Protein Bar Questions
Replies
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_dracarys_ wrote: »I don't eat them for protein . I eat them instead of candy bars etc. , they are not for everyone . I have tried some that taste like horse feed and these are my snack food !
but...this thread is specifically asking for best protein bars. It's literally the title.
OP, my current fave is Power Crunch. Salted caramel and cookies n cream are both good. I've had Combat Crunch (they're ok), Zone (good), Quest (too expensive for me), and others I'm sure I'm missing.
No it says what is your favorite flavor , do you heat them , and can you eat them before bed . No where I seen best protein bar ! Sorry
I don't know. Looking back at the original post, thread is titled "Protein Bar Questions":Hey everyone,
I am new to protein bars & am a little curious about a few things....
1. Can you have protein bars about 2-3 hours before you go to bed?
2. For QuestBar eaters, what are you favorite flavors? If you heat them up, for how long?
3. Other than Quest, what are your favorite protein bars?
Thank you ahead of time for all responses! :-)
Kinda seems like she was asking about protein bars to me.
Ok that's fine , right now this particular one is MY favorite !1 -
I like fit crunch bars as far as protein bars go. I heat them for 15 seconds and eat with a fork. I am not a huge protein bar advocate tho. I like other protein snacks instead. Yogurt, donuts (doughbardoughnuts.com), Protein cookies (eatmeguiltfree.com) etc. IF I end up eating a protein bar though, I eat fit crunch. I don't care for quest very much, however, my husband does. He likes the white chocolate raspberry the most I think. He doesn't heat it up, but I would.2
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You really can't go wrong with any bar that has around 20 grams of protein. Sadly, some of the big box brands (special K, Fiber One) are trying to claim some of their stuff are 'protein' bars or 'protein' shakes but most fitness professionals/nutritionists recommend around 20g per serving and a lower effective/net carb rating (carbs - fiber) of less than 10g for it to qualify as a 'protein' bar.
I personally have to be careful as I have celiac disease so quite a few of them I cannot have. I've heard good things about the one Robert Irvine makes as well as the Complete Cookie, but I'm not sure of the protein content in those. I've also heard Combat Crunch is great but I think it has more calories.
That being said, I used to love Quest bars before they switched their fiber source to corn fiber. It was much better before - I can't recall what they used and not sure why they switched. If you want to try them though, the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough is still pretty decent, and I tried the Oatmeal Chocolate Chip and it is OK too. The Blueberry Muffin, Chocolate Brownie, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Lemon Pie and Cinnamon roll are all good IMHO. I'm not a fan of the chocolate peanut butter or any of the other pie ones as someone posted.
I agree with someone else that the Oh Yeah! One bars are pretty tasty. I like the Birthday Cake, Chocolate Cake and Almond Bliss (pretty darn close to an almond joy) bars. I haven't tried others. They are less sweet than the Quest bars but sometimes that's a good thing since I feel like it satisfies the craving just enough.2 -
@TommyW45_dracarys_ wrote: »I don't eat them for protein . I eat them instead of candy bars etc. , they are not for everyone . I have tried some that taste like horse feed and these are my snack food !
but...this thread is specifically asking for best protein bars. It's literally the title.
OP, my current fave is Power Crunch. Salted caramel and cookies n cream are both good. I've had Combat Crunch (they're ok), Zone (good), Quest (too expensive for me), and others I'm sure I'm missing.
No it says what is your favorite flavor , do you heat them , and can you eat them before bed . No where I seen best protein bar ! Sorry
I was just going to respond to the post above myself but noticed you beat me to it. lol
@_dracarys_
I think the actual title is "Protein Bar Questions" I guess ppl can eat them for whatever reason they want.
I eat Pure Protein brand, I've tried a few others but not really experimented too much. Someone gave me one not long ago and it helped me get through a workout since I'd forgotten to grab anything before I left. After that I bought a box for convenience and it definitely works for that.
All the flavors I've tried so far were good up until yesterday. Yesterday I bought Chocolate Chip... eww
I ate one and I have no clue what I'll do with the rest of them. They were simply that gross... to me. Someone else may love that flavor. Wish I knew someone that did, would love to share. Least it was only a 6 pack.
I reading where someone shared how they ate 2-3 bars before they go bed (can't recall the brand). I don't know all the ingredients regarding times of sugar in other protein bars but in Pure Protein it's lower in sugar because much of it is sugar alcohols.
