Big Sur Bar

So glad to hear of someone else that knows of the amazingness of Big Sur bars!

They're definitely great sources of caloric energy that is more sustained and wholesome than candy bars. From a nutritional standpoint, the ingredients are pretty damn good too. Not to mention, they don these great features:
Aluminum-free baking soda & powder; no artificial colors, preservatives, or flavors; no trans fat; no hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils; no high fructose corn syrup; no sulfites; non-irradiated; and non-GMO.

Not to mention, per bar: 600 calories, 33g fat, 75g carbohydrates, 45g sugar, 12g protein
And it definitely helps that they taste like thick, homemade cookies with gooey deliciousness on top!

The boyfriend and I already have some of these prepared for our mail drops.

Big Sur bars…completely worthwhile!

"Not to mention, per bar: 600 calories, 33g fat, 75g carbohydrates, 45g sugar, 12g protein"

How many grams of fiber? The reason I ask is that when I add up the calories based on the above numbers, I come up with 645 calories. Does this mean the bar contains 11 grams of fiber?

I don't understand their labels… they are calling 11 grams of fat only 90 calories. I'd call it 99 calories, which makes each serving ~ 50% fat, which might be a little slow to digest if you are really cranking up a hill.

But sitting in the shade and taking a break – yea baby!

Should be some fiber in there for sure as the bottom half is oatmeal ..er… oatmeal based. It tastes like oatmeal, but with a good deal of sugar and stuff.

I'll get one and check the label tomorrow. For some reason they keep disappearing even though the are supposed to be for backpacking.

I got the nutritional info. from their Web site, though it seems the math for it is a bit off.

The higher fat content means all of the glucose may not be immediately available for use, but in the long run I suppose you'd have a nice storage of energy for later. :”,aletheia.va”

"The higher fat content means all of the glucose may not be immediately available for use,"

Could you explain why this is the case?

From what I understand, you need glucose to provide fuel for your muscles. The process of breaking foods down fats (as well as proteins) is that it takes a long time to extract usable glucose; you have to burn more energy to extract glucose from fats than from carbohydrates; in another words, carbohydrates can produce energy a lot quicker because of their ability to be broken down quickly to produce glucose.

However, your body will get twice as many calories of energy from a gram of fat than it will from a gram of either protein or carbohydrate.

It kind of gets back to the principle that we were taught in school, that you need something like a balanced diet that includes appropriate portions of all three categories.

–B.G.–

True, your body will usually get more calories from fat than from proteins or carbohydrates, but the availability of those calories is dependent upon your body's ability to convert it into glucose. If you have something that has both a hefty amount of fats AND carbohydrates, then you will, essentially, have more of a sustained energy than if your source of energy were primarily from fats.

A balanced diet helps, for sure!
As one of my favorite Ancient Greek philosophical quotes says, "Nothing in excess."

Epicurus – very appropriate for an epicurean thread.

It ("Nothing in excess") was actually engraved above the temple of Apollo at Delphi where the Oracle was situated, along with the inscription "Know thyself".
Although Socrates never wrote anything, this was transcribed from his philosophical teachings. :)

Yup, shot through ancient Greek culture, but E. was the only one who made it the central tenet of his school. Unfortunately at that time (and most of the time since) he was ridiculed rather than praised.

"From what I understand, you need glucose to provide fuel for your muscles. The process of breaking foods down fats (as well as proteins) is that it takes a long time to extract usable glucose; you have to burn more energy to extract glucose from fats than from carbohydrates; in another words, carbohydrates can produce energy a lot quicker because of their ability to be broken down quickly to produce glucose."

I think you are misinformed here. Fat cannot be converted to glucose, although the liver can synthesize glucose from amino acid carbon skeletons after stripping away the nitrogen. None of the 3 nutrients directly supply energy to the muscles. Rather, they are converted to ATP by the Krebs cycle in mitochondria. ATP is the only source of energy for muscles.

Well if you want to nitpick…carbs, proteins, and fats aren't converted to ATP. Metabolizing carbs or fats provides the energy to combine phosphate with ADP to produce more ATP, which supplies energy for cellular processes.

Now someone who remembers even more college biology will come along to correct me, I'm sure.

Right, of course glucose can't be extracted from fats *Slaps palm against forehead* though I suppose glucose can be converted into fat to be stored if you have extra?

Anyhow, the details of the process I was unsure of, so thank y'all for the lesson!

"Now someone who remembers even more college biology will come along to correct me, I'm sure."

Clinton was president the last time I studied the Krebs Cycle so it certainly won't be me!

"Well if you want to nitpick…carbs, proteins, and fats aren't converted to ATP. Metabolizing carbs or fats provides the energy to combine phosphate with ADP to produce more ATP, which supplies energy for cellular processes.

I really didn't intend to be a nitpicker. Rather, I was focused on pointing out that glucose, fat, and protein do not provide energy directly for cells. I could have expressed myself more precisely, to be sure, and I appreciate your pointing it out. I also think your level of nitpicking is just about perfect for the discussion at hand. Any further, and we're down into the nitty gritty of electron transport chains moving H ions along a redox gradient, releasing the energy required to synthesize ATP from ADP and phosphate in the presence of ATP synthase. Tedious stuff, that, and not a lot to be gained for this thread by getting bogged down in that level of detail, IMO.

"I suppose glucose can be converted into fat to be stored if you have extra?"

Correct. To the dismay of millions of overweight Americans.

Maybe it is just the years of eating protein bars, shakes, and grilled chicken talking, but I cannot believe anyone would find a clif bar unappealing.

In fact, clif builder bars are one of my favorite "affordable" protein bars (although they might be a little heavy on the soy if I remember correctly).

And not to go off track, but any excess macronutrient (protein, carbs, and fat) will be converted to stored energy (in fat cells) if it is not used by the body. With 1 g of fat having 9 calories as opposed to 4 for carbs and protein, most of the food I take on backpacking trips is pretty fat-heavy (although carbs provide a great source of fast energy) with a decent ratio of protein.