Protein bars/ shakes, and meal substitutes

I would not suggest using anything like this as a meal substitute. Snacks - maybe. Here's the key: read the label. Reading the label is the most important dietary thing you can do. Sure, vitamins are a good thing and a good taste helps get the vitamins down. What else is in it? I ate a certain brand of protein bars for awhile during my journey. They are good, quick and convenient. They are also often loaded with ingredients that aren't. Salt. Soy. Maybe some HFCS and some of the healthy ones do have ingredients that I can't pronounce. You have to know what you are buying. I finally opted to make my own and found a recipe that I really liked that gave me some pretty good numbers and that were made with ingredients I could pronounce.

The shake powder I use is whey protein. But again, you have to read the labels because they are all different. Again, sodium levels are all over the place.

In the end it comes down to knowing the label. Knowing what is in it, knowing what kind of numbers it generates for your overall daily goals and knowing what you are comfortable fueling your body with.