About
MRE Bar is a meal-replacement bar made by Redcon1.
According to the manufacturer’s website, the product is designed to provide “real food sources” that don’t cause any unwanted side effects.
MRE Bar contains 20g of protein, the sources of which include beef, chicken, salmon, egg, rice and pea protein. It also features gluten-free rolled oats and yams. In a bid to add what it calls “healthy fats”, Redcon1 also adds MCT oils to the formula.
In addition to protein, MRE Bar contains 260 calories, 9g of total fat and 6g of sugar.
MRE Bar is – or has been – available in several flavors. These include “Sprinkled Doughnut”, “Iced Carrot Cake” and “Banana Nut Bread”.
Clipper83 –
A game-changing bar, that is worth stocking up on
—-Introduction—-
After seeing the great reviews from other review sources, I had to test them out myself to see if they were really that good. I picked up 3 boxes on sale with all the hype surrounding these bars. Lucky for me, Aaron Singerman sent me out some bars the following day. I’ve been having anywhere from 1-2 a day now for since.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
This may be the most important part of this review, after effectiveness of course. Did these bars really taste as good as claimed? Well I’ll give my thoughts on each bar. Banana Nut Bread: 8/10 This was my least favorite out of the bunch. That does not mean it is bad.
—-Effectiveness—-
—-Value—-
—-Side Effects—-
—-Conclusion—-
Unheard0f –
It Tastes Better Than A Real MRE & Works Just As Good
—-Introduction—-
Protein bars have nearly become a mainstream source of snacking in 2018, branching out well beyond your local supplement store or that tiny little section collecting dust in your little one stop shop. To see companies such as Quest & Lenny and Larry’s creating new and unique spins on their stable products exclusively for companies like 7-Eleven show them trying to widen their market wider than the local gyms “meathead” (as people in my town call people like us). Everybody wants the best tasting product though, willing to sacrifice some of the healthy benefits a good protein bar can deliver. So, while companies keep slapping cupcakes & brownies on their packaging to sell a product full of sugar and filler with a taste nothing like the packaging delivers, others take the time to craft the perfect on the go protein bar. In steps Redcon1. Redcon1’s MRE Bar is a damn near perfect meal replacement bar. Packing 20g of protein from a wide array of whole food sources & making it taste great seems like a challenge, but one they took on and completed. This isn’t a bar heavy enough to bloat you, make you feel uncomfortable in the gut or ramp up the desire to grab something that actually tastes good to make up for the blandness of what you just ate. Instead, MRE Bar leaves you feeling perfectly content with yourself and doesn’t have you running for fast food while out running errands or wasting some of your pre-workout picking up snacks on your way to the gym. I always say there’s something better but, have you seen this ingredient profile?!
—-Ingredient Profile—-
Beef Protein Isolate, Salmon Protein, and Chicken Protein kick off our “Protein Blend”, being followed by Egg Albumin, Brown Rice Protein & Pea Protein. The average person might be thinking, “that’s too much protein!”. In your typical protein bar, the “Protein Blend” is made up of Milk Protein & Whey Protein Isolate, which is okay. There’s nothing wrong with that, but every protein source in your MRE Bar is derived from real sources with different rates of absorption and digestion. Following up the protein blend is Gluten Free Rolled Oats, and a Carbohydrate Blend packed from sources like Dehydrated Yam, MCT Oil, Sweet Potato, Pea Starch, Blueberries, Goji Berries, and that’s about half of them to name. The objective of these packed out blends is to assure the body is getting all the nutrients it possibly can, using different sources to create a complete, and whole product that doesn’t short itself in nutrient delivery. Breaking down all of these ingredients, you’re looking at 260 calories. That might seem like a lot from a bar, but considering how much is jammed in here and all of the sources, it’s impressive. You’re also looking at 9g of fat, 29g of carbs and 20g of protein, which when treated like a meal is a lot better than most of the things you’re probably going to eat while on the run.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
While I was able to try all of the flavors available in the store, I ended up bringing a box of the Oatmeal Chocolate Chip home simply because it seemed the easiest for me to enjoy at any time. The flavor profile here is delicious, and it feels more like a layer baked treat than a protein bar. The bar would fall apart with every bite, making it insanely easy to eat down quickly without spending so much time chewing. I didn’t deal with any of the bar sticking to my mouth or leaving any sort of strange aftertaste which was amazing considering exactly what’s in the product. I was given a few samples of the Blueberry Cobbler to try in store, and the taste was incredible, there was no change in consistency or texture and the blueberry taste really tops the bar off well!
