Update 2/21/20. Right Size Smoothies weight loss shakes were one of the first supplements I reviewed when I created this website back in 2010. Recently, I had the opportunity to hear a commercial for Right Size and became curious if things had changed since I last reviewed them. Indeed, there have been some changes – including a clinical study. So, this new Right Size Smoothies review will build upon and update what I originally wrote. If you want to see my original Right Size Smoothie review, click here.
Where’s The Appemine?
When I originally reviewed Right Size, the marketing at the time was touting the weight loss power of an ingredient called “Appemine.” This was actually a made-up word that was composed of the following ingredients:
- Resistant maltodextrin (soluble fiber)
- Guarana seed extract
- Ginger root extract
- Cinnamon bark extract
- Cayenne pepper
In the list, notice “resistant maltodextrin.” Another name for this ingredient is “Fibersol.” It's a man-made fiber that we can't digest (so we cant get calories from it). This ingredient is in many weight loss shakes I've looked at including:
See those reviews for more information.
If you saw my original Right Size Smoothies review you may have noticed that the ingredients in Appemine look a bit different than are listed here. The ingredients I listed above are what I recently saw on an older Right Size Smoothie container at a local drug store. This makes me wonder if the ingredients in Appemine were altered/ adjusted since my first review.
In any event, it may not matter, because Appemine is no longer listed in the ingredients of newer-looking containers or the product website. It appears they removed Appemine from Right Size Smoothies although some of the ingredients in Appemine are still present in the ingredients list. Why they removed it, I can’t say.
Right Size Smoothies Ingredients
For this review, I looked at the ingredients in Skinni Vanilli flavor. The Nutrition Facts label for the container I looked at contained 20 servings. One serving of SkinniVanilli (29 g, about 1 ounce) contains the following nutritional values:
| Amount per serving | Smoothie mix alone | With 8 oz fat free milk |
| Calories | 100 | 180 |
| Calories from fat | 25 | 30 |
| Percent Daily Value | Percent Daily Value | |
| Total fat 3g, 3g | 5% | 5% |
| Sat fat 0g, 0g | 0% | 0% |
| Trans fat 0g, 0g | N/A | N/A |
| Cholesterol 0mg, 5 mg | 0% | 2% |
| Sodium 140mg, 240 mg | 6% | 10% |
| Potassium 100mg , 480 mg | 3% | 14% |
| Total carbs 15g, 28 g | 5% | 9% |
| Dietary fiber 6g, 6g | 24% | 24% |
| Sugars 6g, 18g | N/A | N/A |
| Protein 7g, 15g | 14% | 30% |
Here are all the vitamins and minerals in Right Size Smoothies:
| Nutrient | % daily value of shake alone | % daily value with 8 oz fat free milk |
|---|---|---|
| Vitamin A | 50% | 60% |
| Vitamin C | 50% | 50% |
| Calcium | 20% | 50% |
| Iron | 6% | 6% |
| Vitamin D | 30% | 60% |
| Vitamin E | 50% | 50% |
| Vitamin K | 30% | 30% |
| Thiamin | 30% | 40% |
| Riboflavin | 30% | 60% |
| Niacin | 30% | 30% |
| Vitamin B6 | 30% | 35% |
| Folate | 35% | 35% |
| Vitamin B12 | 30% | 50% |
| Biotin | 30% | 30% |
| Pantothenic acid | 30% | 40% |
| Phosphorus | 30% | 60% |
| Iodine | 30% | 70% |
| Magnesium | 25% | 30% |
| Zinc | 30% | 40% |
| Selenium | 30% | 40% |
| Copper | 20% | 25% |
| Manganese | 35% | 35% |
| Chromium | 50% | 50% |
| Molybdenum | 30% | 35% |
And lastly, here are all the ingredients, in order as they appear on the label. Read the label from left to right and this will show you which ingredient is present the most and which is present in the least amount.
| Soy protein isolate | Resistant Maltodextrin | Crystalline fructose |
| Canola oil | Corn syrup solids | maltodextrin |
| Natural and artificial flavors | silicon dioxide | Carboxymethylcellulose gym |
| Xanthan gum | salt | sodium casenate |
| Green tea extract | Dipotassium phosphate | Acesulfame potassium |
| Soy lecithin | Mono and Diglycerides | Ginger root extract |
| Sucralose | Cinnamon bark extract |
What Are The Sweeteners?
The label indicates that Right Size Smoothies contains (in order as they appear on the label) the following sweeteners:
- Crystalline Fructose
- Corn syrup
- Acesulfame potassium (also known as Acesulfame K)
- Sucralose (Splenda)
How Much Protein?
As can be seen from the table above, if you mix Right Size Smoothies with milk, it has 15 grams of protein. However, alone, the shake mix only has 7 grams of protein. By itself, I don't feel that's a lot of protein for someone on a weight-loss plan-especially if you don't eat enough protein at other meals or snacks. As such, I don't think people should mix Right Size with water. I feel milk is a better choice.
People should eat a bit extra protein when they are trying to lose weight. This is to try to reduce muscle loss during dieting. Adding extra protein to meals (as well as exercising) can help reduce this loss.
See my original Right Size review, for more on this topic.
Does Right Size Contain Soy?
Yes, the label indicates that Right Size Smoothies contain both milk and soy.
Does Right Size Contain Dairy?
