Top 10 Energy Bars From Foodtrainers Nutritionist Lauren Slayton

Lauren Slayton, M.S. R.D., founder of New York City’s Foodtrainers, has more than a decade of experience as both a dietician and nutritional counselor, and she’s contributed 6 Foods to Eat to Beat Summer Heat and 26 Ways to Lower Your Bad Cholesterol – Including Alcohol! to Blisstree. (Last time, Lauren weighed in on the controversial drinking Coke/Diet Coke debate that many of you feel so strongly about.) Offering one-on-one sessions on weight and nutrition management, Foodtrainers helps clients create, record, achieve, and maintain personal health goals. For those in need of grocery shopping guidance on a budget, Foodtrainers also offers an affordable program, Market Foodtraining. This time around, we challenged Lauren to come up with her top 10 energy/nutrition bars. We asked, she answered.

Man, times have changed. There was a time, not long ago, when my favorite bars would include directions to the best martini on the planet (London) or maybe I’d discuss the bar, in New Orleans, where my husband and I had our first date, or the reasons why drinks always taste better with the ocean in sight. But no, now bars are things you eat before a workout or at the airport, or anytime you need a portable, relatively healthy snack. So, in keeping with the changing times, here are my top 10 energy/nutrition bars:

1.      THE CANDY BAR We cannot keep Zing bars in stock at Foodtrainers. Zings are the perfect number of calories (210) for a snack bar; and they’re gluten- and soy-free, yet do have that candy bar taste. But what candy bar has 10 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber? Chocolate coconut is our new favorite Zing flavor, but Foodtrainers clients adore the peanut butter. And certain flavors are dairy-free.

2.      THE NUTTY BAR Kind Bars let you can peek inside the clear wrapper to see the nuts and fruit. Kind bars don’t grind ingredients up into a paste, but rather produce insanely delicious bars that have an almost homemade feel to them. Plus, Kind Bars have good karma – the company is very charitable.

3.      THE COOKIE MONSTER’S BAR If you don’t eat wheat, you may think your cookie-eating days are over. They’re not. Kookie Karma, organic, vegan bars made by Juli Novotny, are so delicious that it’s hard to believe they’re healthy. Some flavors are raw, and all are made without wheat, soy, or dairy. We love Holistic Chocolate Chip and Choco Lot. It may be called a kookie, but it’s made with many of the same ingredients our favorite nutrition bars contain – and is the perfect mid-afternoon treat.

4.      THE CUTE BAR Mini Lara Bars get the super-cutesy award. Our clients eat these 90-100 calorie bars mid-morning, or before a workout when they just need a little something in their stomachs. Lara Bars were the pioneers in the less-processed, more-natural, yet still convenient nutrition bars. And though their newer flavors tempt us, Cherry Pie remains our #1 flavor. You can also do the full-size Lara Bar, but the minis are, in our opinion, more fun.

5.      THE DECADENT BAR The Real Bar is truly unlike any nutrition bar we’ve tasted. It’s not a candy bar or a cookie, it’s not like peanut brittle or granola. It’s satisfying and serious, like healthy fudge. Real Bars founders are a husband and wife team – he (John Marsh) is a chef with a natural foods restaurant, and she (Gigi) is one of New York City’s top fitness trainers. We love to chill Real Bars; then slice pieces off. (Do not leave them on the cutting board or they will disappear.) Real bars have an almost cult-like following – they’re having trouble keeping up with the demand.

6.      THE KIDDIE BAR Whether you’re on a road trip or packing an after-school snack, kids deserve a bar, too. Clif ZBars are tasty, packed with good ingredients including flax seed and oats. And adults looking for a lower-calorie (120) snack are free to partake.