Best high protein bars according to redditors

I'm trying to minimize fast food and other garbage, and lose a few pounds as I work towards my 1/2 goal of 1:30. I've been eating these protein bars with lots of fiber and lots of protein, and imo they're pretty tasty. But now i'm eating way too many of them, and I want to try some meal prep to mix things up. I'm thinking kale and some crushed nuts--anyone have a bulk meal prep kale recipe that'd they'd recommend?

Edit: You guys are amazing, thanks :)

You must be looking at a different flavor. This is zero carb.

https://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Protein-energy-variety/dp/B01GSL9KAU

Ooooh I love Quest Bars! I really enjoy the S'mores flavor, mint chocolate chip, and pumpkin pie (: The pumpkin pie one is a little higher in calories so I'd use that as more of a treat. I also recently have tried the Kirkland Protein Bar which is like Costco's version of a Quest bar. They taste pretty good and are a little cheaper if you wanna save some $$$ lol

Kirkland (Costco) brand Protein bars. I'd just avoid the cinnamon ones - the taste is OK at first, but it gets old fast.

https://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Protein-energy-variety/dp/B01GSL9KAU

Omg this is exactly what I needed to hear. Was close to the tipping point of buying a few boxes of Quests. Thanks brah

Edit: for those of you who ain't part of that Costco club like myself, free shipping from Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01GSL9KAU/ref=mp_s_a_1_1_a_it?qid=1466475919&sr=8-1&keywords=kirkland+protein+bars&pi=SY200_QL40

basically I eat almost the same thing every day. 2-4oz lean protein and 1/2 cup veggies is hard to go wrong... and average ~1100 calories and AT LEAST ~500 calories of exercise daily

I eat: 7am - 1egg, 1/2 avocado, 1 campari tomato and more protein (examples: 1-2 slice bacon, 2oz salmon lox, 2oz lean ground beef, etc) - topped with salsa and balsalmic glaze on tomato

10am - 1/2 cup Danon light & fit vanilla yogurt with fresh strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries, 1/6 cup dry roasted edemame

1pm - 3.5 oz boneless skinless, 1/2 cup frozen veggies, 1/4 cup sauce (examples: kroger vindaloo, kroger tikka misala, teriyaki, etc)

4pm - 1 string cheese, 1 turkey snack stick (like a slim jim - https://www.amazon.com/WISCONSIN-Sticks-Turkey-Resealable-Package/dp/B007K689MI)

7pm - 2-4 oz protein (salmon, chicken, steak, pork, shrimp, tuna steaks, etc.) and a half cup veggies... of which i change up.

Other veggie sides I make: Brussel Sprouts grilled with honey siracha glaze Baba Ganoush Fajita vegetables Cauliflower rice

Other tips: I use the fuck out of salsa and hot sauces... changes up the flavors with ZERO calories! Kroger brand private selection is the JAM! - https://www.kroger.com/pl/all/00?brandName=Private%20Selection&query=salsa&searchType=natural

I love these protein bars - https://www.amazon.com/Nature-Valley-Peanut-Butter-Dark/dp/B005VOOOR0

Use seasonings to church things up. i mostly use these - https://www.chefmerito.com/Home/Page/combos?intCat=-600003&strCat=PACK04

Love these as well! - https://www.fioruccifoods.com/products/prosciutto-mozzerella-panino/ (whole foods)

I love Quest bars, and now I love these too: https://www.amazon.com/Oh-Yeah-One-Bar-Compliant/dp/B073G7TYN2/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1505886398&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=oh+yeah+bars&psc=1

The flavors are phenomenal! I mean, a protein bar that tastes like Birthday Cake or a Maple Glazed Donut?! Sooooo gooooood

I did a hike (2 nights) on W30 last year and we had a variety of the following: Almonds, Bananas, chomps, compliant larabars, hard boiled eggs, compliant epic bars, packaged tuna in oil or water.

Does your family have a Costco membership? They sell Kirkland brand protein bars there that are pretty tasty (they've improved them a lot over the last 2 years; they used to be super gross). You can buy them for a higher price on Amazon.

Maybe even just pick up a bag of protein powder. It's not necessarily a cheap option, but it is an easy way to get more protein.

Could you make/have your family make some bean-based meals? It could be a simple pinto bean meal, or try out some different chickpea dishes (I love curry chickpeas).

I also just like munching on fried tofu as a snack (dried, pressed, salted, covered in garlic powder, fried in sesame oil).