The product website states that Right Size Smoothies contains casein, which is a protein found in milk, so yes, the product does contain some dairy.
Is It Kosher?
Yes, Right Size Smoothies are both Kosher and gluten-free.
How Much Caffeine?
According to the product website, each of the 4 different flavors of Right Size Smoothies has the following amounts of caffeine:
- Lean Cocoa Bean: 22.2 mg caffeine
- Skinni Vanilli: 3.3 mg caffeine
- Slend-A-Berry: 3.3 mg caffeine
- Leano Cappuccino: 60 mg caffeine
The website does say that this is less caffeine than is in a cup of coffee.
Who Makes Right Size Smoothies?
According to the product website – MyRightSize.com – the company is Right Size Health & Nutrition Corporation. They are located at 750 Oakwood Road, Lake Zurich, IL 60047-1519. Interestingly, when I searched for this address online, I noticed that it is also the same address for a company called Insight Beverages.
The linkedin profile for Insight Beverages states that: “The company manufactures and distributes cappuccino, hot chocolate, frozen cappuccino, barista products, fruit smoothies, frozen granita, tea products, and iced coffee.”
Therefore, I believe that Insight Beverages is the company that actually makes Right Size Smoothies – as well as many other products.
The Better Business Bureau did not have a rating for the company when this review was updated. See the BBB file for rating updates and more information.
The BBB gives Insight Beverages a rating of “A+” See the Insight Beverages BBB file for more information.
Right Size Smoothies Research
The product website does list a clinical trial done on Right Size Smoothies and even lets people download the entire study to read. The study was published in 2012 and is titled Meal Replacement Beverage Twice a Day in Overweight and Obese Adults (MDRC2012-001). I read the study and noticed a few things that I thought were worth mentioning:
- The study lasted 12 weeks and involved 55 overweight men and women (the average age was 40).
- Twice a day, people were instructed to mix Right Size Smoothies with 8 oz of water, milk, or other liquid– AND to follow that up by drinking 8 oz of water. This drinking extra water after the shake should be performed for those looking to duplicate the results of this study. It does mention this on the product label too.
- The people in the study were also placed on a calorie-restricted diet that reduced their calories by 500 per day. In other words, Right Size Smoothies were used in addition to a lower-than-usual calorie intake.
- The people were also given questionnaires to fill out about how full they felt etc. as well as food diaries and beverage logs to keep track of what they ate and drank.
Study Results:
At the end of the study, it was reported that:
- People lost between 10 and 13 pounds after the study. The most successful dieters lost as much as 18 pounds.
- Decreases in body mass index (BMI) were also reported.
- People felt fuller 2 hours after consuming Right Size Smoothies.
Possible Weaknesses Of The Study
- There was no placebo to compare the effects of Right Size Smoothie too. This lack of a placebo group could reduce the significance of the study.
- Everyone in the study replaced 2 meals a day with a Right Size Smoothie in addition to their weight loss diet. In other words, people did not just drink the shakes. They did other things too including filing out questionnaires and writing down what they ate and drank. Because of this, we can’t know how much of an impact these other things had on the weight loss results.
- A total of 55 people were in the study however, only 28 completed the study. That’s an almost 50% dropout. This says a lot about how hard weight loss is, even with this “Hunger Smashing Smoothie.”
- People dropped out for a variety of reasons including being bored, scheduling conflicts, and inability to track their progress with the questionnaires and logs they were supposed to fill out. A minority of people dropped out because of side effects such as nausea and diarrhea.
Overall this is an interesting study but I think this investigation should be followed up with a placebo-controlled study.
Right Size Smoothies Side Effects
I'm not aware of any side effects from using the product. When I searched online, I did not see anyone saying crazy, out of the ordinary, side effects. I think if you are basically healthy, Right Size Smoothies is safe. As a rule, here are some general guidelines to keep in mind when trying this or other supplements. this list is not complete
- start with less than recommended for the first week
- talk to your doctor if pregnant or breastfeeding
- if you take any medications talk to your doctor
Looking at Amazon reviews of the product I saw one person who noted gaining weight after adding fruit to the shake.
Does It Raise Metabolism?
Anytime you eat, your metabolism goes up a little bit (and then goes down again). That's because it takes energy to digest food. The caffeine in the shakes might also slightly bump up metabolism too, but I don't think this will play a significant role in weight loss.
As we lose weight, our metabolism naturally tends to go down. This is because as we get smaller, we don't use as much energy to keep us going. While exercise can help this to a degree, I wonder how much of an impact this has in terms of the “Big picture.” I recommend not worrying about how to raise metabolism and focus on calories eaten and healthy exercise and nutrition.
RightSize Vs IdealShape?
IdealShape is another weight-loss shake that people ask about. Here is my review of the IdealSpape for those who wanted to know how it compared to Right Size Smoothie.
Does Right Size Work?
I believe that Right Size Smoothies work in a similar way to other meal replacement shakes. They get people to eat fewer calories. If people follow the directions on the product – drink 2 shakes a day, each followed by two 8 oz glasses of water, and 2 low-calorie snacks and a sensible meal for dinner, and follow the instructions to the letter, I’m pretty sure they will lose weight. But, that’s only because people ate fewer calories. If the shakes are a vehicle to help people do this, then that's great. Because the shake mix alone is relatively low in protein, I think making sure you get protein at other meals is something to strive for.