Protein Bars—Portable and
Perfect For Snacks on the
Run!
 Venture into any health nutrition store, drug
store, or even supermarket and you'll see shelves
lined with
protein bars .
Protein bars, along with energy bars and meal
replacements are hugely popular and the selection
seems endless. And at upwards of $4 each, purchasing
them regularly can get expensive. So, why not cook 'em
up yourself in your own kitchen!
I found this great FREE ebook that has dozens of
recipes for protein bars, energy bars, meal
replacements, and shakes. Go ahead and
download it and try them yourself.
Now of course, making all your own protein bars
from scratch is not necessarily for everyone, so let's
get on to a review of some popular protein bars and a
comparison of the nutritional content.
Review of Protein Bars
- Protein bars—generally these have a high
protein to carb ratio, and are used as protein
supplements or consumed instead of a
protein shake at meal time.
- Energy bars—these are the high carb content
snacks
- Meal replacement bars—these meal
replacements claim a balance of
protein, carbohydrates and fats; manufacturers
claim they are the most satisfying.
- Low carb bars or low fat nutrition bars—just another marketing
category that caters to individuals on weight loss
programs
Choosing protein bars is a
matter of taste AND cost.
If you're confused by the number of protein bars, energy bars
and meal replacements out there, you're not alone. Like protein
supplements and everything else in
the sport nutrition industry, competition is fierce
for your dollars.
Who can afford to sample protein bars to find the one that provides the ideal ratio of protein, carbs and fats...AND
tastes the best?
While there's a ocean of data out there on
grams of protein, carbs and fat, total calories, and
protein-to-carb ratios, I think you're more
likely to use protein bars if they just taste good.
Some of the protein bars I've had that taste good
are:
- Detour Bars
 —seriously
like a Snickers chocolate bar! Not quite as good,
but close.
- Power Bars
 —chocolate
peanut butter flavor is good and filling like the
Balance bar.
- EAS Myoplex Carb Sense Bars
 —good!
Try Cookies and Cream flavor.
- Balance Bars
 —these
taste great and are more like a meal replacement.
The manufacturer claims Balance bars have a low
glycemic index (GI) so the energy benefits last
lmay onger than other protein bars.
As for the cost factor, protein bars can be an
expensive snack if you eat them regularly. If you
make them part of your pre and post workout routine,
then find the ones you like and buy them by the box
online. In most cases you can save 35% off the
retail price by purchasing protein bars online.
Comparison of Popular Protein Bars
If you really want to know the protein
and carb content in a range of popular protein bars
and meal replacement bars, here's a handy product
comparison chart from
Musclesurf.com.
| Nutrition Bars |
Protein (g) |
Carbs (g) |
Fat (g) |
Calories |
| Muscletech Nitro-Tech Bars |
35 |
9 |
8 |
290 |
| Met Rx Protein Plus Bars |
34 |
14 |
8 |
250 |
| EAS Myoplex Carb Sense Bars |
32 |
20 |
7 |
250 |
| Detour Bars |
30 |
25 |
10 |
310 |
| MuscleTech Meso Tech Bars |
25 |
44 |
7 |
340 |
| Sport Pharma Promax Bars |
20 |
36 |
5 |
280 |
| EAS Myoplex Lite Bars |
15 |
28 |
190 |
180 |
| Balance Bars |
14 |
22 |
6 |
190 |
| Power Bars |
10 |
4 |
2 |
230 |
| Clif Bars |
8 |
43 |
2.5 |
250 |
|