They're Kirkland brand, but Kirkland is Costco's store brand and they're renowned for basically just repackaging top name brands so they could also be Quest bars.

https://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Protein-energy-variety/dp/B01GSL9KAU

These are them, so if they otherwise look similar, it could be the same product in two wrappers.

This made me LOL. I was talking to a friend last night about keto and told him I got a box of Epic Bacon Bars and he was like, "holy crap, I can do that diet!"

Ha! Trader Joes sells these and they're the bomb

https://www.amazon.com/Epic-Natural-Chicken-Sriracha-Count/dp/B00V4KWGEI?th=1

Quest bars are my favorite, but I recently discovered these Costco knockoffs that only come in two varieties, but same macros for a fraction of the price of Quest bars. They are my go-to now. I order them on Amazon as I don't have a Costco near me.

At Costco you can get rx bars, 12 for 16$. They only have 12 g of protein, but no dairy!

These are also crazy tasty, and over 15 g of protein! And work out to 1.58$ per bar.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0098IYDQW/ref=mp_s_a_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1523291500&sr=8-2&keywords=nugo%2Bslim%2Bbars&dpPl=1&dpID=41XptaAosWL&ref=plSrch&th=1&psc=1

I enjoy Nugo Slim in Crunchy Peanut Butter, 17g protein, 7g fat, 18g carbs, and 180 calories. I think these are pretty tasty but on the smaller size.

I've also tried D's No Cow Bars 20g protein, 4.5 fat, 25 carbs, 160 calories. I think the Peanut Butter tastes the best, but even that one has a weird texture. They are quite pricey too.

Amazon

Kirkland Signature Protein Bars Chocolate Peanut Butter and Cinnamon Roll, 20 Bars https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079M2W3J4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_pxm1AbGREC0KM

Eggs! I love hardboiled eggs, and they're easily portable. Sweet potatoes + black beans (as noted by others) is a good, protein-rich meal. Finally, the Epic salmon bars (https://www.amazon.com/Epic-Natural-Salmon-Smoked-Maple/dp/B01D157VCA?th=1) are also easily portable and a good fish protein.

I mean.... I really need something for early mornings that I don't have time for breakfast

Apparently you can buy them on amazon if you aren't a member: Protein Bar Kirkland Signature delicious energy variety (total 20 pack: 10 Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, 10 Chocolate Brownie) Gluten Free, Real Chocolate, 15g of Fiber 2.12 oz bars https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GSL9KAU/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_4sgYxbD8MXFET

You can absolutely do it! It doesn't necessarily need to be raw vegan, however, especially as there are a huge variety of cooked & other non-raw vegan protein sources available. So let's start with the baskets:

• You're at 160 pounds now
  
• You want to gain 20 pounds of muscle, so a 20-pound weight-gain project to hit 180 pounds
  
• Go to www.iifym.com and walk through the calculator (note that it requires an email address, so use a dummy email address if you use one), then reply to this post with your calories & macros (it will be available on the page after you submit your email address) required for a weight-gain diet (I'd recommend going with an aggressive weight-gain plan)
  
  The next step is to figure out a meal-prep approach to allow you to easily provide the correct macros in your food every day. Your job is to simply hit those macros every day, combined with exercise, to achieve the results you want over time. No guesswork! You can have full confidence that you are feeding yourself appropriately to get the results you want with IIFYM!
  
  As far as food options go, there are TONS of vegan protein sources available (looping back to vegan, not raw vegan). Here are some powder & drink mixes:
  
  
• Vega protein powder blends
  
• Vega protein shakes
  
• Watermelon seed protein powder
  
• Pumpkin seed protein powder
  
• Soy protein powder
  
• Sunflower seed protein powder
  
• Yellow pea protein powder
  
• Brown rice protein powder
  
• Whole oat powder
  
• Peanut butter powder
  
• Spirulina powder
  
• Nature's Plus Spiru-tein shake
  
  Some snacks:
  
  
• Vega protein bars
  
• Garden of Life protein bars
  
• Orgain protein bars
  
• Truwoman protein bars
  
• GoMacro protein bars
  
• Complete protein cookies
  
• Munk Pack protein cookies
  
• Frooze balls energy bites
  
• NOKA superfood pouches
  
• Hippeas chickpea puffs
  
• Vega protein chips
  
  Some natural(ish) sources:
  
