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"\"&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src='\\/files\\/2011\\/01\\/wpid-balancebar-300.jpg' align='right' \\/&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;&lt;B&gt;WHAT:&lt;\\/B&gt; Balance Bar TrailMix Energy Bar &lt;B&gt;WHERE:&lt;\\/B&gt; www.balance.com &lt;B&gt;HOW MUCH:&lt;\\/B&gt; $1.39 each&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;Someone once told me that there\\u2019s no such thing as unhealthy food, because everything you eat fuels your body in one way or another. It only took one pre-ride stop at McDonald\\u2019s (and one post-ride toilet thrashing) to disabuse me of such a foolhardy notion. However, I\\u2019m still nowhere near becoming an energy bar convert. I\\u2019m not convinced that those gritty lumps are any more energy-rich than a multivitamin and a peanut butter sandwich. And for a product that often resembles, in both appearance and taste, fecal matter, I usually can\\u2019t justify spending the two dollars.&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;Enter: Balance Bar\\u2019s new TrailMix bar. Like an energy bar missionary, the Chocolate Chip version landed on my desk to challenge all my preconceptions about pre-ride fuel and convert me into a bar man. So I did what any fitness nerd would do\\u2014I looked at the Nutrition Facts and wondered just how much sugar they had to pump into this thing to make it tolerable.&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;The answer: 14-grams. But to Balance Bar\\u2019s credit, they left out the high-fructose corn syrup, instead taking the natural route and using real sugar and sugar cane syrup. Scarfing this bar before (or during) a ride would definitely give me a tasty lift, but would I suffer an insidious bonk at the hands of another glorified candy bar?&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;Not if the rest of the ingredients have anything to say about it. With its concoction of rolled oats and almonds, the TrailMix provides a solid dose of unsaturated and saturated fats, thankfully none of the trans- variety. With only 22-grams of total carbohydrates, it\\u2019s not the most carb-laden bar on the market, but it does include a bit of potassium and an array of 23 vitamins and minerals to make that energy easily accessible.&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;The Balance Bar is also equipped to make up for a sweat-soaked jersey with 13-percent Daily Value of sodium. Perhaps its best feature, though, is its protein content: at 14-grams, it boasts much more than the average bar. However, checking the ingredients reveals that some of it is gleaned from less-than-ideal casein. But perhaps most importantly, Balance Bar claims the glycemic index of the TrailMix to be a lowly 30, indicating that the bar won\\u2019t spike your blood sugar like others might (spikes, of course, being the precursor to bonks).&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;So I ate the thing. With the consistency of a Chewy bar, it had a pleasant Rice-Krispie feel and even though the chocolate was a nice touch, the bar wasn\\u2019t overly sweet. It was a little broader than a typical Balance Bar, and less dense, but I was still left wondering why the packaging was so damn big in comparison. Though its size made it easy to open, I had visions of the oversized wrapper turning into a big bag of slop on a hot day.  I stuffed the wrapper in my pocket and got my cycling gear.&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;br \\/&gt;\\n                    &lt;P&gt;Planning to crank on the bike for an hour or so, I brought my heart rate up to 75 percent of my max and waited for any sign of a sugar induced wimp-out. Nothing. Just a solid ride. Granted, it\\u2019s not as if I was out of the saddle and singing Broadway anthems, but I felt good. The ride ended without any struggle and I didn\\u2019t really think anything of it, until I reached into my pocket on the way home and found the TrailMix wrapper. Touch, Balance Bar. Touch.&lt;\\/P&gt;&lt;\\/p&gt;\\n\""^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.bikemag.com/blog/081605_balance_energy_bar_trailmix/>