Energy bars are one of those products I find inherently suspicious. Candy bars make money by claiming to taste good, but energy bars claim to taste good and be good for you. As we all know, that’s not an easy task to accomplish.
I have not been impressed with most of the energy bars I’ve tried in the past, but I have to admit that Balance Bars are quite good. Maybe not as good as a Snickers, but it’s a compromise I can deal with considering that Balance Bars aren’t going to contribute to my butt getting any bigger.
Balance Bars are designed to have 40% of calories come from carbohydrates, 30% from protein, and 30% from dietary fat to provide your body with long lasting energy that’s good for you. They have 23 vitamins and minerals and provide an excellent source of antioxidants.
There are many different flavors to try, most of which have between 200 and 220 calories per bar. (In case you were curious, a Snickers bar has 271 calories, twice as much fat, and very little protein or fiber.)
When I received a box of samples from Balance Bars, the best I was hoping for was to find one or two flavors that were sufficiently edible. I was pleasantly surprised to find that every flavor I tried was quite good. In fact, my son pronounced the cookie dough, double chocolate brownie, and chocolate mint cookie crunch bars to be “better than candy.â€
This is high praise coming from a kid who would eat candy for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if we let him. I may need to purchase a box of the cookie dough bars to keep on hand for those days when he flat out refuses to eat anything resembling a proper meal.
Have you tried Balance Bars? If so, please tell us what your favorite flavors are!
photo credit: Balance Bars