  
• Seitan (wheat protein)
  
• Tofu
  
• Tempeh
  
• Soy milk
  
• Edamame
  
• Textured vegetable protein (TVP)
  
• Lentils
  
• Beans
  
• Hemp seeds (non-THC/CBD; especially hulled hemp hearts)
  
• Pumpkin seeds
  
• Chia seeds
  
• Nuts
  
• Nut butters
  
  Some plant-based recipes & recipe collections:
  
  
• ProteinPOW's vegan protein desserts recipe list
  
• No-bake vegan protein energy bites
  
• Minimalist Baker's high-protein vegan recipes
  
• Wallflower Kitchen's high-protein vegan recipes
  
  So as you can see, you have your choice of whole foods, recipes, and packaged meal & snack options available to choose from. You can eat food, make meals & snacks, or just buy stuff off the shelf & eat that, or any mix of those things. A macros-based vegan diet can be the polar opposite of weak & boring if you're willing to track your macros every day & put some effort into trying new recipes & products!

Crickets is where it's at. Amazon actually has a handful of cricket based products now and it's actually pretty interesting. Basically it's like 1000x more efficient then cattle, has way more benefits for you vitamin wise, and is pretty versatile. I've now tried these protein bars and these chips both made from cricket flour (ground crickets essentially), and they are both good. Couldn't tell the difference between them and similar products made with other flour substitutes like almond flour.

Just $2 or $3, turns out it was ground up so that it was easier to eat, but in the package it looks like it was just a cut of meat

This was the Vinson and I enjoyed it

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01D157TZE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_WOJDAbYX4X6EC

Cook tasty meals in bulk. 3 cups of lentils (salt, thyme, bay leaf, olive oil, and either curry or lemon juice with tomatoes, onions, and other vegetables) can last a week and is tasty alone, cold or warm, on rice, quinoa, on a salad, with some chickn tenders, or split with a tofu scramble. You're not actually having the same thing every day because you're pairing it with something else that's really quick to make or has also been made in bulk. Tofu scramble can provide 2-3 meals from 1 block of tofu (tofu, onions, salt, turmeric or curry or vinegar, thyme, and nutritional yeast. Press the tofu, add to onions cooked 30 min on low head in oil, break apart by hand, cook until ready), and can be done differently every time you make it. You can have it on a bagel with tofutti cream cheese, on a slice of sourdough, with tortilla chips, in a burrito, or on quinoa. Add a side of fresh greens like spinach, red lettuce, or kale. Pasta is also super easy to cook a box and then eat 5 of. I've stopped getting sauce and I just mix olive oil, rice vinegar, nutritional yeast, paprika, and onion powder. OMG best thing ever.

Find simple and quick meals. One day I might have a Probar while rushing around town, or a Builder Bar after a bike ride. Chickn patties are super delicious (I don't prefer veggieburgers) and can be microwaved in a minute, put between 2 slices of bread with lettuce or spinach, ketchup, veganaise or bbq sauce, and maybe melt a slice of cheeze on top. Sandwiches are also really quick and versatile in general. This is my favorite pizza ever, and is there's a good chance it's at your local grocery store along with everything else here. I'll also buy a couple of bags of frozen fries or tater tots for when I'm lazy.

If you have a friend or roommate, you may want to try sharing meals, or having designated night when you'll be home and switch off on cooking.

Sneak in a few protein bars? These have a pretty high protein-calorie ratio and actually taste good:

https://www.amazon.com/NuGO-Slim-Raspberry-Truffle-1-59-Ounce/dp/B005MWDVN4/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1525814473&sr=8-1&keywords=nugo%2Bslim&th=1

:ZOMG We Need this!

This box of gluten-free delicious awesomeness. It gives us nutrients on the go, and it's so, sooooo yummy. We need this.

Mine is in my "Help/Needs" list.

Thanks for the contest, and I totally swiped your belt for my wish list!

The only thing we already had in common was a $70 pot, so I added these

ZOMG We Need this

thanks for the contest!

Protect yourself from these situations! PURSE BACON! That said, if you don't have actual purse bacon, keep a pepperoni stick in your purse, or one of these, my actual favorite emergency food

I love the EPIC Chicken Sriracha bars as a savory protein bar alternative. Certified GF.