—-Effectiveness—-
For the sake of testing out the true ability of the bar, I used it as a pre-workout snack following an eight hour fast. I ate the bar during my drive over to the gym and started training nearly a half hour after finishing the bar. Surprisingly enough, I was hungry after my 90-minute session, but nowhere nears feeling the need to rush home and scarf down some food. I felt satisfied enough to make a few stops on the way home before that hungry feeling kicked in full effect but that’s pretty impressive for a protein bar. I felt good energy from the carbohydrate sources & never felt like I was lugging around a meal’s worth of food in my gut. Outside of the gym, the bar has come a perfect mid-workday snack when my lunch break seems to far away to even think about. It supplies me with the feeling of satisfaction and kicks my energy levels up a bit, the complete opposite effect of some other big name brand bars. I never once felt the need to eat anything else after the MRE Bar for quite a while, and it never left me craving something that tastes better.
—-Value—-
$34.99 will get you a box of twelve if you feel the need to keep these in bulk, but for an average price of $2.69 at your local supplement store, it’s a damn good value for what is essentially a meal. Of course, you may not have the enjoyment of spending $8 at your local burger joint, but you’ll help your wallet a bit and you’ll feel much better about yourself once you realize how good these bars leave you feeling. Plus, if you’re like me and sometimes can’t leave your job for a lunch break, these are the perfect snack to keep in your locker or glove box for those errand emergency hunger strikes.
—-Conclusion—-
At the end of the day, many people aren’t going to be too confident about a protein bars ability to leave you feeling satisfied. People have found success in other brands, finding that it leaves them satisfied, but how many bars can claim to be packed with real food ingredients ready to leave you feeling as good as the ingredient label. It’s an impressive entry in the on-the-go protein snack industry and one that may be the driving force for other brands to start including more whole food based ingredients in their products. While the idea behind the MRE Bar isn’t new, it’s stand out product for its amazing taste, texture, and how well it actually works. If the macros scare you a bit, try actually replacing a small meal with the MRE Bar and see how it leaves you feeling, it might just be the best new thing.
bctuthill –
MRE Bar has everything you (really) need!
—-Quick Summary—-
Simply put: I love these things. They are a bit messy but the macros were great and I love that the protein is derived from real food sources instead of just whey.
—-Introduction—-
Big thanks to Redcon1 for following through on this one and shipping these out after they’d been auto-canceled. After the cancellation occurred I ended up claiming Universal’s Animal Snak bars and the two items ended up arriving on the same day. This provided a unique opportunity to do a true side by side comparison to see which one I preferred (both were great and the Universal review is coming soon). I normally find myself pretty hungry in the middle of the day and like to keep snacks like this on-hand so I can maintain the willpower to avoid eating something absolutely terrible for me. I try to keep an eye on the overall calories and macro nutrients to try and hit all my targets throughout the day. Without something like this, I often find myself skewed higher in fats than I should be since my cravings normally involve heavy amounts of grease and sodium.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
A quick breakdown of the nutrition content: In the Crunchy PB Cup variety that I received you will be taking in 260k/cal per bar, with 20g of protein, 29g of total carbs, and 9g of fat. 6g of the carbs are from sugar, and 5g of the fat is saturated. What I like about this most though is the sources for the protein. Instead of just Whey, or even worse, Soy, MRE bars get the lion’s share of their protein from a blend of beef isolate, salmon, chicken, egg, brown rice, and pea. Meanwhile while the carb sources do include the basic things like maltodextrin, prior to that they are sourced from yams, sweet potato, peas, coconut water powder, blueberries, and goji berries. Based on the ingredient panel, this isn’t just something that I would eat myself, I was also willing to let my 4 year old eat some too when he was being picky and needed protein. The only problem I had with doing that was that it’s less for me to eat myself; but the point is that it’s simply real food. I never let him eat your run of the mill meal replacement bars because they high concentrations of whey protein and sucralose can be hard on his rookie-level digestive system, but this is like a parenting cheat code. I love that they did this and it really helped validate the premium price tag that is coming later in this article.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
No mixing required, unlike the shakes! Dosing – I simply ate this whenever I felt hungry. I never used it post workout because I simply prefer a shake with more protein at that time, and while I think it would be just fine to use pre-workout… I simply never used it for that. Taste – Taste was outstanding, as was the texture. There were little crunchies in it and the chocolate was a nice bittersweet dark chocolate. It wasn’t at all hard to chew like some protein bars and caused no indigestion whatsoever, to which I seem to be prone. My only knock on these is that the chocolate was very crumbly and there always seemed to be loose pieces in the wrapper that would get everywhere. It made it kind of tough to eat these in the car because of that.
