Test Lab
Bar Exam
We crunched the numbers—and the bars—
to discover the absolute best grab-and-go
nutrition for every situation.
THE NUTRITION BAR
section of the supermarket is awash in
cheap fats, sugars,
and additives. So to
find bars that actually
deliver on the goodfor-you promise, we
asked MH nutrition
advisor Alan Aragon,
M.S., to help us devise
real-food ideals for
snacks, meals, and
postworkout fuel.
Then we reviewed
hundreds of bars
from over 60 brands
to identify the ones
that came closest
without tasting anything like cardboard.
—HANNAH MCWILLIAMS
Snacks
THE GOAL
Five to 10 grams of
fiber. Most men fail
to meet the recommended 38 grams a
day, says Aragon.
But smart snacking
strategies can help
you overcome any
deficiency. Plus, fiber
is a slow-digesting
nutrient, so it helps
you stave off hunger
until your next meal.
IDEAL SNACK
Apple with peanut
butter (1½ Tbsp)
236 calories
7 g protein
30 g carbohydrates
(6 g fiber, 21 g sugars)
12 g fat
BEST BAR
Zing Nutrition Bar,
Almond Blueberry
220 calories
11 g protein
23 g carbohydrates
(6 g fiber, 11 g sugars)
9 g fat
RUNNERS-UP
Vega Vibrancy Bars,
Berry Bliss
Gnu Foods Flavor &
Fiber, Peanut Butter
M AT T R A I N E Y ( p a c k a g e d b a r s ) , p r o p s t y l i n g ( m a i n i m a g e ) : A n g e l a C a m p o s / S t o c k l a n d M a r t e l
The primary ingredient
is almond butter, there’s
extra protein from whey,
and the blueberries are
wild and organic. Testers
likened it to a chewy
fruit snack, minus the
cloying sweetness.
P H OTO G R A P H B Y YA S U + J U N K O
72
MH0613_ADVtestlabV2_layout [P].indd 72
4/16/13 7:29 PM
Test Lab
THE GOAL
Postworkout
THE GOAL
For dinner or lunch,
you want the whole
package: a hefty
amount of protein
and fiber, healthy
fats, and a dose of
complex carbohydrates. Our search
turned up zero perfect bars, but one
came pretty close.
High-quality protein—
preferably casein,
whey, or a blend of
the two. You’re trying
to repair and build
muscle while your
body is most receptive, says Aragon, and
a solid, milk-derived
protein source will
help that happen.
IDEAL MEAL
IDEAL FUEL
Sirloin steak (4 oz),
steamed broccoli
(1 cup), baked sweet
potato (1 medium,
with 2 tsp olive oil)
3 hard-boiled eggs,
1% milk (1 cup)
445 calories
41 g protein
35 g carbohydrates
(9 g fiber, 10 g sugars)
16 g fat
334 calories
27 g protein
14 g carbohydrates
(0 g fiber, 14 g sugars)
18 g fat
BEST BAR
BEST BAR
Organic Food Bar,
Protein
Rise Protein Bar,
Almond Honey
330 calories
22 g protein
33 g carbohydrates
(9 g fiber, 22 g sugars)
13 g fat
280 calories
20 g protein
20 g carbohydrates
(4 g fiber, 13 g sugars)
16 g fat
The seeds and grains
help cut through your
hunger. Think dates
and molasses baked
into soft bread.
Clif Builder’s
Bar Chocolate
THE OFFENSE:
EXCESSIVE SOY
This bar’s 20 grams
of protein comes
mostly from soy.
Harvard researchers found that men
with high intakes
of soy foods and
isoflavones had
poorer sperm
quality, possibly
due to soy’s estrogenic activity.
THE OFFENSE:
SUGAR OVERLOAD
MUSCLE
SCORE
WHEY
PROTEIN
24.3
RUNNERS-UP
PEA PROTEIN
ISOLATE
17.3
Besides being
loaded with soy,
it delivers 30
grams of sugar.
That’s more than
you’d find in a
Snickers bar.
CALCIUM
CASEINATE
19.1
Supreme
Protein
Chocolate
Peanut Butter
Wafer Crunch
BROWN RICE
PROTEIN
16.7
Quest Bar,
Chocolate Brownie
THE OFFENSE:
ABSURDLY LONG
INGREDIENT LIST
SACHA INCHI
PROTEIN
12.4
HEMP PROTEIN
POWDER
9.7
22 Days,
PB + Chocolate
Chip Nirvana
LOWER
Decent options in the
meal-replacement
category are woefully
scarce, but YouBar
(youbars.com) lets
you custom-build
bars to your liking.
Create your ultimate
meal by combining
seeds, nut butters,
dried fruits, and supplement powders.
Don’t be fooled.
These so-called
“healthy” bars
are little more
than junk food
in disguise.
Promax
Cookies ’n
Cream
The only ingredients
are almonds, honey,
and whey protein. It’s
a bit like a soft graham
cracker, testers said.
Design Your Own
Nutrition Bars
Behind Bars
Proteins are constructed from amino
acids, and three of
those amino acids—
isoleucine, leucine,
and valine—are most
crucial to muscle
growth, says Stuart
Phillips, Ph.D., F.A.C.N.,
FACSM, a professor
of kinesiology at
McMaster University.
The “muscle score”
below represents
the sum of those
three amino acids,
in grams, per 100
grams of each
type of protein. So
if you’re looking to
build muscle, stick
with the proteins
that score highest.
How many different
ingredients are
in this bar? Fifty-six.
And very few
are recognizable
as actual food.
P h o t o g r a p h s b y M AT T R A I N E Y, i l l u s t r a t i o n b y M A RC O G O R A N R O M A N O
MEAL FIX
POWER
BAR
HIGHER
Meals
74 MENSHEALTH.COM | June 2013
MH0613_ADVtestlabV2_layout [P].indd 74
4/16/13 7:29 PM