Sometimes you feel like you don't have the time or creativity (or desire) to prepare a healthy meal or snack. Or perhaps you are so busy, you can't put together a sandwich or salad or whatever it is that you think you should be eating.
If you are expending a lot of calories (and time), working out or training for a race, then it may be useful to occasionally eat a meal-replacement or protein or energy bar. Now I personally wouldn't recommend making it an every-day habit to eat these because whole foods - raw, fresh foods - are best for our bodies, and if you're reaching for an energy bar, then you are ingesting something that has been processed. (More on that in another blog!)
It has been quite some time since I felt my lifestyle and level of physical activity merited the use of energy bars, but now that I'm deep into training for a half-marathon, and putting in 25+ miles/week, I know how important it is to fuel my body properly so I can stay healthy and full of energy!
So here I am, trying out a few energy bars that I picked up at Walmart. I'll start with 3 that I found, including the popular "Clif" bar, and I will give my honest opinion on taste, texture, and whether I felt the bar was adequate to maintain my energy level and keep me from "starving"!
Clif Bar - Chocolate Almond Fudge $1.57
68g, 250 calories
5g Fat
5g Fibre
20g Sugar
10g Protein
Appearance: First of all, I dig the packaging. I like how there is this adventurous guy hanging off of a cliff... but of course, it's what's inside that really counts! When I opened it up, it looked kind of like one of those haystack no-bake cookies with oats and cocoa that I occasionally help my kids to make, except in a more flattened, rectangular shape.
Taste: I took a bite, and instantly recognized that despite the promising "chocolate" in the name, it was not going to taste like your typical chocolate bar. It wasn't nearly as sweet and didn't give me that satisfying sugar-buzz that I normally get from my treats. That being said, it still has a considerable amount of sugar for a "healthy" bar, but most chocolate bars are 25-40 grams of sugar per bar, so this is healthier on that level. At any rate, the flavor was still pleasant, and had an enjoyable nuttiness amidst the slight chocolate taste (thus the "almond-fudge").
Texture: I enjoyed how this was a chewy bar; full of texture. You could tell it was made with real ingredients - and, to it's credit, the Clif Bar is made with 70% organic ingredients. When I was a teenager, I would occasionally eat Power-bars and some of them had the texture of foam or sawdust with a light chocolate cover. This was more like eating a slightly chewy oatmeal and almond cookie.
Energy: A bar with this much protein should be satisfying enough to get through a few hours, and I did feel fine as I shopped with my little boys and went about my afternoon activities. My only regret is that I didn't have a bottle of water with me because the bar is quite oat-y and the added moisture would have improved my experience!
Rating: Since I haven't tasted any other bars yet, I don't know exactly how it rates among protein bars. However, based on my experience with Powerbars (some 15 years ago) and the occasional Slimfast bar (8 years ago?) I would give this bar a 7.5/10. It doesn't taste like candy, but the flavor is pleasant enough and you do feel like you're eating something reasonably healthy.
Until the next bar...
If you are expending a lot of calories (and time), working out or training for a race, then it may be useful to occasionally eat a meal-replacement or protein or energy bar. Now I personally wouldn't recommend making it an every-day habit to eat these because whole foods - raw, fresh foods - are best for our bodies, and if you're reaching for an energy bar, then you are ingesting something that has been processed. (More on that in another blog!)
It has been quite some time since I felt my lifestyle and level of physical activity merited the use of energy bars, but now that I'm deep into training for a half-marathon, and putting in 25+ miles/week, I know how important it is to fuel my body properly so I can stay healthy and full of energy!
So here I am, trying out a few energy bars that I picked up at Walmart. I'll start with 3 that I found, including the popular "Clif" bar, and I will give my honest opinion on taste, texture, and whether I felt the bar was adequate to maintain my energy level and keep me from "starving"!
68g, 250 calories
5g Fat
5g Fibre
20g Sugar
10g Protein
Appearance: First of all, I dig the packaging. I like how there is this adventurous guy hanging off of a cliff... but of course, it's what's inside that really counts! When I opened it up, it looked kind of like one of those haystack no-bake cookies with oats and cocoa that I occasionally help my kids to make, except in a more flattened, rectangular shape.
Taste: I took a bite, and instantly recognized that despite the promising "chocolate" in the name, it was not going to taste like your typical chocolate bar. It wasn't nearly as sweet and didn't give me that satisfying sugar-buzz that I normally get from my treats. That being said, it still has a considerable amount of sugar for a "healthy" bar, but most chocolate bars are 25-40 grams of sugar per bar, so this is healthier on that level. At any rate, the flavor was still pleasant, and had an enjoyable nuttiness amidst the slight chocolate taste (thus the "almond-fudge").
Texture: I enjoyed how this was a chewy bar; full of texture. You could tell it was made with real ingredients - and, to it's credit, the Clif Bar is made with 70% organic ingredients. When I was a teenager, I would occasionally eat Power-bars and some of them had the texture of foam or sawdust with a light chocolate cover. This was more like eating a slightly chewy oatmeal and almond cookie.
Energy: A bar with this much protein should be satisfying enough to get through a few hours, and I did feel fine as I shopped with my little boys and went about my afternoon activities. My only regret is that I didn't have a bottle of water with me because the bar is quite oat-y and the added moisture would have improved my experience!
Rating: Since I haven't tasted any other bars yet, I don't know exactly how it rates among protein bars. However, based on my experience with Powerbars (some 15 years ago) and the occasional Slimfast bar (8 years ago?) I would give this bar a 7.5/10. It doesn't taste like candy, but the flavor is pleasant enough and you do feel like you're eating something reasonably healthy.
Until the next bar...
No comments:
Post a Comment