Many years ago when I first started consuming the delicacies known as energy bars, there was this one giant bar called the Peak Bar. It was big, extremely high in calories, and expensive. I don’t know what happened between then and now, but I just finished a box of Peak Bar “Breakfast to Go” bars.

While I’m only 99% positive the bar I remember was actually called a Peak Bar, I’m 100% positive that this Peak Bar is something different, or at least a new formula.

The Peak Bar of years past was huge, and the calorie count was a whopping 300 or 350. The new “Breakfast to Go” bar contains only 180 calories, but it still tastes good, so I’m not complaining.

Peak Bar Ingredients and Nutrition Facts

Let’s start by looking at the ingredients…

Ingredients: Organic steel cut oats, organic whole grain wheat flour, organic honey, organic raisin juice, organic malted barley extract, organic raisins, organic whole grain barley flakes, oat bran, soy protein isolate, organic egg whites, organic fig paste, organic dates, organic cane sugar, organic molasses, orange juice, Fruitrim (fruit juice, grain dextrins), corn starch, citrus fiber, citric acid, salt, cinnamon, calcium carbonate, vanilla, natural flavors, baking soda, lecithin.

So far, so good. I see lots of healthy, natural ingredients. Each bar contains 35g carbohydrates, 6g protein, and 1g fat, for a total of 180 calories. The extremely low amount of fat is very surprising!

But that’s not all, look at these nutrients:

Vitamin A 20% - Vitamin C 120% - Calcium 30% - Iron 30% (plus other vitamins and minerals, but there are a lot of them and the names are long and complex!)

That’s how it gets the “Breakfast to Go” name. It has the same calcium as a glass of milk, the same vitamin C as a glass of orange juice, the protein of an egg, and the fiber of a bowl of oatmeal. All in this little bar!

(I would advise getting a little more fat if you were looking for a breakfast replacement, but the low-fat formula is great for fueling intense rides.)

Taste, Texture, and Other Thoughts

This thing is best described as a brick. Instead of being long and thin like a typical bar, it’s short and thick! And it’s dense, just like a brick!

But don’t fret, it tastes great! I had the oatmeal raisin, which is one of my favorite flavors, and it didn’t disappoint me. It has the flavor of a big, home-made oatmeal cookie from a bake sale. Unfortunately it doesn’t quite duplicate the warm, soft texture when you bite into it… But if you keep it in your pocket for a while or microwave it, it comes pretty close (at least in energy bar terms.)

Sitting in your jersey pocket on a warm day does make the Peak Bar nice and soft and chewy. It’s actually better that way, like a warm bowl of oatmeal. The only problem is the cinnamon icing starts to melt - although if you keep the wrapper on while eating, and don’t touch the actual bar, you will be fine.

That’s still much better than any chocolate coated bar, because those turn into a big mess no matter what.

Peak Bars are available at their site - “Breakfast to Go” bars are 8 for $9, which is about average.

My final verdict is…

I like these bars. The price isn’t bad, and the taste is good. It might take some getting used to because the shape and texture are a bit different than other energy bars, but I like it.

I will continue to use these in my energy bar rotation. If you like new flavors and textures, you should try these, too.

Official site: peakbar.com

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As soon as I saw those bars, I was sure I was staring at what could be called “the low-price LARA BAR.”

According to the label, it’s an “all natural fruit and nut bar.” When you see the ingredients, you’d swear it was a LARA BAR - it’s a date bar with some nuts added in. Some of the ingredients are even organic, which is pretty sweet when you consider how I found these on sale for $4 a dozen! (At 33 cents each, I got these cheaper than most candy bars!)

The two flavors I tried are cocoa coconut and cashew, pecan, and honey. At first I thought both of them were kind of bland, but after having a few, I’m beginning to enjoy them.

Continue reading for flavor and nutrient comparisons…

Cocoa Coconut

Ingredients: Dates, almonds, walnuts coated with rosemary extract, honey, coconut, cocoa powder.

Simply put, this tastes like a chocolate bar. One of those semi-bland, organic types of chocolate bar. The first time I had it, I thought it was very bland and dry. After having two or three, the taste began to grow on me. I’m not a huge fan of chocolate, so I don’t love these, but they’re not bad. You do taste a little bit of coconut, too, so that adds to the flavor.

As for the texture, it’s more like Chunks of Energy than the LARA BAR, because these Simple Harvest bars are packed with walnuts and other goodies. The nuts and other additions overpower the date flavor and smooth texture. (I prefer the smoother, more ‘date-like’ texture.)

