Healthy Store Bought Granola Bars For Kids
This list of healthy store bought granola bars for kids features top picks for snack bars from a Registered Dietitian. All have seven grams of added sugar or less and include some protein and fiber.
Hi friends!
This list of healthy store bought granola bars for kids comes highly requested and quite honestly has really been a labor of love. I spent hours looking at nutrition labels of various granola and snack bars on the market, analyzing the label, reading the ingredients and researching all the options. And believe me, there are A LOT of bar options out there. While I typically don’t recommend a bar every single day, I recognize that they’re convenient and that there are some nutritious options out there that can fit nicely in a child’s diet. So I did my research and wanted to help cut through the clutter and give you some good options.
Like anything when it comes to feeding your kids, you are in charge. Do your own research. Read the labels. Check out the ingredients. Then decide what you feel comfortable feeding your kids.
Similar to what I discussed in my Lower Sugar Cereals for Kids guide, for posts like this, there has to be a cutoff. Otherwise, the list would be too large and overwhelming. Similarly, this is not an all-inclusive list. There are just too many options out there to cover them all.
So here are the criteria I used for my list:
Sugar:
7g or less added for the main list
10g or less for alternates
It’s sometimes hard to determine how much is added versus natural. That’s why the new nutrition labels that break out added sugar will be helpful. Some bars are already using them so if the amount of added sugar was specifically noted, I’ve listed that in the table below. In the meantime, you can look at the order of ingredients in the ingredient list. If sugar is listed before fruit, you can assume that more of the sugar is added.
Calories:
160 cal or less for the main list
200 or less for alternate
I typically don’t like to focus on calories, but since most bars are used as a snack, I think it’s important to at least consider them. For the main list, calories range from 100-160. If a bar has 100 calories or less, you may need to pair it with another snack depending on age/size/activity level of the child because it likely won’t do much to help keep them full or satisfied.
Fiber and Protein:
At least 2 grams of each for the main list (except the pressed fruit bars)
Note that fiber can come from oats, fruit, nuts/seeds, but in some bars, it is added in the form of inulin, chicory root etc. Similarly, protein can come from whole ingredients or it can be added in the form of whey protein, egg powder, etc.
Also, I didn’t include sodium in my considerations but I think it’s worth noting that some bars have higher amounts than others.
I did my best to choose bars with ingredients I think are wholesome. Is every single ingredient in each bar on this list perfect? No. But overall, I feel like the ingredient lists are good. If you’re overly concerned with ingredients, you may be better off making your own bars at home!
Many of the bars on the list come in multiple flavors. For this list, I’ve picked one flavor of each. Remember that sometimes other flavors might have differences in ingredients, amount of sugar, etc. You can compare nutrition labels and ingredients between flavors on the websites,
Healthy Store-Bought Granola Bars For Kids
- Rx Bar Kids Double Chocolate
- Larabar Mini Peanut Butter Cookie
- Larabar Fruit and Greens Strawberry Spinach Cashew
- HappyTot Strawberry Banana Sunflower Seed Butter Oat Bar
- Happykid Fruit and Oat Bars Apple Cinnamon
- Thunderkids Peanut Butter and Jelly
- Skout Apple Cinnamon Energy Bar
- 18 Rabbits Jr Dark Chocolate Cherry Chia Cranberry
- Matt ‘n Mikes Superkid Bars Raspberry
- Health Warrior Chia Bar Chocolate Peanut Butter
- KIND Healthy Grains Cinnamon Oat
- Kashi Chewy Peanut Peanut Butter
- My Supersnack Chocolate Chip Granola Bar
- Nature’s Path Envirokidz Chewy Strawberry
- Bobo’s Original Chocolate Chip Oat Bites
- Happytot Fiber and Protein Banana Carrot Bar
