As I alluded to a couple days ago, today marks my first blog review!
Jordan from Kel & Partners agency contacted me to offer a sampling of PR*Bars to review here a while back, and finally between a lost package and a blog break, the stars have aligned!
Over the past couple weeks, I've tested the PR*Bars in a variety of settings- as Fuel before 8 and 7 mile runs, a hearty mid-afternoon snack, a breakfast running out the door, a half-dinner before 4 miles, and a post-run snack.
I don't mess around too much with my running fuel because I've had a few icky gels that I wasn't too impressed with, but the PR*Bars seemed to do the trick. When I had my "Iced Brownie" (yes, Chocolate appeals me to even at 6:40 in the morning) PR*Bar before heading out a few weeks ago, I met up with a friend for what I thought would just be a couple miles, but it turned into 8. I usually have a gel if I'm running over an hour, but I didn't have one with me and was surprised to find that I didn't need one. Usually I get draggy around mile 5 and don't recover as well if I don't have a gel, but I really think having the PR*Bar before gave me more sustained energy than I usually have during a long run.
I had similar results with the other ones I had with my other runs, though 8 was my longest. They're a good size and sweetness/heartiness level for a heavy snack or Quick Breakfast too. The claim is that the PR*Bar formula "eliminates hunger, increases mental focus, and optimizes performance by controlling blood sugars and using body fat for fuel." I didn't exactly produce a scientific experiment to test this, but they did fill me up quickly. I'm interested in using the PR*Bars in the future when I'm in more of a challenging training mode, but they worked fine for my needs right now.
I got the chance to try 5 of the flavors- Iced Brownie (had a chocolate glaze that I liked), Oatmeal Raisin Granola (more like a traditional granola bar), Chocolate Peanut (again, it's hard to go wrong with a chocolate glaze-almost tasted a little like a Reese's cup), Peanut Butter Granola, and Apple Pie (which I was surprised to like so much because usually I don't like fruity bars like this, but it had a sweet glaze to it as well.) All the bars have this crunchy taste, kind of like a Kit-Kat bar. This is not my very favorite texture, but I thought it went really well with the Peanut Butter Granola (which turned out to be my favorite) and the Chocolate Peanut.
All in all, the PR*Bars were a success and I would recommend them if you are looking for a crunchy-sweet bar to fuel longer runs or substitute for a quick breakfast or snack. You can read all the scientific training information and see their nutrition plans at their website at www.prbar.com/.
*I was send these bars for free in exchange for a review, but was not paid or required to write a positive review...does that count as a disclaimer? This was my very first blog review, remember?
