When walking around the health food section of agrocery store these days, you may find that there
are many different types of nutrition bars. And with
so many options and fancy marketing, it is good to
arm yourself with a little bit of knowledge about
what type of bars you should be eating.
Since I’m not a scientist or a medical professional
of any sort, I asked a nutrition expert for a little
help on this topic.
Jim Dunk, a Certified Sports Nutritionist has worked
in the health and wellness industry for almost 20 years
and was kind enough to provide us with some guidance.
He gave us these helpful hints when it comes to which
snack bars to choose:
- A bar is a good “in a pinch” snack, but should NEVER
replace a meal.
- The bars should be all natural and if possible should
not have any high fructose corn syrup.
- When choosing a bar look for:
200 calories or less
8-10 grams of protein
30 grams of carbs or less
2-3 grams of fiber
3 grams of saturated fat or less
8-10 grams of protein
30 grams of carbs or less
2-3 grams of fiber
3 grams of saturated fat or less
- The less saturated fat, the better. The saturated fat
is usually due to the chocolate or any yogurt coating
added to the bars. Saturated fat is the bad animal fats
that we do not need a lot of, and most people eat too
much.
With these guidelines in mind, Jim recommends the following:
-Zone Perfect Fruitified bars (because they don’t have a
chocolate/yogurt coating) – 190 calories, 14 grams of
protein, 24 grams of carb (3 grams of fiber), 2.5 grams
saturated fat
-Luna Toasted Nuts ‘n Cranberry bar (also no coating)
180 calories, 10 grams of protein, 26 grams of carb (3g
of fiber), 0.5 grams saturated fat
-Kashi Go Lean Crunchy! Bars – the Chocolate Almond
flavor (some coating) – 170 calories, 27 grams of carb
(5 grams of fiber), 8 grams of protein, 2.5 grams saturated
fat
So remember, if you are “in a pinch” and need to eat a bar
So remember, if you are “in a pinch” and need to eat a bar
for one of your snacks, make sure you are following Jim’s
suggestions to choose the best possible bar.
This is especially important if weight loss is one of your
goals, as some of the bars pack a lot of calories into very
little space- there is a reason some of them taste like candy
bars! Pay attention to the labels and find one you like that
is also healthful.
Anytime you have any nutrition questions, feel free to post
them to the blog or shoot us an email.
To Your Success,
Your Coach, Mark
P.S. Check out the newly posted boot camp photos at