- 88 Acres Cinnamon Oat Seed Bar
- Enjoy Life Crispy Grain and Seed Chocolate Marshmallow
- Pressed by KIND Strawberry Apple Cherry Chia
- That’s It Fruit Bar Apple Blueberry
- That’s It Probiotics Blueberry
- Perfect Kids Bar Chocolate Chip
- Nature’s Path Love Crunch Dark Chocolate with Red Berries Granola Bar
- Kashi Chewy Nut Butter Bars Salted Caramel Pecan
- Clif Kid Z Bar Filled Double Peanut Butter
Alternates (higher added sugar, less protein and/or fiber, some higher calorie:
- Nature’s Path Sunrise Trail Mixer Chewy
- Kashi Strawberry Breakfast Bar
- Cascadian Farms Chewy Dark Chocolate Chip
- Nothin But Bars Cherry Cranberry Almond
- Nature’s Path Sunrise Chewy Dark Chocolate Chip
- Nature’s Bakery Fig Bars Original
- Cascadian Farms Crunchy Oats and Honey
- Clif Kid Z Bar Chocolate Chip
Here are a few where the ingredients are fine for the most part but I don’t really feel like they’re worth eating. They’re quite low in calories and don’t really offer anything in the way of fiber or protein so they won’t be very satisfying or have a lot of staying power:
- KIND Kids Chewy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
- Little Ducks Organics Blueberry Kale Fig Bar
- Annie’s Chewy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
- Cascadian Farms Kids Chewy Oatmeal Raisin
And finally, there are some common brands or brands that were recommended to me that I just wasn’t crazy about. Some were higher in sugar than my 10g cutoff for the alternate list. Again, it’s hard to tell what’s added so the added number might be lower, but in many cases, sugar was listed as an ingredient before fruit indicating to me that most of the sugar is added. Some were just mostly sugar with no real nutritional value.
- Made Good
- Don’t Go Nuts
- Larabar Kids
- Plum Organics
- Ellas Nibbly Fingers
- Nature Valley Crunchy
Because I wanted to make this list as helpful as possible, I’ve also made you a table. It includes the number of calories, grams of sugar, fiber and protein and the ingredients of the flavor on the list. Hopefully, that will make it easier for you to quickly compare different bars and look at the areas of nutrition that are most important to you so you can make the best decision for your family!
To see the full spreadsheet, click here!
In the name of research, I took all three kids to several grocery stores this week so we could buy a bunch of bars and sample them! It would be too hard to taste all of them on the list but Squish and I tasted a few! He liked the Nature’s Bakery Fig Bars, plus the Stuffed Clif Bars, the Enjoy Life bar and the Thunderbird bar. I liked the 88 Acres, Kind Healthy Grains, Pressed by KIND and the HappyTot Superfoods.
After I got home I realized the Purely Elizabeth one was 240 calories so it’s likely better suited for an adult but with only 7g of added sugar plus some protein and fiber it’d be a good one to try!
I think that’s it! Remember this isn’t an all-inclusive list and it’s just based on my opinion. You do you! Make choices you’re happy with feeding your family and let others do the same 
Enjoy!
–Lindsay–
Stay Backstage or Bring Out the Clowns
https://www.si.com/college-football/2019/04/16/strength-coaches-oregon-florida-maryland-aaron-feld
To say that I was upset when I read this poorly written and researched article is an understatement. It is an affront to all of us who care about the coaching profession. This is not coaching, what they are talking about is entertainment and cheerleading. I know many of you twenty & thirty something “strength coaches” see nothing bad in this because these guys are getting paid a lot of money. Making a lot of money does not define a profession, behavior and professional standards do. Look closely at this picture, it is Jimmy Radcliffe from University of Oregon watching the players he helped to mold into champions celebrating after winning the PAC XII championship to advance to the first BCS Championship game. A picture is worth a thousand words! Stay tuned we will be doing a GAINcast on the state of S&C with some ideas of where we need to go.
So you’ve popped that zit and shouldn’t have…now what?