Sugar alcohols - doesn't typically raise glucose in diabetics. Some of may recall the Amazon write up on Sugar Free Gummy Bears that pops up on the forums from time to time? :laugh:
Too much sugar alcohol in a any food has side effects can give the same reaction if over eaten as 'sugar free gummy bears' .... nuff said. Fortunately it's never happened to me but I only eat one bar every so often. I love gummy bears (the ones made in Germany) and when I eat them I eat the ones with real sugar or none at all. :laugh:1 -
My favorite protein bars are Fitcrunch bars more specifically Cookies and cream and Birthday cake varieties 0
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My favorite flavors of Quest Bars are Cookies N Creme, Mint Chocolate Chip(All time Fave), Chocolate Cookie dough(Though I like it better when it's heated up, cause it actually taste like a real chocolate chip cookie without all that stuff) I usually either eat one or two for the day! Besides Quest, the only ones that I like are the Think Thin protein bars, cause the fit my dietary needs! Since I can't have too much sugar cause of my bariatric surgery, these are a perfect alternative when I can't afford Quest Bars at times! Sugar Alcohols are a bit high, but I hadn't had problems so far!0
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fiber one is a pooping bar. The "protein" content , even though limited, is just a "plus" in their eyes and used for marketing it as "healthy". Lets face it nothing processed beats whole foods as an equal alternative. convenience only and a quick way to pack in calories if that's your goal.0
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fiber one is a pooping bar. The "protein" content , even though limited, is just a "plus" in their eyes and used for marketing it as "healthy". Lets face it nothing processed beats whole foods as an equal alternative. convenience only and a quick way to pack in calories if that's your goal.
In your opinion.1 -
I have had quest but I have found they can get rock hard. I am eating some fitjoy right now that are good and soft and were on sale from amazon.... BUT I am really loving the CLIFF Builder crunchy peanut butter bar. I try to have a protein bar 1 x a day.0
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I like the Power Crunch Crisp bars in Sweet Vanilla Dream and Chocolate Brownie Wonder. I haven't tried the Salted Caramel, yet. The Premier Protein Yogurt Peanut Crunch is good, too, but it's pretty hefty calorie-wise (290 w/30 protein) so I can only eat half at a time.0
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fiber one is a pooping bar. The "protein" content , even though limited, is just a "plus" in their eyes and used for marketing it as "healthy". Lets face it nothing processed beats whole foods as an equal alternative. convenience only and a quick way to pack in calories if that's your goal.
In your opinion.
Not sure if you pegging on the pooping bar comment or the rest of what I said.
Do you honestly believe any "protein" bar on the market outweighs a good whole food alternative? Do you also believe that the protein content on that label is actual and in fact that all the protein is usable for its intended purpose which is to build muscle ? The protein bar was invented with the intent to replace a meal or at least provide a source of protein the requires no preparation. If you are choosing to replacing a burger combo at McDonalds with a protein bar that is a great substitution and i would agree, but to replace a grilled chicken breast or some other type of food source with high bio-availability of protein i would choose the whole food any day of the week for obvious reasons.
also worthy of mention is Protein bars often contain high levels of sugar. In order to try to keep cals and carbs low, many protein bars use sugar alcohol as sweetener. In larger quantities, just like other incompletely digestible substances, sugar alcohols can cause bloating, diarrhea and gas.
As I said earlier, and yes in my opinion (which comes with some support reasons stated above). In a pinch its a great alternative if your short on supply of protein. For a late night snack...not so much.0 -
I'm just saying that if I have two things and ALL macros and micros are equal, whole foods wouldn't always win out for me. Most of the time? Sure. Sometimes I just want a bar. I don't track or care about sugar or sugar alcohols at all so that's moot for me.3
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I am addicted to protein bars. My favorites are the following:
Oh Yeah One-Birthday Cake
Quest-Cookie Dough, Cookies and Cream, Double Chocolate Chunck
Balance-Cookie Dough, Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie
Kirkland-brownie and cookie dough bars similar to Quest
Zone Bars-Mint Chocolate Chip1 -
wow, classy.1
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I also partake in bars as well as I said earlier. Generally if I eat one its on the way to the gym if I'm feeling "hungry". I just wouldn't suggest one eats them 2-3 hours pre-bed as there are much better things to ingest when preparing to go into a resting state.0
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Finally, a post that I took some good info from . I will have to try the Oh Yeah One b-day cake bars... they seem to be a real hit here. For me...and this is all about the flavor - I like the Zone Chocolate Peanut Butter (14g protein) and Atkins Meal Bar - Peanut Butter Chocolate (17g protein!). Some pack the calories, some pack more fat, but if you need a chocolate fix, go for a half with a cup of coffee. Yum. Thanks for the post! 1
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I also partake in bars as well as I said earlier. Generally if I eat one its on the way to the gym if I'm feeling "hungry". I just wouldn't suggest one eats them 2-3 hours pre-bed as there are much better things to ingest when preparing to go into a resting state.
