Good protein bars?

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Replies

  • dcc56
    dcc56 Posts: 172 Member
    I like the Pure Protein bars, only 2 grams of sugar. Yes, it also has sugar alcohols which is a sugar substitute. They are around 200 calories a bar so I just eat one half of a bar which results in a 100 calorie snack. Premier Protein makes some good tasting ones too but they are huge in size, I cut those down to thirds. I don't have the specs for those but you can look them up on their website or here on MFP. I buy both of these bars at either Sams Club or Costco which means they are less expensive there. Mainly I want to stay away from all of these because they kinda make me think I am eating candy. I'm not big on candy or candy bars in the first place.
  • carolemack
    carolemack Posts: 1,276 Member
    Quest bars...hands down! :)
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    You ought to be able to get 57 through food easily. Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, milk, fish, chicken, beef, eggs, etc.

    Personally I like Think Thin bars a lot more than Quest. I have no idea whether the ingredients list would worry you or not. There are almost no ingredients that have been approved by the FDA that I find worrisome (I try to avoid trans fats if it's convenient. And that's it.)
  • FitForL1fe
    FitForL1fe Posts: 1,872 Member
    The Snickers protein bars basically taste like a Snickers (er, not really, but close enough for 20g of protein/300 cals). Pure Protein is cheap as phuck...very good for shopping on a budget. EAS Myoplex bars are an old go-to for me, but are somewhat costly.

    Protein powder is going to trump bars in value and protein/cal ratio every time, though.
  • Coolhandkid
    Coolhandkid Posts: 84 Member
    Quest cookie dough. I could eat em for breakfast lunch and dinner.
  • giggitygoo
    giggitygoo Posts: 1,978 Member
    Have you considered adding more protein into your actual meals?

    You can easily get more protein in by just swapping some of your choices around.

    That said, quest bars are really good. Bodybuilding.com has a promo running for them still I think.
  • EDollah
    EDollah Posts: 464 Member
    edited October 2014
    Anyone tried the new MusclePharm bars - Combat Crunch? They're fairly new to the market and have positive reviews online. But I know how those reviews can be manipulated so I'm curious if anyone here has tried them and what they thought.
  • simplydelish2
    simplydelish2 Posts: 726 Member
    edited October 2014
    If you eat ham in the a.m. obviously you aren't vegan or vegetarian. Boneless, skinless chicken or turkey breast provides great protein. Bars - filled with junk and most taste really bad. I've tried the Quest bars and they have a lot of protein - but they have no texture, all taste the same, and aren't really that good. As far as bars go, Atkins is my favorite - but they are not really high protein.
  • AceCC86
    AceCC86 Posts: 71
    Am I the only person that thinks Quest bars taste like poison?
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    AceCC86 wrote: »
    Am I the only person that thinks Quest bars taste like poison?

    You're not the only one. I like a couple of the flavors okay, if I don't have the calories for Think Thin. But I know a lot of people who can't tolerate any of them.
  • MsHarryWinston
    MsHarryWinston Posts: 1,027 Member
    AceCC86 wrote: »
    Am I the only person that thinks Quest bars taste like poison?

    Nope. I finally tried them last week and when I ate the double chocolate chunk I spent the whole time crying and trying to figure out how I had offended the gods to be punished so mercilessly. It was REALLY gross.
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    I have no idea how you can't manage to get 57g from your normal diet. I'm not being cheeky, I'm honestly baffled. Are you using complete entries - some just have the calories with no macro values?
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    You're an 18 year old man, not a vegan, and you're having trouble hitting 57g of protein? Something is really wrong with this picture. You should be able to hit WAY more than 57g with food, without having to add any supplements. What is your average total caloric intake?
  • threnjen
    threnjen Posts: 687 Member
    galbracj wrote: »
    Quest cookie dough. I could eat em for breakfast lunch and dinner.

    Me too, it's really hard to eat only one a day (sometimes I eat two ....)
  • Aine8046
    Aine8046 Posts: 2,122 Member
    edited October 2014
    I tried Quest yesterday. They are ok in taste (too sweet for me) and very filling. I ate it around 5 pm (after light lunch at noon) and was not hungry at all for the rest of the day.
  • LiftAndBalance
    LiftAndBalance Posts: 960 Member
    edited October 2014
    As others have said, try food first (meat, dairy, legumes, grains, nuts etc.). As far as supplements go, protein powder is probably cheaper than buying bars and you can make your own shakes and bars, choosing what to put in. There are unflavoured protein powders without any additional ingredients (e.g. Pulsin).

