Upping your protein intake can be quite a challenge. There are only so many eggs you can eat before you find your fat intake rapidly increasing and although tuna is both tasty and versatile, relying on it as your sole protein source would inevitably lead to getting sick of it. Neither food is ideal for travelling or eating on the go either. I personally find that having protein bars to hand can help boost my daily intake, provide a quick and easy fix, and can also offer a refreshing change to my diet. By no means am I suggesting you rely on protein bars or use them as a substitute for natural protein sources, as they are far less healthy (not to mention renowned for being expensive!). That said, it’s good to treat yourself and try new things – and why not when you happen to come across a few good offers? Read on to find out what I think about the three protein bars that I’ve tried most recently.
PROFIRST (STRAWBERRY)
I decided to try a Profirst bar when I saw them on offer for 99p in Home Bargains. The flavours available at the time were vanilla and strawberry. I decided to try the latter as it sounded less sickly and I personally tend to prefer the taste. The content seemed promising – less than 200 calories, low in fat and sugar, and boasting an impressive 21g of protein.
199kcal
Fat: 5.2g
Saturated: 3g
Carbs: 19g
Fibre: 6.8g
Sugars: 2.3g
Protein: 21g
When I opened the bar, I was surprised to see that it was coated in what looked like white chocolate. Chocolate is something that I enjoy rarely and moderately at the moment, so I was very excited by this! I tried the bar and the coating did not disappoint, unlike the filling which I felt was average. There was a light, strawberry hint that tasted pleasant, but not enough to distract me from the poor texture. To sum it up, it was extremely tough and rubbery. I know that protein bars tend to be chewy but this was to the extent that eating the bar was almost difficult. The bar did what I needed it to do on the day in terms of upping my protein intake, but I didn’t particularly rate it and I probably won’t bother trying the vanilla version.
TREK BAR (PEANUT POWER)
I discovered Trek in Holland and Barrett and I loved the look of their range. However, I thought £1.45 per bar was a little steep for only 10.2g of protein and so I didn’t try them until H&B had a sale (at which point I stocked up on each flavour).
203kcal
Fat: 6g
Saturated: 1g
Carbs: 25.7g
Fibre: 3g
Sugars: 21.1g
Protein: 10.2g
The pressure was on for me to like the bars but I needn’t have worried. Peanut Power was the first flavour I tried. I opened it to find it divided into three pieces which I liked as it encouraged me to savour it. This is also good if you don’t fancy eating the whole protein bar at once, which can be very inconvenient with other bars that you’d struggle to part with a steak knife! Easy enough to break off, I bit into one of the Trek pieces and was instantly impressed with how soft it was. Next to impress me was the taste! The blend of peanuts and oats was perfect and the bar was full of flavour. The Berry Burst and Cocoa Chaos bars were just as flavoursome with similar nutritional content, which made me glad that I had decided to try them all. I have since tried the Banana Blast flavour which is also great. Peanut Power has the highest calorie content out of the four flavours, but to me it’s worth it. Now for the downsides of Trek bars – the protein content is fairly low whilst the carbs are high and the amount of sugar disappointly so. Nevertheless these taste great and are awesome value for money during H&B sales! (TOP TIP: Trek also do a range of healthy flapjacks which make fab guilt-free treats!).
PROTEIN ACTIVE (BEAST BAR)
It was the price of the Protein Active Beast Bar that first enticed me. At 79p, I felt it was extremely cheap. Again on sale in Home Bargains, the content looked more than positive. At just over 200 calories with decent fat content, less carbs than most protein bars and again a whopping 21g of the important stuff – it sounded awesome.
223kcal
Fat: 8.5g
Saturated: 2.5g
Carbs: 12g
Fibre: 1.5g
Sugars: 5g
Protein: 21g
The sight of a chocolate coating pleased me again no end on opening the bar. It was dark, rich, and a little tangy – but it tasted great. The filling was as equally tasty and far less chewy than other bars I have tried. I truly enjoyed eating this one and didn’t need to feel bad about it, as unlike the majority of protein bars it doesn’t carry the burden of being packed with carbs. Tasting like a real treat with just 2.5g of saturated fat and 5g of sugar – it immediately became a winning choice for me! I will definitely be buying more of these and trying more products from the Protein Active range!
bex the blogger 