You are fully aware that you need to stop prodding at that zit, but there it is, glaring back at you in the mirror, taunting you to do something, anything, to somehow fix the situation. Picking and squeezing at it until something emerges is never the best move—you know this, and yet, you continue. For what simultaneously seems like five hours or maybe five minutes, you’re stuck at the mirror, picking and prodding, with Lady Macbeth’s “out damn spot” monologue echoing in your head. You hate what you’re doing as you’re doing it, and before you realize it, you’ve created a mountain from a molehill, the damage has been done, and it’s too late to go back.
“The goal here is obviously to learn from the mistake so that it doesn’t happen again, but also, to make a pimple less noticeable,” says celebrity esthetician Renee Rouleau. “Depending on where the blemish is in its life cycle, you’ll want to treat the infection, and use a product that creates a seal over the texture.”
If your pimple is going through its scabby, flaky phase, Rouleau recommends using a product like her Daytime Blemish Gel ($40) to help simultaneously smooth over the texture and keep bacteria at bay, but if you’re in a pinch, a few drops of water and the curve of a spoon can do the trick. “When the skin is crusty and flaky, the cells have dried in that position and are pointing upwards, trying to shed off,” she explains. “The goal here is to try and flatten the area, so before you apply sunscreen, re-moisten the area with water, then rock the curved edge of a spoon back and forth to push those cells down so that they dry in a flatter position.” From there, you can color-correct and conceal as needed.
If your blemish hasn’t yet dried up and is still oozing, well, that’s another story. Applying pressure to the area with a tissue in-hand could help to slow it down, but if the pimple shows no sign of drying up, leave it uncovered, and conceal it once the floodgates close. Attempting to apply product over an area where the skin will only result in frustration, wasted product, and rolling in late to work because of makeup. “When it’s in its oozing state and is open, you don’t want makeup interfering with that,” Rouleau says. “There isn’t really a safe intervention to stop it from leaking altogether, so just let the skin close on its own, then apply an antibacterial spot treatment to control the infection.” Once it does dry, practice Rouleau’s spoon trick (if needed), applying concealer over the top.
It goes without saying but, ensuring the spot properly heals is the most important thing you can do. Rouleau advises treating the area just as you would any other injury—keep it clean and hydrated until the skin closes and the infection is gone. Should a dark, post-blemish mark remain, try using a spot fading treatment to even out the pigmentation. We’re big fans of Peace Out Skincare Dark Spot Brightening Dots ($28), which are equipped with tiny, painless, microneedling points to guarantee the niacinamide and licorice extract penetrate at a deeper level to work their magic.
Next time a spot does pop up, take a beat before you attack the situation with the nails on your pointer fingers, breathe, and remember the lessons you learned the first time around. Aside from the immediate damage you could do to your skin, Rouleau notes that the results of picking at your skin can often resurface in the form of hyperpigmentation, which will be another battle you may eventually have to deal with. Try keeping your hands distracted if you find yourself unintentionally going for a raised area on your skin, and repeat after us ― no matter how angry, stubborn, and obnoxious the pimple on your face happens to be, dealing with an open wound and waiting for it to heal will probably be worse.
BTW, here are 8 acne-fighting ingredients to slather on if a pimple pops up and here’s how to cover a pimple up with makeup.
Total Body Workout Made Easy
Total Body Workout Made Easy
This is probably the time when you started a new workout plan but already you are feeling that is starting to become stagnant and affecting your motivation in a negative way so I thought I’d bring to light a new total body workout plan.
The goal of this total body workout plan is to increase your strength, activate your core and really engage all your major muscle segments. Some of you may really believe that you have to be in the gym 5-6 days a week to see results but the best part of this plan is that because it is fatiguing all your muscles you can get away with doing this workout 3 days a week and still see some stellar results.
If you already have a 3 day workout plan in place then you can simply add this workout in once a week to make sure you are constantly shocking your muscles because the huge benefit is that it will also cause you to burn fat at a much more accelerated pace in order to keep up with these changes.
Are you ready for it?