The best way to describe it is a combination of both; not quite as smooth as the LARA BAR, but not as grainy as the Chunks. It’s decent though (and I’d still prefer this over a Clif Bar or Powerbar.)

Coming in at 200 calories, it’s right on par with most energy bars and granola bars.

Cashew, Pecan, and Honey

Ingredients: Dates, pecans, cashews, honey.

On the other side of the taste spectrum we have the Cashew, Pecan, and Honey bar. It is much better, and sweeter, than the Cocoa Coconut, but I wish it had a shorter name. I think something more concise like “Honey Cashew” would do the trick.

Anyway, this bar tastes great and it’s sweet, which must be because of the added honey. I love cashews, too. But even with the nuts, the bar is still moist and chewy.

The soft texture is nice, but it sure goes down quick for being 240 calories. That’s great on the bike, though, when you just want a good source of energy that’s easy to eat. (Don’t you hate it when you waste energy trying to chew an energy bar?)

Overall I loved this flavor and will be buying as many as I can find at 33 cents each!!

Nutrient Comparison: LARABAR vs Simple Harvest Bar

Considering how similar these bars are, I thought it would be interesting to do a little nutrient comparison. On the chopping block we have a Pecan Pie LARABAR vs the Cashew, Pecan, Honey Simple Harvest bar:

Calories:
LARABAR 200, Simple Harvest 240. The 40 calorie difference looks substantial, except that a lot of energy bars vary from 190-240 calories based on the flavor, so this isn’t surprising.

Total Fat:
LARABAR 14g, Simple Harvest 14g. Exactly the same.

Sodium:
LARABAR 0mg, Simple Harvest 5mg. Practically the same.

Total Carbs:
LARABAR 22g, Simple Harvest 29g. This is about the only place they differ. The Simple Harvest bar brings 7 more grams of carbs to the table, which, again, is great for on-bike eating.

Sugars:
LARABAR 16g, Simple Harvest 21g. 5 of those 7 more grams mentioned above come straight from the sugar. (Which would be from the honey in this case.)

Fiber:
LARABAR 4g, Simple Harvest 4g. Exactly the same, once again.

Protein:
LARABAR 3g, Simple Harvest 3g. Exactly the same, yet again.

So overall these bars are pretty close. The LARABAR has a few more vitamins and minerals listed, but perhaps the Simple Harvest bar has them, too. It might just not list them all, because they aren’t that high in any certain mineral. (Plus, the ingredients are so similar, it would make sense.) The only real difference is that the Simple Harvest bar has more sugar content, but it has honey as an ingredient.

Based on that comparison, I’d actually recommend the Simple Harvest bar as an on-bike energy bar. The honey will go to good use, fueling your muscles!

My final verdict is…

These Quaker Simple Harvest Fruit and Nut Bars have a pretty good taste, they’re healthy, and they’re cheap. That’s perfect for me! As much as I love the LARA BAR, I’m always looking for the cheapest option! So, for $4 a dozen, I’m not passing these up!

I highly recommend the Cashew flavor. (But if you like chocolate, go ahead and try the Cocoa Coconut.)

Website: www.QuakerSimpleHarvest.com

* Although I don’t see these bars mentioned anywhere on the site… (Perhaps they were just test marketed and discontinued because they are too much like health food?)

4/2/2008 Update:
I just got word from Quaker and unfortunately these bars have been discontinued!! My advice is to make your way to a Big Lots department store and buy all that you can for $4/dozen!

Being an endurance athlete, you probably consume energy bars, right? I know I do. They are full of carbs, electrolytes, and calories, and they are easy to eat while riding. What’s not to love?

Well, in some cases, the taste!

For the most part, energy bars are a vital component in the endurance athlete’s arsenal. However, they aren’t the best idea for meal replacements. There is no substitute for healthy, unprocessed foods, (and I think we would all agree on that, even if we don’t always take our own advice.)

And that’s why I hate people saying that energy bars are terrible, like Dr. Weil does in his article, “Are Food Bars Food?”

At the beginning of his article, he even admits that the bars were created for endurance athletes. But then he goes on to say that the bars are unhealthy choices for regular people… I agree with that, but he makes it sound like the energy bars are the devil, which I wholeheartedly disagree with.

You can’t blame the energy bars for making people unhealthy. You have to blame the people that eat the energy bars and then sit around on the couch. These bars aren’t meal replacements, they are to be consumed in addition to a healthy diet by people that need the excess calories.