—-Effectiveness—-
It was great! I can’t really use these to assess a change in muscle mass or DOMS, as I simply used them as a snack, but they were spot on for what I needed at snack time. They filled me up for a solid 2+ hours and while avoiding my cravings by eating these instead, I did seem to lean out a bit. Whether I was simply retaining less water or actually lost some fat would be tough to say, but regardless of what it was, I certainly had peace of mind in knowing that what I was eating was healthy and guilt-free.
—-Value—-
These things aren’t cheap. However, they aren’t cheap in content either. For a 12-pack you can find these for $34.99 from a handful of vendors (A1, BPN, MSS, or direct from Redcon1). For an individual bar you’ll be looking at $3 or so each. For some people this might be cost prohibitive, but I’d argue that they are fairly priced at this point and simply a premium level product. Junk food will always be cheaper… because it’s junk.
—-Side Effects—-
None
—-Conclusion—-
I’m a big fan. I plan to buy these again and would recommend anyone interested in doing the same keep an eye out for sales especially on Redcon1’s site. They often run promotions where you can get free shipping, discounts, swag, or any combination of the two, plus they are tied for lowest price when using a 10% off coupon from PricePlow. I say go for it! Thanks again to Redcon1!
Sparticide –
MRE Bar could very well be the final form of protein bars.
—-Quick Summary—-
MRE Bar from Redcon1 is their protein bar offering in the popular MRE series. It stands out from other protein bars because, well, its not a protein bar. It is a bar, and it does contain a lot of protein, but it’s actually a compact whole-foods meal replacement.
—-Introduction—-
I’ve been eating these on a regular basis since they were first released earlier this year. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed them and if their rapidly increasing number of flavors is any indicator then I’m not the only one. My reason for incorporating this into my menu along with MRE is primarily to keep the variety high so as not to tire of the products.
—-Ingredient Profile—-
Given that this product is part of the MRE series, there are certain expectations I had for the macros. They are as follows: Nutritional Info Serving Size: 1 Bar Servings Per Container: 12 Calories: 260 Total Fat: 9g Saturated Fat: 5g Trans Fat: 0g Cholesterol: 40mg Sodium: 300mg Potassium: 250mg Total Carbohydrate: 29g Dietary Fiber: 3g Sugars: 6g Protein: 20g The MRE Bar actually has a more balanced profile than the original with an approximately 3:2:1 carb/protein/fat ratio. Very impressed that they addressed that in this iteration. It should be noted that most protein bars have enough sugar in them to call them candy bars; MRE Bar somehow keeps the sugar count to 6g while still tasting the way it does. Ingredients: Protein blend: salmon protein, chicken protein, egg albumin, brown rice protein, and pea protein Gluten-Free Rolled oats Dehydrated yam Dehydrated sweet potato Pea starch Coconut water powder Dehydrated blueberry fruit Dehydrated goji fruit Maltodextrin, dextrose MCT oil Cellulose gum Cinnamon Salt Sucralose Acesulfame potassium etc. Ingredient profile is virtually the same as the original MRE except the rolled oats in this are gluten-free; this doesn’t mean anything for me but for those who have to care about that this is a big deal. Additionally there’s minor variance in the minority ingredients from flavor to flavor.
—-Taste/Mixability/Dosing—-
I waited for the Iced Carrot Cake to post this review so I could evaluate all available flavors. Like the MRE before it I enjoyed each flavor of the bar at varying degrees. My staple flavor is Oatmeal Chocolate Chip, the Iced Carrot Cake is a close second, and the Crunchy Peanut Butter Cup is an even closer third. No mixability issues since you just open the wrapper and bite in, though these are prone to crumble a little bit so I wouldn’t eat this over a carpet or rug. I would eat 1 bar when I felt hungry, usually while driving or working at the computer.
—-Effectiveness—-
Like the other forms of MRE this can definitely replace a meal when needed. The lower calorie count on the bar means it isn’t quite as filling as a full serving of MRE but it somehow kept hunger at bay just as effectively, all without a shaker. I think the best point for MRE Bar’s effectiveness is its ability to stop you from snacking on junk. Anytime you’d grab a candy bar or whatever, this is an easy and healthy stand-in. Replacing bad habits with good habits is an important change for those wanting to lean out.
—-Value—-
MSRP for a box of 12 is $34.99 which is a fair price in its own right. That said, Redcon1 offers discount codes all the time so you’ll typically pay closer to $25 which is just over $2 per bar. $2 for a meal you don’t have to prep is solid value in my book.
—-Side Effects—-
No adverse side effects to report on this one.
—-Conclusion—-
MRE Bar is another win as far as I’m concerned. A tasty, convenient, well-priced, and effective product to avoid missing meals while ensuring your quality of intake stays high. Translating the MRE into bar form was an ambitious project but well worth it. I’m excited for what the next form Redcon1 comes up with could be. Easy recommendation.