Folks like to say that nutrition is the fourth sport in triathlon. If you get your nutrition wrong you can make your race day much more difficult, yet it is something that we struggle to get right. I’ve been relying on getting all of my nutrition in liquid form for the last few years, however I haven’t felt like this has worked very well for me. I’ve had a difficult time feeling well fuelled and I’ve had an unhappy tummy on the run many times. This season I’d like to try eating real food on the bike at my upcoming half Ironman to see how that works out.
Enter Picky Bars. Picky Bars are real food balanced for sport. They are gluten and dairy free with balanced nutrient ratios (4:1 carb to protein) for endurance and recovery. They are also super versatile as they are great for before, during, after your workout or as a snack! Eat a Picky Bar an hour before your workout and the ratio of carbs to proteins to fats will give you energy for your workout with no spikes or crashes. Eat a Picky Bar during a long, low intensity workout and it will be easy for your stomach to digest. After your workout a Picky Bar is an easy way to get that recovery fuel into your stomach within that quick 30 minute window. Each bar clocks in around 200 calories or less.
Picky Bars come in four flavours:
- Lauren’s Mega Nuts – peanut butter, apricots, cranberries, chocolate chips, with almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds and walnuts.
- All-In Almond – almond butter, apricots, cranberries, chocolate chips with almonds and pumpkin seeds. This one is made with agave, making it vegan.
- Need for Seed – sunflower seed butter, apricots, cranberries, chocolate chips with sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds.
- Smooth Caffeinator – hazlenut butter, apricots, cranberries, chocolate chips and coffee.
I then threw the Picky Bars into a ziploc baggie and into my Bento Box.
Picky Bars sent me one of each flavour to test out, but I had already purchased several bars ahead of time, giving me a chance to test Picky Bars out in a variety of situations including fuel on my long rides! I’ve tested these out on several long rides now varying in time and distance from 2 hours (47 km) to almost 4 hours (100 km). I set my Garmin to beep every 15 minutes making it easy to be reminded to eat! Sometimes chewing things on the bike can be a bit messy as you struggle to pedal, chew, breathe and not drool on yourself. Picky Bars were easy to eat! I also felt really well fuelled on all of my rides and my tummy was very happy. No issues with my stomach on my brick runs either.
I also carry a Picky Bar with me to have on hand after a workout. Perfect after an early morning swim while I’m walking to the office. I know breakfast is a bit far off but this way I’m getting my recovery fuel in until I have time to eat my meal.
As for the flavours? I find it hard to pick a favourite as they are all so tasty! I really like Smooth Caffeinator as a post workout snack and the other three flavours are my favourite on the bike.
All in all I’m loving Picky Bars. They are a super versatile and portable snack that taste great. Plus they also ship to Canada! To help offset the shipping cost I highly recommend buying in bulk. The bars will keep for a year so no worries that you’ll have to eat them all quickly (although you will likely want to). Plus it feels great to support a great product made by a small company!
Have you tried Picky Bars? What is your favourite flavour?
*Picky Bars sent me these samples to review, however all opinions are my own.*
I havent tried them, but they sound really good. I’ve had some interesting adventures trying to eat on the bike. Pity they don’t have a store in town.
Those sound awesome! I’m always look for something new to fuel with, especially with my long hikes now. I may have to test those out!
I haven’t tried them – mostly b/c I always assume stuff like this has nuts and/or soy in them (allergies). I mean I know nuts are an excellent source of fuel for most athletes but not for me! It’s so hard to find nut-less good-for-you bars :-/ Glad you like them though.
But…they do NOT ship to Canada. 🙁 I’m from Europe and I was so excited to finally taste tehm. But they wouldn’t accept my order on the Picky Bars website. *bohohooo*
How did you get them back then?
Thanks!
Anna