Tuesday, May 19, 2015

REVIEW: PROBAR BASE Bars

If you remember, a couple weeks ago I mentioned I was welcomed into the PROBAR Blogger Network (can you say AWESOMESAUCE?!). The amazing folks over at PROBAR made sure to stock me up with tons of goodies and I am attempting to work my way through them to give you my feedback on each of the products.


First up - BASE. This is what the site has to say about this plant-based, protein packed power bar:

Source

Sounds intriguing, right?! In case you didn't know, I've been a vegetarian now for over 10 years (started eating a plant-based diet in January of 2005). I am ALWAYS on the look out for REAL food (it is funny how many people think you can't have a protein filled or well balanced diet if you remove meat...), so I knew this would be right up my alley.

I received three of the five flavors PROBAR sells on their site - Cookie Dough, Mint Chocolate and Peanut Butter Chocolate. Normally I am not a huge chocolate lover (I would much prefer sour watermelon gummies or Starburst to a chocolate candy), but I know a lot of protein bars use it and have come to accept it. Let me say from the get-go, THESE ARE YUMMY! 

The first flavor I tried was the Cookie Dough. Obviously it isn't exactly like eating raw cookie dough out of the mixer (oh wait, you aren't supposed to do that, oops), but the flavor components are definitely there. As I have mentioned before, I have a texture "thing", so sometimes the consistency of protein bars weird me out - but not BASE. It is actually more of a crunchy bar than I was expecting (and I much appreciate that!). 


You can see there is a layer of "cookie dough" on the top and them some
crunchy goodness on the bottom. They are like little flavor pebbles. 

I ate the Cookie Dough BASE bar before heading out the door the morning of the Carlsbad 5000. I knew I was going to be out of the house for a while (1 mile warm up, watched a couple of my friends race, race a 5K, and a 1 mile cool down) so I needed some energy, protein, and to keep my tummy full! It did all of that and more! I know I didn't run away with a PR that morning, but my stomach definitely wasn't the reason for that. 

You know me, I am all for "character" stops!

Next up - Peanut Butter Chocolate. This is my hubby's FAVORITE flavor combination. It's like Reese's hit the yummy lotto when they put the two together, am I right or am I right?! I know the bars are great for pre- or post-workout, but one morning while working I was hungry and decided to reach for my PROBAR. It was scrum-didily-umptious and definitely kept me full until lunch. 

My hydration game is also strong!

Just like with the Cookie Dough flavor, you can see a layer of peanut
buttery goodness on the top and then more protein packed yumminess on the bottom.

I'm not sure why the Mint Chocolate was the last flavor I tried, since I do enjoy me some mint chocolate chip ice cream (although froyo is more my jam - ice cream is just too creamy for me... {And YES, I am well aware of how weird I am, but hey, more ice cream for you, right?}), but all three flavors were bomb! 

A few weeks ago a friend asked me if I wanted to go hiking with her while she was in town at the Mushroom Caves - DUH, sign me up! The only issue was I had a 13 mile run on the calendar for that morning. I went out for my run early in the morning to make sure I could get it done before our hike and made it back to my car to wait for her to pick me up. While I was waiting I broke into the Mint Chocolate BASE bar. It was a great way to refuel after the morning's run and keep me energized for the hike we were about to embark on. {PS If you are interested in reading more about the run or hike, check out the post here.}

Excuse the funny face, the sun was BRIGHT in my eyes!

Some of the shots from our hike - so fun and I didn't have to worry about
my stomach growling or a lack of energy after my morning long run.

My official consensus? THESE BARS ROCK MY SOCKS! The flavor is great, they are full of protein, they are made of REAL food (ingredients that you can pronounce and know what they are), the consistency has a crunch to it while still being creamy, they sit well in your stomach, they keep you full whether pre-workout/ post-workout/ or just working, and they are gluten free! What more could someone ask for?!

The only issue? I haven't seen them in many stores near my house. THANKFULLY the good folks at PROBAR have a fully stocked website (and even offer my friends, family and followers 15% off with code "MCCLURGC15"). 


Have you ever tried the PROBAR BASE bars before? If so, what did you think? If not, which flavor would you be most interested to try?

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