3 Things To Consider When Buying a Performance Bar

I make most of the performance bars we use on the bike. Partly, that’s about quality control, but it’s also about cost. When you go further in endurance, you really do eat a lot!

Trust me, making your own bars can be time-consuming. Even when I make double batches and freeze them, it’s easy to get caught out. So, while homemade bars have their place, it’s useful to have a few alternatives.

The purpose of a performance bar is simple: it’s one of the options available to help meet your fuelling needs. You’ll probably have carbohydrate in your bottle mix, alongside electrolytes, and you may use gels, chews or other foods too. The bar is another piece of the puzzle.

The amount and type of fuel you need will depend on factors such as your body size, the demands of your ride, its duration and intensity, and what you can comfortably digest. The challenge is finding foods that contribute to your fuelling strategy and that you can keep eating when the hours start to add up.

There are plenty of options on the market. Some work brilliantly; others might not suit you at all.

Here are three things I’d consider when choosing a performance bar for ultra-cycling.

Taste and texture

It seems obvious that you should choose something you enjoy eating. But there’s a little more to it than that.

Your taste preferences can change over time, particularly when you’re eating and drinking the same things hour after hour. Something that tastes great at the start of a race might become much less appealing several hours later.

This is where having a couple of different options can help. Variety gives you the opportunity to change flavours and textures rather than relying on one product throughout a long event.

Texture is just as important as taste, if not more so.

Have you ever had a flake of a dry, crumbly bar catch at the back of your throat while you’re trying to eat and breathe at the same time? It’s uncomfortable, distracting and not exactly conducive to good fuelling.

I tend to favour bars that are moist, easy to chew and don’t require lots of saliva to get them down. When you’re tired, you may have very little appetite or enthusiasm for chewing something that feels like hard work.

These details might seem insignificant when you’re choosing food in a supermarket. Over many hours on the bike, they can make a real difference to how willing you are to keep eating.

Choose something you enjoy, can eat comfortably and will still want when you’re tired. And don’t wait until race day to find out whether it works for you.

Nutritional composition

This is where it helps to look beyond the front of the packet.

A performance bar needs to earn its place in your fuelling strategy. That doesn’t mean it has to meet a universal set of nutritional criteria. It means understanding what it contributes and how it complements everything else you’re consuming.

Carbohydrate is an important fuel during endurance exercise. Your body can also use fat as a source of energy, with the contribution from each depending on factors such as exercise intensity, duration and your individual physiology.

During a long ride, your fuelling strategy needs to account for the demands you’re placing on your body and the fuel you’re taking in. Your bottle mix may provide a substantial proportion of your carbohydrate, for example, while a bar provides additional carbohydrate and energy.

So, when comparing bars, I’d start with a few straightforward questions.

• How much carbohydrate does it provide? Consider this alongside the carbohydrate in your drinks, gels and other food, rather than looking at the bar in isolation.
• How much energy does it contribute? This matters over long events, when meeting your overall energy needs can become increasingly challenging.
• What else does it contain? Fat, protein and fibre can all be relevant to your choice, depending on the product, the demands of your event and your individual digestive tolerance. 
• How does it fit into your wider strategy? A bar isn’t necessarily better because it contains more of one nutrient or less of another. The important question is whether it serves a useful purpose within your overall plan.

There’s no single macronutrient profile that makes a bar ideal for every ultra-cyclist. A product that works well during a steady, long-distance ride may not be the best choice during a harder effort, or when your stomach is struggling.

Think about what you need, what you’re already getting elsewhere and what you can comfortably tolerate.

The aim is to build a fuelling strategy that works in practice, not simply one that looks good on paper.

Ingredients and gut tolerance

The ingredient list is worth a closer look, particularly if you’ve experienced digestive problems during training or racing.

Ultra-cycling places considerable demands on your digestive system. Exercise intensity, heat, dehydration, duration and the quantity and type of food you’re consuming can all influence how well you tolerate your fuelling.

Two things I’d pay particular attention to are polyols and fibre content.

Polyols

Polyols, also known as sugar alcohols, are used as sweeteners in a range of foods, including some low-sugar and low-carbohydrate bars. Examples include sorbitol, mannitol and xylitol.

They can be incompletely absorbed in the gut. Depending on the type, amount consumed and individual sensitivity, they may contribute to bloating, gas, abdominal discomfort or diarrhoea.

That doesn’t mean every product containing polyols will cause problems, or that everyone needs to avoid them. But if you’re prone to gastrointestinal symptoms during long rides, they’re worth checking on the label.

Fibre content

Fibre is an important part of your everyday diet, but the amount and type of fibre in a bar may influence how comfortably you digest it during exercise.

Some bars contain substantial amounts of fibre from whole grains, nuts, seeds or added ingredients. That may be perfectly fine for you, but it isn’t automatically the best choice when you’re riding for hours and trying to keep fuel coming in.

Your own tolerance matters. If a particular bar leaves you feeling bloated or uncomfortable, it may not be the right option for that situation.

And remember that digestive tolerance isn’t determined by the bar alone. The combination of foods, drinks and gels you’re consuming, along with the conditions and intensity of the ride, all contribute to the bigger picture.

My advice is simple: test your options in training, pay attention to how you feel and make adjustments where necessary. Your gut is part of your performance system, and learning what works for it is an important part of preparation.

A few bars we use

With so many options available, it can help to have a few starting points.

When I’m behind on my own bar production, the bars we tend to gravitate towards are TORQ flapjacks and the Styrkr Bar. Joe finds them easy to eat, and they have worked well for us.

That doesn’t mean they’ll be the right choice for everyone. Products vary in their nutritional composition, texture and ingredients, and formulations can change. It’s always worth checking the current label and trying a product for yourself.

I’d also check the sodium content. During ultra-cycling, particularly in hot conditions, sodium intake is an important consideration. The amount you need will depend on your individual sweat losses, the conditions and what you’re already getting from your drinks and other foods.

A bar can contribute to your overall intake, but it’s one part of a broader fuelling and hydration strategy.

Find what works for you

Choosing a performance bar isn’t about finding the one perfect product. It’s about finding options that meet your nutritional needs, suit your digestive system and remain appealing when you’re many hours into a ride.

The best choice is one you can eat comfortably, that contributes something useful to your overall fuelling strategy and that you’ve tested before you depend on it.

I’d be interested to hear what works for you. Do you make your own bars, have a favourite shop-bought option, or switch between several depending on the demands of the ride?

Sometimes the most useful recommendations come from other riders who’ve already done the experimenting.

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Your nutrition should work as hard as you do.

Whether you’re training for an endurance event or simply looking to get more from your nutrition, I can help you build a strategy that fits your goals, training and real life.

Let’s make your nutrition work for you.