s always important to take negative feedback into account.

Is Athletic Greens worth it? Our Athletic Greens review conclusion

So, are Athletic Greens worth it? All things considered, there’s no doubt Athletic Greens deserves to be ranked amongst the top five best greens powders on the market. It has a decent superfood profile, a potent blend, and the Athletic Greens supplement facts stand out, with impressive components including probiotics and digestive enzymes.

With that said, we actually do NOT believe Athletic Greens is worth the price. Here’s why…Athletic Greens costs the exact same amount as our top ranked superfood powder, Total Living Drink Greens. However, the Athletic Greens formula is significantly weaker.

With Total Living Drink Greens, you get an extra 5,000 MG of superfoods per serving and double the amount of probiotics and digestive enzymes for the exact same price.

Therefore, it’s pretty hard for us to recommend Athletic Greens despite the fact that it’s a quality supplement. Why would you buy a superfood powder that’s 50% less potent and costs the same price? It just doesn’t make sense. We hope you enjoyed this review of Athletic Greens!

Make sure to check our our 10 Best Superfood Powders to see our favorites!

You can also see how Athletic Greens compares to some other popular green drink powders here…

Athletic Greens Vs Beyond Greens

Athletic Greens Vs Amazing Grass

Athletic Greens Vs Green Vibrance

Athletic Greens powder FAQs

Is Athletic Greens safe?

Yes, Athletic Greens only contains vegetables, herbs, fruits, and probiotics. There’s nothing in the formula that would harm the average individual. Also, it is manufactured in the United States, which generally means you can be confident it is safe. However, we are not doctors. You should always talk to your doctor before starting a new superfood powder supplement.

Do you have to refrigerate Athletic Greens?

No, you don’t have to refrigerate Athletic Greens because it is not a pre-made green drink. Athletic Greens storage is pretty simple since it is just a dry greens powder, so you can simply store it in your pantry. No refrigeration is necessary with this supplement. However, you should mix it in with cold water or cold juice because the taste is generally pretty bad if the green drink is warm…you definitely want it to be cold at the time of consumption.

How long does Athletic Greens last?

If you buy one bag of Athletic Greens, it should last you 30 days. Each bag contains 30 servings. In terms of an expiration date, Athletic Greens will not expire any time soon after purchase. Since it is essentially just powdered whole foods, it takes a long time for it to expire. However, I would recommend avoiding drinking it if the bag says it is past its expiration date.

When should I drink Athletic Greens?

You can drink Athletic Greens whenever you want, but in our opinion, it is best to drink it first thing in the morning so that you can experience the benefits throughout the day. If you mix a scoop in with a smoothie first thing in the morning, you should be feeling pretty good throughout the day. I personally take my green drink every morning on an empty stomach, and it makes me feel very good and high energy throughout the day.

Is Athletic Greens Keto friendly?

Yes, as a matter of fact, Athletic Greens is keto, paleo, dairy-free, and vegan friendly. It contains no GMOs, pesticides, herbicides, or anything else harmful to keto dieters. Despite the fact that I strongly dislike this supplement and their marketing tactics, I have to hand it to them here. It’s impressive that they were able to make the product entirely keto friendly.

Does Athletic Greens have caffeine?

Athletic Greens contains Green Tea Extract and Cocoa Extract, both of which are known to naturally contain caffeine. However, Athletic Greens standardizes their ingredients for antioxidant content. Therefore, the Athletic Greens caffeine content is pretty negligible.

What do you mix athletic greens with?

You can mix Athletic Greens with just a cup of water or juice. However, we think it tastes best when mixed in with a smoothie. If you make a protein shake or a smoothie exactly as you normally would, and then just add a scoop of Athletic Greens, you probably won’t even know it’s in there.

Does Athletic Greens have protein?

The Athletic Greens protein amount is 2 grams per serving, which is not much at all. On the other hand, our #1 ranked Total Living Drink Greens provides 11 grams worth of vegan protein per serving. That’s a very significant difference, especially with long term use.

Does Athletic Greens expire?

Yes, a bag of Athletic Greens expires 2 years after the date it was manufactured. Generally, you should always check the expiration date on the bag to make sure it has not yet expired. However, it is pretty unlikely that a new bag would be expired, especially since the product is made right here in the United States, which means you don’t have to worry about shipping delays.

How many servings of vegetables in Athletic Greens?

There are 12 servings of vegetables in every scoop of athletic greens, which is a solid amount, but it is still only about 65% of the amount of vegetables our top ranked greens supplement contains. We recommend checking out our top ranked option.

Does Athletic Greens have a money back guarantee?

Yes, they do offer a money back guarantee. Almost every supplement does as long as it is produced by a reputable company. This may be a bold take, but I would go as far as to say that if you did buy this supplement, you probably would end up utilizing this money back guarantee. That’s how much I dislike this product. I think it’s insanely overhyped…but hey, that’s just my opinion.

Athletic Greens cost and where to buy Athletic Greens

First of all, how much does Athletic Greens cost? Let’s take a look at where to buy Athletic Greens & get the cheapest deal on prices:

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References

1. Healthline
2. Forbes
3. Medical News Today
4. The Effect of Fruit And Vegetable Powder Mix on Hypertensive subjects: a pilot study
5. The Impact of a dried fruit and vegetable supplement and fiber rich shake on gut and health parameters in female healthcare workers: a placebo-controlled, double-blind, randomized clinical trial
6. Fruit and vegetable concentrate supplementation and cardiovascular health: a systematic review from a public health perspective