When it comes to grabbing a snack that will supply you with energy to get you through a workout, you probably grab nutrition/energy bars. However, what you might not realize is that not all nutrition bars were created equal. In fact, a lot of those bars probably contain more calories and far as a candy bar does! So, if you are trying to use nutrition bars to have an effective workout so that you can lose weight, that might not be the best plan. You may want to take a close look at the nutrition bar that you are choosing before popping that into your mouth.
When it comes down to it, if you do not want to think about what is in your nutrition bar, you could always default to the homemade trail mix option. This is the best way to guarantee that you are not getting any hidden sugar, carbohydrates, and calories. However, if you want to put some more time into your nutrition bar search, then you may want to check out a few of the following bars.
Kind Blueberry Pecan: Made by Kind, this bar is a super simple one that consists of whole foods such as blueberries, honey, brown rice, and almonds. They are clean and contain 12 grams of sugar. The downside to these bars is that there are only three games of protein in one bar. To be fair, most of the other bars have high protein counts due to the manufactured soy product that is in there. In a way, the “real” protein that is in the Kind bar is more valuable than the soy protein.
Quest Coconut Cashew: If you are really looking for protein, check out the Quest Coconut Cashew bar. This one has whey protein in it, as well as almonds, coconut, and sea salt.
Zing Almond Blueberry: Need something gluten, soy, and wheat free? Check out this Zing bar. Zing contains whey protein, which helps to up the amount of protein in this bar to 11 grams. This is a great snack for a post workout snack, as this will help you continue to build some muscles.
A lot of people go for the Balance Bars or the Clif bars. These are not necessarily the right answer for you. For example, Balance has this one bar out there called the S’mores bar. This is a nice balance of carbohydrates, protein, and lots of fat! Balance bases their proteins on soy, which may leave you feeling a little more bloated than you usually feel. There are also other ingredients that are not good for you in Balance bars, such as unnecessary sugar, artificial flavors, and oils.
The same goes with Clif bars. These bars are also made up of soy proteins. Also, there are about 40 grams of carbohydrates and 22 grams of sugar in one Clif bar. So, if your workout is only going to be about an hour long, you might not be burning off all of that Clif bar that you just had. The first ingredient on some of the Clif bars, such as the coconut chocolate chip bar, is brown rice syrup. That is not the way to lose weight! However, if you are going for a four hour, high endurance hike, then yes, maybe you should go for the Clif bar. There is always a time and place for every nutrition bar out there, you just just have to know when.