Why not before bed?2 -
Yes you can eat protein bars before you go to bed. It's would be ideal to find a protein bar that has Casein in it ( slow digesting protein) which will help your muscles recover while you sleep ! MET-RX Creamy Cookie Crisp has casein in it and tastes good as well. Quests bars are good but do not eat more than two a day or else you'll experience laxative effect. Power Crunch Bar's are my absolute favor right now for flavor French Vanilla Creme or Cookies and Creme can't go wrong. Heat up your protein bars no longer than 20 seconds! But at the end of the day they're all protein bars and they contribute to me making gains!1
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i prefer Glukos whey protein bars. my trainer said that you should try to keep protein bars to have less than 10g of sugar. Glukos has lots of protein and like 5g of sugar, great for pre or post workout0
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I am making some assumptions. I am a "push plates person" so I might approach nutrition timing and what and when in a skewed manner due to this.
If that's not the case and this really is a basic calorie in calorie out maintenance/weight loss thread the rest below is moot.
If the protein bar the OP is eating at night is for muscle preservation and not just simply to meet a caloric or macro need. A much more beneficial late night snack would consist of 25-30 grams of slow digesting protein (casein) 12-20 grams of carbs, and .5 grams of a fat or so . Or one could just simply invest in some casein protein powder and add 1/2 cup of milk or drink 2 cups of milk, or eat some greek yogurt, or cottage cheese to meet the goals. Eating along this line has proved, in controlled studies, it promotes protein synthesis and also curbs the catabolic state for a few extra hours.
Most protein bars are using whey in their construction. A few add some casein, but its more expensive.
Out of curiosity what brand bars do you eat? I don't think I saw you post it in the thread.
Looking at your AV and assuming that it may be a picture of yourself you likely know all or some of this so I'm still trying to gauge if your just trying to take the thread in a direction or honestly curious why I make certain comments.
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Yes, the avatar is me.
I just happen to think that meal timing is irrelevant for the most part, especially for the average person. I was curious what your thinking was and I get it. It just falls in the minutia category and really isn't all that important to a person no matter their goals. Tis all.
I prefer think thin bars as well as pure protein. Really, just whatever is on sale at Target though.3 -
I agree with the average person statement above.
I try to eat in a way that fosters an anabolic state as much of the day as possible. I suffer from a hypothyroidism diagnosis so in my changing of eating habits and several well balanced meals a day I have seen progress and change. I tend to approach a thread as if it applies to me.
Pure protein are decent and have good taste. Think Thin are the ones that taste like those cookies (cant think of the name) ? My SO was eating them one day and her personal trainer told her not to eat those lol. To each their own. Give the Metrx meal repl bars a shot if you never have. 400 calories but fairly dense. im pretty sure Target carries them.2 -
Wonder what the trainer's reasons were on the think thin bars. They are my favorite and have served me well.
Sucks about your medical condition.0 -
Usually I have eaten them as a snack-on-the-go between breakfast and lunch, if I skipped breakfast. On the rare occasions I've consumed them after dinner, I didn't notice any ill-effects on my digestion or ability to sleep soundly.heyitslexi95 wrote: »Hey everyone,
I am new to protein bars & am a little curious about a few things....
1. Can you have protein bars about 2-3 hours before you go to bed?
My all-time favorite was the limited edition pumpkin pie one, but for regular line flavors I liked S'mores, Cookies n Cream, and Chocolate Peanut Butter. Never heated them up.2. For QuestBar eaters, what are you favorite flavors? If you heat them up, for how long?
Now that I'm vegan, I don't eat Quest, but I find that the D's Naturals No-Cow Protein Bars are very tasty, very filling, and have the same dense, chewy texture as Quest bars.Other than Quest, what are your favorite protein bars?
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Pure Protein!!!2
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Another vote for Pure Protein. Howevs, I think all protein bars are probably an acquired taste. I gave one to a friend once. He's not my friend anymore.6
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Cookie dough is my favorite Quest bar and about the only one of theirs that I buy. I agree that Pure Protein has better tasting bars, including bars with added fiber. Pure Protein also has these "crunch" snacks that are really similar to Whoppers candies. Oh Yeah! Bars are okay, IMO. Pure Protein is by far the cheaper of all of them. Another option would be making cakes, cookies and other treats from protein powders. There are a ton of great recipes available online. Kay's Naturals has a line of protein snacks that include cheerios type cereals, pretzels and chips. I try not to snack past 9p and usually drink or eat a snack made from casein protein about two hours before bed to sustain me through the night and because I do fasted cardio almost every day.1
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I don't know IF these bars are actually healthy or not..or even have the nutrition they claim?
http://www.fooducate.com/app#!page=post&id=57A351AD-2EBA-77AC-49DE-8FBDAE463A220
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