I like these if I am buying it.
https://www.amazon.com/Epic-Natural-Grass-Venison-Pepper/dp/B01D157TZE/ref=sr_1_3_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1520858808&sr=8-3&keywords=venison%2Bjerky&th=1

But yeah I dehydrate my own also since its super easy and then I know there are 0 carbs in mine. I got my dehydrator for like $35.

of course it's: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072JH86MM

You're right, and that's the issue. bars with proper nutrition, or at least close, don't even taste OK. I've had quest bars where I can't even finish the whole thing after paying for it. That's where I have to give props to RXBAR, they have under-par nutrition but taste is there. Texture is pretty bad though. FITJOY bars taste like a rubber shoe, even if they have decent nutrition.

on Nutrition, I personally as a consumer just look for that before I see anything else. But I also make sure to promote it on my Amazon page, and website.

Amazon.com : RXBAR Real Food Protein Bar, Chococolate Hazelnut, Gluten Free, 1.83oz Bars, 12 Count ... Product Dimensions: 0.8 x 2.2 x 5.2 inches ; 1.44 ounces; Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping ...

https://www.amazon.com/RXBAR-Protein-Chocolate-Hazelnut-1-83oz/dp/B07D8L3WR4

They're these Protein One bars!

Turns out you can get them on Amazon for only slightly more than the Costco member price! I have no local Costco, so I'm stoked.

https://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Protein-Chocolate-Cinnamon/dp/B079M2W3J4/

Kind bars, this one is my fav.

Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew + Antioxidants https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003TMZQC8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_NubkDbYPCYVKQ

Sorry forgot to say protein bar 😂
https://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Protein-energy-variety/dp/B01GSL9KAU#customerReviews

They're these ones, but I would buy them in store so they're fresh.

So they are not beef jerky, but they taste like it.

Epic bars, you can get them on amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B010SXA5ZS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Moon Cheese is lightweight and portable.

Epic Uncured Bacon bars are a little on the heavy side, but if you have a campsite, they could work.

https://www.amazon.com/Kirkland-Signature-Protein-energy-variety/dp/B01GSL9KAU

I understand the fat density issue, it's not a question of quantity of percentage, I think the issue was that I wasn't getting enough fat or protein (according to MFP) for some months because I started counting calories and switched vegan at the same time. I cut the most obvious calorie dense things like nut milk, cereals, nut butters, olive oil, vegan butter to make more space for bigger meals or more snacks even though you can get a lot of nutrients from them. I ate a lot of soy and tofu until I started getting hives from it, which really complicated my already very small cooking capabilities.

I like beans and quinoa, avocado, I just never ate them a whole lot.
Bars - https://www.amazon.com/HEALTH-WARRIOR-Chocolate-Peanut-Butter/dp/B00CMQD0DE

I havent until now. They seem to run about 3.50 on amazon. A bit cheaper. Surprisingly I just found these on these too though
BAR
Maybe I should check out Costco's brand :)

These are my go to quick snack/sweet tooth killer-thingy. They have no sugar and are pretty tasty, especially when warmed in the microwave for 10 seconds. Quest bars are good too and have more variety, but are a bit more expensive. Raw veggies and fruits are another good choice.

My original stated numbers were a little off.

Also, it's hard to compare before to after since I have a DEXA at the BULK and educated guesses at the cut. If I use my home impedance scale (not accurate, but it's consistent) then I want from like 22%=>17% giving better numbers. A Dexa=>Dexa would be best.

I too keto. (keto for life!) I love it. I'm sitting here at my desk with with a pile of Epic bars and my protein powder.

I calculate and get my .8 protein per lean daily. Low carbs. High fat. Mucho veggies.

I've always been REALLY low on muscle. i.e. I worked out like a flipping manic in high school when I was in football. We all had sloppy diets and poor routines. But my buddies turned into hulks and I stayed very similar and barely progressed. I ended high school at 125lbs.
(yes, a better diet and program would have helped me then, but all my buddies ate shit and did the "nothing but bench" routine. Some of them looked like wrestlers and went off to start in college ball.)

I have medically confirmed low T. I am not interested in taking gear.

I hear you though. I'm always looking to improve. Trying to eat cleaner, work out harder.

Funny thing is that relatively speaking I'm top of my class. I'm 40. Most everyone I know is not fit. Last month I went to a pool party for my kid's soccer party. I swam. The moms were 'mirin. The dads were asking how I stayed so incredibly fit. (hint, for starters ease up on that jug of red wine.)

Thanks for your advice and taking the time. I'm excited to see where I am in 6 months.