This Week in Paleo: Paleo Bars

Do you enjoy spending hours preparing elaborate meals?

ME NEITHER.

But sometimes, that’s what paleo feels like.

I love that eating paleo gets me to slow down, enjoy my food, and spend more time relaxing with others and all around enjoying my life.

BUT. Sometimes I need something quick. Sometimes you probably do, too.

Sometimes we’ve got school, a job, a family, writing a book and hosting a podcast and dancing 30 hours a week and a little blog going on the side. 😉  Sometimes there just isn’t time to cook food in an actual oven.

That’s where meal replacements and bars come in! They really can be real life savers… and healthy, too.

Imagine THAT. A HEALTHY and TASTY paleo bar. These are real things!

But they are NOT created equally. Some are awesome and healthy and some way less so.

This week’s TWIP post is all about bars; I tell you my favorite ones that provide you quick nutrition without skimping on quality.

Feel free to also check out my other TWIP posts on coconuts (here), where I buy my food (here), gut health (here) and how to protect your skin this summer (here).  You might also want to read my fabulous bestseller, Sexy By Nature, which you can find using this link.

Let’s get to it!

Lara Bars

Lara Bars sometimes get a bad rap for being sugary. It’s true that there is carbohydrate in Lara Bars!

Some sugar is okay in a diet that is based primarily in whole foods. And this, the sugar in Lara Bars, is almost always 100% just real fruit. I love Lara Bars because of their fantastic flavors (apple pie?! I mean…) and because they are gluten, dairy, and soy free.

Lara Bars do contain nuts so if you are staying away from them, be aware. I don’t do well with nuts but I will indulge in a Lara Bar here or there.  They are great for when I’m on the go or before or after a workout.

I like this package, which you can find on Amazon here, because it gives you a variety of 12 mini bars so you can get a yummy fix without consuming too much sugar in one sitting!  Best of both worlds!

Epic Bars

Epic Bars are a paleo staple.  They are excellent for a good dose of protein as they are made up primarily of dried meats.

There are beef, bacon, and cherry flavors; there’s also lamb, currant, and mint – and literally everything in between.

Epic Bars are 100% grass fed and use only the best ingredients. I like them because they are nut free and not swimming in sugar which is a nice change for a bar product. They are my favorite protein/fat snack. You can find all the flavors here.

Tanka Bars

Similar to Epic bars but in it’s own category of wonderful are Tanka bars.  Tanka is best known for their fabulously delicious buffalo cranberry bars. They are one of my absolute favorite snacks- savory, sweet, and just a little spicy.  They are fantastic.

Litearlly. The MOST FANTASTIC.

Tanks bars are perfectly paleo- gluten, dairy, and soy free and come from buffalo so they are naturally grass fed! You can purchase the package of 12 here or you can use that Thrive subscription to buy them at an even better price. Find out more about Thrive here.

Exo Bars

Exo bars are one of the newest bars on the paleo scene. They are actually made with cricket protein which is a highly sustainable form of protein eaten all around the world.

I can honestly say I think Exo bars the freaking bomb. I love them. Peanut butter and jelly flavor is my favorite, though really they are all good. Chocolate is always good.

When I first saw them, I’ll be honest, I was a bit skeptical. But then I tried one. They are absolutely delicious and they taste NOTHING like crickets (does anyone know what crickets taste like??) but they do come in a variety of yummy flavors in addition to PB&J like blueberry vanilla, cacao nut, and apple cinnamon.

These do contain almonds which are a healthy source of fat in the context of a balanced diet.

Careful, however! If you are super sensitive to phytoestrogens like me a lot of the Exo bars have flax in them, so go take a look and read the ingredient labels.

You can find the most amazing apple cinnamon bars here.

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Now I think I’m going to have to eat one of my favorite bars!

Have you tried any of these bars? Which is your favorite?

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