Protein Bars
Different retailers sell the same brand for differing prices so I have chosen the retailers with the Best Prices. Check below for the full range of recommended protein bars brands and reviews.
Scroll down for protein bars info
"High 5 Protein Recovery Bars 25 x 50g Bar(s
Best Price:
£36.99 £29.99 
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"Labrada Lean Body Hi Protein Energy Bar 12
Best Price:
£36.99 £20.99
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"Lucozade Protein Bar 12 x 75g Bar(s)"
Best Price:
£21.49 £20.99
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"Maxim 35 % Protein Bars 20 x 60g"
Best Price:
£34.99 £31.49
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"Maxim 54% Protein Bar 20 x 80g"
Best Price:
£50.99 £45.99
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"PowerBar Fitmaxx Bar 27% Protein 30 x 35g B
Best Price:
£41.49 £28.99
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"PowerBar Fitmaxx Protein Drink 500ml Bottle
Best Price:
£2.95 £2.50
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"PowerBar Protein Plus Bar + Energy & Pr
Best Price:
£41.49 £28.99
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Protein Bars are usually the second most popular form of protein due to their portability and the fact that they don't need any preparation to take. They come in a range of flavours where the most common are chocolate, peanut and strawberry. Most of them taste like flapjacks and are useful if you need to take a few with you to work and you don't have a blender handy.
Why Whey Protein Bars?
Protein Bars are perhaps the next most popular protein supplement on the market, second to protein powder. Like the powder, there are many different types of protein bars available on the market, each with a different use. Some protein bars are purely for protein supplementation while others are meant for meal replacement. Pound for pound, protein bars are typically more expensive than protein powder but are obviously more convenient. You also do not have the luxury of making your own recipes.
Advantages
- Convenience - does not need preparation
- Variety - Shakes can get boring
Disadvantages
- More expensive
- Cannot use to make own recipes
Types of protein bars
Like whey protein powder, there are various types of protein bars which have different purposes. It is important to choose one which suits your needs.
Protein Bars - Most protein bars are designed to give you a supplementary boost of protein and a decent amount of carbohydrates to help with your workouts and muscle growth. Although you can use them to lose weight, you will be better off with meal replacement bars which have lower calories.
Meal Replacement Bars - These are essentially the "diet" versions of protein bars. They contain lower calories than other protein bars and are designed to be eaten in place of meals. They are useful if you're on a weight cutting regime and you don't have time to prepare a meal.
Energy Bars - These are on the opposite end of the spectrum to meal replacement bars. These bars are packed with both protein for building muscle and carbs for fueling your workout. These bars are ideal if you have an energy intensive workout or you have a high metabolism.
Choosing a Protein Bar
When choosing a protein bar, the first obvious thing to do is to read the ingredients label first. First of all, be sure to take note of the amount of calories in the protein bar. If you are trying to lose weight, a protein bar should not exceed around 300 calories. Also, watch out for the following ingredients which are not beneficial to your body: sugar, corn syrup, glycerin, sorbitol, mannitol, and xylitol. In a bid to cut calories, many protein bars will use artificial sweeteners instead of sugar to make the bar taste better. While many do not use aspartame, which has been proven to cause health problems with some people, many companies have now switched to Sucralose which is another artificial sweetener. If you experience any negative symptoms with any type of sweetener, you should stop using it immediately.
Additionally, your protein bar should have a fair bit of fibre in it. As a general rule, a protein bar should have at least 10 grams of protein in it, while a good one will have more than 15 grams. If you are trying to lose weight or maintain a low body fat, the carbs should be less than 30 grams while the sugar less than 15 grams.
While reading the ingredients is important, you should still bear in mind that not all of them will be entirely accurate. A study conducted by Consumerlabs in 2001 showed that out of 30 retail protein bars, over 60% failed the accuracy test on their labelling. The main reason was that while the FDA considers glycerin a carbohydrate, many of these protein bar manufacturers did not. Glycerin is often used to add moist texture to a protein bar and as a sweetener. Generally, the better a protein bar tastes, the more likely it is to be higher in calories for you.
That said, in our recommended protein bar list, we have chosen the best and most popular protein bars based on price and quality. Since taste is entirely relative, these bars are either very nice to eat to tolerable depending on your taste.