Six Best Energy Bars
Post-workout recovery
When you want a nutrient-rich recovery snack but don’t have time to seek out the perfect whole food, eat a carb-rich bar with moderate doses of protein and fibre (five to 10 grams of each for a bar with about 800kJ). “Post-run, these nutrients can help improve recovery and curb hunger,” says Gidus.
For the greatest recovery benefit, eat a bar within 20 minutes of your run. If your workout was particularly hard or long, follow that with a light meal of protein and whole-grain carbs, one to two hours later.
A good bar: Bar Hammer Bar’s Cashew Coconut Chocolate Chip packs 27 grams of carbs with five grams of protein and fibre (hammernutrition.co.za). Really tough runs call for the 24 grams of protein in Evox’s Synergy Protein Bar – it contains vitamin E, which helps repair muscles after long runs (evox.co.za).
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