Hell, when I’m looking at an energy bar, I think “the more carbs the better!” (Obviously this sentiment applies to endurance athletes and not dieters, so if you are just looking for someone to bash sugar and energy bars, you’ve come to the wrong place.)

Now, maybe Dr. Weil has a grudge against high fructose corn syrup. That’s fine, because I do, too. But where are you going to find high fructose corn syrup these days?

It’s certainly not found in the new Powerbars, Cheetah Bars, Detour Bars, Chunks of Energy, or LARA BARS.

So it seems Dr. Weil is just attacking our beloved energy bars in order to promote his own line of food bars geared towards regular people who need a quick and convenient meal. (Go ahead and promote your stuff, but don’t knock our energy bars because some people use them incorrectly.)

I don’t think I need to go any further for you to realize what’s going on here. (If I had my name on energy bars, I’d promote them everywhere, too!) But as you can see, I didn’t have to look far to find numerous examples of healthy energy bars.

Lately I have been realizing that there is a world outside the Powerbar, and my latest find is the Cheetah Bar.

While “Power” is good, I’d sure like to be as fast as a “Cheetah,” an animal which isn’t exactly lacking in power.

This Cheetah Bar is an organic energy bar retailing at just 75 cents! I don’t know how they can afford it (since organic ingredients aren’t cheap,) but I’m not complaining!

The bar itself is a mix of organic figs and grains, sweetened with cane juice and pieces of fruit. That yields a great mix of carbs, protein, fat, and important nutrients like potassium. They are billed as “an ideal source of nutrition for bike racers and other endurance athletes” and I can’t say I disagree.

There’s a picture of the strawberry bar on the left. As you can see, it’s a nice mix of whole food ingredients, kind of like hearty oatmeal in a bar shape. It’s definitely not as processed as a Powerbar.

The texture is nice; kind of like hearty oatmeal with fruit, like I mentioned. It’s surprisingly moist, but not wet. I’d say it’s similar to a Clif Bar in moistness, but tastes even closer to real food.

I was a bit worried about using them while riding, because even though they are moist, they look like they could crumble if you’re not careful. Turns out I was totally wrong, and they are ‘flexible’ enough to eat without losing any pieces alongside the road!

As for flavors, I tried lemon and strawberry.

The lemon was alright, not quite as flavorful as strawberry, but still a pleasant taste. Again, the taste was “real.” It’s not artificially sweet but it’s not too sour either.

The strawberry bar is sooo good though! The aroma is amazing and the taste is really good, plus it tastes real, too. I’m sure the dried strawberry pieces help with that!

Yep, it contains real strawberries. Take a look:

Organic Cane Juice, Organic California Figs, Organic Rolled Oats, Organic Oat Bran, Organic Soy Beans (Roasted), Organic Brown Crisp Rice, Organic Soy Flour, Organic Rolled Barley, Organic Oat Flour, Glycerin, Natural Strawberry Flavor, Organic Dried Strawberries, Baking Soda, Non-GMO Lecithin, Citric Acid, Ammonium Bicarbonate

All that yields about 210 calories per bar, with 43g carbs. That’s right on par with a Powerbar, so you get all the energy, but skip the high fructose corn syrup and other crap!* And these are way cheaper!

(So head to their site soon, you can get a free sample pack - 2 bars for free and just $1 for shipping. Great deal, no catch.)

My final verdict is…

You’d have to be stupid to pass up on the $1 deal. These bars rule!

I’ll definitely get some more and do some more on-bike tests. Even if they don’t replace my Powerbars in race situations, I could make them a staple on my training rides. (But this could very well become my go-to bar for racing.)

Complaints? The fact that I have to make hard choices between LARA BARS, Chunks of Energy, Cheetah Bars, Kashi granola bars, and even Powerbars and Clif bars now.

Official website: www.cheetahbar.com

* Update: The new Powerbar formula contains healthier ingredients.

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There’s no shortage of energy bars these days, but with the way some of them taste, I always welcome new varieties. So I was happy to give a warm welcome to the big sample pack of Detour energy bars I got a couple weeks ago. (Because 1, they were free, and 2, they are supposed to taste like candy bars.)

That’s the pile of them on the left, and there are two of each flavor, consisting of chocolate peanut butter, chocolate chip cookie, lemon yogurt, dark chocolate raspberry, and more!

