Uthful versus AG1 and IM8

Why Uthful Took a Different Approach to Performance Nutrition

In recent years, “all-in-one” daily supplements like AG1 and IM8 have exploded in popularity, and for good reason. They’re convenient, evidence-based, and designed to make nutrition easy. Yet, although here at Uthful we wholeheartedly share that mission, we’ve taken a different approach.

Both AG1 and IM8 contain well over 70 ingredients in small doses, from adaptogens and probiotics to mushrooms and botanicals. Whereas here at Uthful, we’ve focused on just 24, typically at a more meaningful dosage, in the belief that "more" isn’t always better.

Why? Well, as a company and brand, we believe health is a habit. Born from the small actions and choices we make daily, which, when married to consistency, compound over time. We think holistically about health and longevity, focusing on the key pillars of exercise, diet and nutrition, and sleep/recovery.

And, therein, we believe people should seek to get most of their nutrients from a healthy, balanced diet, and that supplementation should not be used as a hedge to outrun a bad diet, but as the (metaphorical) icing on the cake.

So instead of throwing everything into the mix, here at Uthful we’ve focused on specific, proven ingredients that directly address what active, health-conscious adults are most often lacking, and that genuinely move the needle on energy, focus, recovery, and longevity.

"I love AG1 and what they, and more recently others like IM8 and Huel have created is incredible, and inspiring, but I could never shake that feeling that I don't actually want a "greens" drink – I want to eat my greens!" said Uthful's founder, Simon Swan. 

"I want to eat fruit too, and protein and good fats... and get as many nutrients from my diet as I can. That was always my goal," continued Swan. "And, sure, no day is perfect, but over time – I talk a lot about consistency – those imperfect days tend to balance out in aggregate.

"Then, when I approached Joanne [a nutritional therapist], about helping me with Uthful, we talked a lot about the core philosophy and health/lifestyle in general. She's an extremely experienced practitioner that sees people every day: tired adults, stressed out parents, overworked executives, burnout amateur athletes... people with real life deficiencies. 

"So Uthful wasn't built in a lab for theoretical humans, it was built from my own experience in health and sport, aligned to the patterns Joanne had seen in her practice; from literally 1,000s of conversations about fatigue, pain, stress, and burnout with her clients. 

"That's why we were never going to throw the kitchen sink at our formula to compete with AG1 and IM8 by offering "more." No, that was never the approach. We looked at the core themes from Joanne's practice and narrowed in on the key nutrients people are typically deficient in, or that you simply just can't get in the quantities required from diet alone.

"The goal is to help busy people aged 30+ feel sharp, strong, and energised throughout the day. These people are busy, stretched, and don't have time for complicated wellness routines. They want fewer pills, not more! So to achieve our goal, we were very thoughtful about the ingredients, and very targeted."

Building from real needs, not marketing lists

Uthful's starting point was simple: what are people actually deficient in, and what’s hard to get even with a balanced diet?

Take Vitamin D3, for example. In the UK, most people are deficient to some degree, and while this deficiency can vary depending on skin tone, time spent outdoors, and the season, we included a meaningful daily dose (2000 IU) accepting that deficiency in the UK is commonplace. 

Alongside Vitamin D3, we added 200mg of Vitamin K2 as the two work together, in synergy, with the latter helping the body direct calcium where it’s needed.

Another example is NMN (Nicotinamide Mononucleotide), a molecule that’s become increasingly popular due to positive word of mouth experiences, and because evidence demonstrates it supports energy at a cellular level, increasing NAD levels, which decline over the age of 30.

Now, while NMN – a form of Vitamin B3 – is found in small quantities in foods like avocado, cabbage, broccoli, edamame and tomatoes, it’s hard (read: almost impossible) to eat through enough that you’ll feel the benefit. So each scoop of Uthful includes 500mg of NMN, enough to make a real difference.

"To get that amount of NMN from food alone, you’d need to eat around 70kg of broccoli a day," explained Swan. "That just isn't practical, and it's probably even a bit anti-social, not to mention expensive!"

Supporting balance, not replacing it

Fundamentally, then, here at Uthful we don’t believe supplements can (or should try to) counter a bad diet, lack of sleep, or zero exercise. They’re there to complement a healthy, balanced lifestyle; to fill the small gaps, not paper over the big ones.

Our view, then, is simple: eat real food – plenty of vegetables, lean protein, oily fish, nuts, pulses – move daily, rest deeply, and manage stress. Then add Uthful to support your body where even the best diet falls short.

How Uthful compares

The Uthful blend

As Simon has already said, every day, nutritional therapist Joanne Hill meets people struggling with low energy, brain fog, stiffness, or lack of motivation. The causes will vary, from stress, poor sleep, nutrient deficiencies, hormones, metabolic imbalances. And this is why Uthful’s 24-ingredient formula was built to work holistically; supporting multiple pathways that influence energy, focus, and resilience. 

Each nutrient was thoughtfully selected for its synergy, purity, and bioavailability, so your body actually absorbs and uses what’s inside. Furthermore, because Uthful is a soluble powder, not capsules, and its "less is more" approach, we can deliver meaningful nutrient doses (that would never fit into tablet or capsule form, or a powder with 80+ ingredients) in one simple, great-tasting daily blend.

Our goal

Uthful isn’t trying to outdo AG1 or IM8. We respect and admire both companies. They’ve done a fantastic job of telling people that proactive health matters, and promoting that message. We just think there’s room for a more refined and targeted approach. One built around quality, dosage, and real-world experience, rather than just the size of the label.

“Health and, ultimately, longevity isn’t about hacks,” added Swan. “It’s about supporting your body daily with nutrients it genuinely needs, in the right forms, at the right levels. You can’t outsource sleep, diet, or stress management to a powder, but you can give your body the building blocks it needs to feel sharper, stronger and more resilient.”

So there you have it. From Uthful's perspective, and its founder's, health and longevity isn’t about cramming in more, it’s a byproduct of giving your body exactly what it needs to perform, recover, and thrive over time, and there are no short cuts or hacks, just consistency over time.

Try Uthful. Click here.