YouBar: Design Your Own Protein Bar

Gutsy has discovered the perfect protein bar!

Ever since I started following a low-fiber diet for my Crohn’s Disease, I have struggled to find meal replacements or snacks that are “Marnina-friendly.” One of my biggest issues was finding granola bars that were less than 3 grams of fiber. While the consumer industry is raising the fiber content in their products to make them healthier, the added fiber is further limiting my snack choices.  I was especially surprised when I went looking for protein bars. Protein bars are a gold mine for fiber. Companies design protein bars so that they can replace a meal and so they usually contain between 3-8 grams of fiber.  After speaking with fiance Seth, my in-house nutritionist, I learned that companies add fiber to protein bars because it helps slow digestion and make the energy from the bar last longer. That is great news for everyone BUT me and and others who cannot tolerate lots of fiber. 

Additionally, the “healthier” protein bars are also made with whole nuts, raisins, cranberries, quinoa, flax seed and lots of other ingredients that would probably send me to the ER.   The protein source of the bars can also be a problem – whey can be incredibly hard to digest.  I find that when I eat a low-fiber protein bar such as a Balance Bar or Zone Perfect Bar, they don’t sit well in my stomach. I always feel weighed down and bloated after eating them.

Needless to say, I was stuck in protein bar rut. One day, I happened to stumble across a website called YouBar, a company that allows clients to create customized energy bars.  The company was created in 2006 after a mother and son team began creating custom protein bars at home to meet their taste, health and allergy needs.

The bars are based on the belief that you are the only one that truly knows what is good for your body and what tastes you prefer.  What is healthy for other people (whole nuts, quinoa, etc) is not healthy for me.  I could finally customize my own protein bar to include the ingredients that are healthy for me.  Voila! I had finally found the way out of my rut.

This is what my bar looks like!

I designed my first YouBar and named it I Be Delicious (did you catch the “IBD” in there?). First, I picked the base – YouBar allows you to pick your nut butter base (there are many options).  Then I picked the fillings.  For a protein source, I selected rice protein and egg whites because I find that they digest better.  I added an “all-one vitamin infusion” to make my bar even healthier.  As I selected ingredients, I watched the nutrition content of the bar change on the panel on the right side of the screen.  Not only could I control what went into the bar, but I could also watch the fiber count and make sure that it stayed under 3 grams. I was thrilled.

YouBar is THE perfect option for anyone living with IBD.  YouBar’s plentiful options can meet the needs of pretty much any diet. You can make your bar nut free, seed free, dairy free, gluten free and most importantly, HEALTHY!

YouBar has been a lifesaver for me. The bars traveled to Istanbul and Israel with me over the summer. In Turkey, I wasn’t sure what my eating options would be like and the bars came in handy when I found myself on an 11 hour bus ride or in a city where I could not find anything “Marnina-friendly.”

Bars can be ordered in 4 sizes and range from $2.89 (small) to about $4.99 (large) per bar.  They come in a box of 13.  After creating your bar, you get to name it (the name is printed on the outside of each bar).  You could name it anything from “Guts and Glory” to “Semi-Colon” to “Gluten-Free Goodness,” “Mike’s Bar.”  The point is that you get to make it your own.

YouBars make the perfect gift for the holidays.  Create and buy a box of bars for yourself or for someone you love. Make sure to use the exclusive coupon code IBeafooDie when you check-out to get a 10% discount. This coupon code has been provided especially for I Be a fooDie readers. Click here to start creating your first bar!

Even Gutsy can’t take his hands off of my I Be Delicious bars!