But it doesn’t stop there. Along with the flavors, you get to choose from Biker, Runner, and Core Strength formulations. The bars are similar but each has a few special ingredients based on your chosen activity.

Let’s take a look at the individual bars…

Detour Runner Bar

The Biker and Runner bars are quite similar in taste and ingredients, but the Runner bar contains MicroLactin, which has been found to improve joint health and function. Any runner knows about sore joints from constant pounding, so I think the MicroLactin is a great idea.

Ingredients vary by flavor, but the main ingredients are whey protein crisps (whey protein concentrate and rice flour.) Then you might find fructose, corn syrup solids, corn syrup, and/or sugar for the sweetener. Then you hit the other stuff, like palm kernel oil, partially defatted peanut flour, inulin, and other stuff.

I can’t give you a detailed examination of those ingredients, but I will say that Detour went out of their way to find odd ingredients!

That will all add up to about 200 calories, 25g of carbs, and 12g of protein per bar.

Detour Biker Bar

The Biker Bar is very similar to the Runner Bar in taste and ingredients, but instead of MicroLactin, the Biker Bar is made with Rhodiola to help improve muscle stamina and recovery. It is also claimed to help speed cardiovascular and muscle recovery-time after you ride. I thought that was pretty cool, too, because I’ve written about Rhodiola Rosea before.

And with the main ingredient still being whey protein crisps, you’re getting about 200 calories, 25-30g carbohydrates, and 12g protein in each bar.

Detour Core Strength Bar

Here’s where things change… the Detour Core Strength bar. The taste and consistency is quite a bit different from the Biker and Runner bars. It’s made with a greater variety of protein for a total of 15g protein in each bar, and it contains ribose for the maintenance of ATP. (Anyone who remembers high school chemistry class should know that ribose is a big part of our DNA and RNA, and that ATP is a primary energy source for your body.)

Unfortunately, you pay a price for all these muscle-building and recovery benefits, and that’s in the taste. The Core Strength bars have kind of the ’standard protein bar’ taste. They’re not bad, they just aren’t good.

Now let’s do a taste test…

The Taste Test

The first one I tried was a chocolate peanut butter flavor and it was awesome and amazing! It was just like eating a Butterfinger candy bar!

Next up was a caramel peanut Core Strength bar, but it was a little bland though. It was also kind of chewy and reminded me of a Tiger’s Milk energy bar with a little less flavor. Edible, but not great.

So I went back to the Biker bars and tried raspberry dark chocolate - the texture was consistent with the looks, which is like a chewy granola bar full of rice crisps. It was a good texture, but the taste was better - just like I opened up a box of chocolates with raspberry filling. Seriously! (Since I got these around Christmas, I was able to do the exact comparison!)

Chocolate chip cookie. This has the oats/granola/rice crisps taste and texture, with chocolate chips, giving it the essence of a chocolate chip cookie. It’s certainly not the same as eating a fresh chocolate chip cookie, but the taste is still pretty good. (Definitely better than most other bars that have a chocolate chip cookie flavor.)

Toffee almond - As expected, this bar tasted quite a bit like a Heath candy bar (the English toffee one.) The consistency was like a granola bar, but it had that great flavor. It’s some good stuff, especially with the almonds in there.

Chocolate caramel - This is another Core Strength bar. This one looks like a 3 Musketeers bar on the inside… however, it still has that bland taste, and it’s kind of hard to bite into. But at least this time it has some of that fluffy chocolate flavor like a 3 Musketeers would.

Last but not least - lemon yogurt. This has a nice lemon taste and reminds me of a Powerbar Pria bar, based on the texture and yogurt coating. It’s great if you aren’t a fan of chocolate.

My final verdict is…

The “Biker” and “Runner” bars taste great in most every flavor. I guess I’d compare them to Clif bars, although they are more like a chewy granola bar with the taste of a candy bar.

I plan to keep eating these, possibly replacing Clif bars with them (at least to get more variety.) However, I’ll stick with Powerbars for on-bike use. Why? These Detour bars have a chocolate coating on at least one side, and that will melt in your jersey pocket, and then you’re peeling back a wrapper with melted chocolate all over the place. It gets on your gloves, handlebar tape, etc, and it’s not pretty.

But as far as taste goes, this is one of the best bars you can buy!

I’m certainly not a fan of the “core strength” bars though. While they don’t taste terrible, they’re not very good, and I’ve had some good protein bars.

Company website: www.detourbar.com
Where to buy: www.amazon.com

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