    I also don't get the Quest hype; I think they taste just as bad as any other bar I've ever tried but cost about four times as much. The only protein bars I like are Honey Stinger (they're a bit lower in protein than most others though).
  • myrtille87
    myrtille87 Posts: 122 Member
    I find it difficult to eat as much protein as MFP tells me to on a daily basis (109g) but I always eat over 25g without eating a load of supplements.

    For lunch just now I had a egg noodles with a tofu and pak choi stir fry - it came to 27g protein despite being a vegetarian meal. So with another meal in the evening containing a similar amount of protein, plus a few grams here and there from snacks, I'll probably be over 60g in total. It's not a vast amount of protein but it's enough for everyday life, I don't want to gain muscle, and I am not working out loads.

    What do you actually eat?

    Items I would suggest including more of in your diet (assuming you can eat all of these things) are:
    -chicken (as well as cooking chicken based dishes at home, I buy ready cooked roast chicken breast pieces to put in salads and wraps for lunch).
    -fish (loads of protein and not a lot of fat in white fish. Oily fish obviously contain more fat but are very good for you).
    -eggs (2 poached eggs on a toasted wholemeal English muffin contains around 19g protein and would be fine for breakfast or lunch).
    -pulses - tinned beans, chickpeas and lentils. You can make really easy salads for packed lunches using tinned white beans (haricot/canellini), tinned tuna (more protein), lemon juice and olive oil plus whatever else you fancy (olives, capers, sundried tomatoes, fresh herbs).
    -dairy products - a 250ml glass of semi-skimmed milk contains 9g protein and 125 calories. 100g of fat free Greek-style yoghurt (no added sugar) contains 7.6g protein and 55 calories.

    Hopefully some of these will be useful rather than just relying on protein bars. I do add the occasional whey protein shake (I like Upbeat blueberry and raspberry or mango ones - they just taste like a fruity yoghurt drink but have 20g protein) but try to eat as much real food as possible without resorting to them.
  • Aine8046
    Aine8046 Posts: 2,122 Member
    I tried Quest bars last week. Bought 6-8 different ones. Rasberry and Coconut tasted really bad for me. Chocolate and cookie dough were good :) Very filling and tasted good. I am ordering a box on Amazon now. Box of 12 for $25. Is there a cheaper opportunity?
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    xcalygrl wrote: »
    Are you vegetarian or vegan? If yes, the following won't apply to you: eat more meat. I eat just plain food (no bars or shakes most days) and get over 150 grams of protein a day. If you eat a chicken breast (150 grams cooked), you will be at 46 grams of protein.

    If you want a bar or shake, I like Quest bars. (Side note: their calorie count is somewhat skewed because they subtract the fiber calories. For instance, these are the stats for the cookies and cream bar per the label:
    Cals: 180
    Fat: 7g
    Carbs: 22g
    Fiber: 17g
    Protein: 21g

    Here are what their stats should be:
    Cals: 235
    Fat: 7g (7g*9cals=63 cals)
    Carbs: 22g (22g*4cals=88 cals)
    Fiber: 17g (17g*4cals=68 cals) (if you subtract this, you get 167 cals, which is close to the 180 on the label)
    Protein: 21g (21g*4cals=84 cals)

    For protein shakes, I like Core Power Light (20grams of protein per serving) or Amplify XL (46grams of protein for 3 scoops) from GNC.

    Dah! Is this true about the Quest bars?
  • Followedauthor
    Followedauthor Posts: 3
    How about Ezekiel bread with almond butter.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    NarwhalofNight wrote: »
    So I need around 57 grams of protein per day with the workout I'm doing and I can barely reach 25. I would like to get powder but see there are some bars. When I look at these bars they filled with weird ingredients and stuff. Any good protein bars that are healthy and really only have protein?

    A protein bar with only protein is called beef jerky.

    And don't be afraid of "ingredients." All food is made up of "ingredients."

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  • pkw58
    pkw58 Posts: 2,038 Member
    Hornsby wrote: »
    Pure Protein bars are low in carbs, low in calories, and have 19-21 grams of protein. They are the best bang for the buck in my opinion.

    I agree. I buy them at costco. I have many days where I don't eat them, but they are always my briefcase. I do like Quest Bars, but they are hard to find on sale.

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