The Total Body Workout
This workout is suitable for both men and women, and although men may feel a little more comfortable with some of these exercises I highly recommend it to women as well because resistance training with weights will help build bone density and prevent problems later in life (i.e. osteoporosis).
Since there are only 7 exercises in total you are going to go fairly heavy reaching for 8 reps if you are female and 6 reps if you are male. In other words, you know you are using the right weight because the last rep will be almost impossible to finish.
7 minute light jog on treadmill to warm you up
4 sets of Barbell Squats (first one being a lighter warm-up set) (view image)
4 sets of Dumbbell Presses (first one being a lighter warm-up set) (view image)
3 sets of Shoulder Press (view image)
4 sets of Seated Cable Rows (view image)
3 sets of Barbell Curls (view image)
3 sets of Triceps Pushdown (view image)
3 sets of Ab Twists with Medicine Ball (view image)
7 minute interval training on treadmill to complete the workout
Remember: You can do this total body workout 3 days a week with a day of rest in between, or you can simply add it to your current routine to take you out of a plateau and allow you to see greater muscle tone and less body fat.
Supplements to Boost your Total Body Workout Results
There are a few staple supplements which have been proven to work for both men and women when it comes to boosting their workout results especially for those who are running around all the time and don’t have the time to always have a perfect diet…
- Complete multi-vitamin to feed your muscle tissue & energy pathways (Try: Optimum Super-Multi Pak)
- Pre workout energy supplement for motivation boost (Try: USPLabs Jack3d)
- Whey Protein for lean muscle development (Try: Optimum Platinum Hydrowhey)
- Branch Chained Amino Acids for muscle recovery (Try: Scivation Xtend)
Conclusion: Total Body Workout Made Easy
It really doesn’t get much easier than this total body workout routine because it will activate all your muscles and push you to your max very quickly within a few minutes of the workout. Just remember to give yourself at least a day off until you do this workout again as the recovery time for your muscles will be a key part of providing you with the optimal results.
Have any questions or feedback about this Total Body Workout? Please leave a comment below…
The post Total Body Workout Made Easy appeared first on Weight Loss & Training.
Rucking: My Active Recovery by Hannah Crooks
I recall my first Tough like it was yesterday. It was a Zombie-themed event in St. Augustine and at the time I had no idea what I was getting into, but I loved the fact that it would require and test not only physical ability but also mental strength and resilience. And that it …
Easter Weekend Workouts
Daisy Mae had a great first ever Easter weekend out at Grandma’s farm.That allowed me to hit one of my best lower body sessions in a while back in the garage gym.1a) KB Swings1b) Front Squats2a) Bulgarian Split Squats2b) Ab RolloutsThen, after lots of chocolate for me and dog runs with Daisy, it was back to Toronto for an upper body session today – which was also good.1a) DB Chest Press1b) DB
Cadre Aaron Forum & Shoot Center
“It’s my personal goal to expose 1 Million+ people to firearms safety training.” -Aaron Forum, Owner/Operator Shoot Center Back in 2017, we stopped by Fort Myers to say hi to longtime friend and cadre, Aaron, and check out the progress on building his new indoor shooting range, Shoot Center. Now, almost 2 years later we …
The Definitive Guide to Making the Best Camp Coffee
THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO MAKING THE BEST CAMP COFFEE
To some, it’s an art form and to others, it’s a practical way to stay warm and energized. No matter how you look at it, making a great cup of camp coffee is an essential part of your morning ritual while camping. Even though it’s simple (hot water + coffee beans = coffee) there seem to be a hundred different ways to brew a cup of camp coffee
As lovers of both coffee and the outdoors, we at Bearfoot Theory decided to break it down and see just how many ways you can make a fresh cup of java while car camping or backpacking.
Ready to get your morning buzz? Here’s your official guide to camp coffee.
Different Ways to Make Camp Coffee
Instant Coffee
Instant coffee is the best way to brew a cup of coffee while backpacking because it’s easy to pack, dissolves completely and creates one tiny piece of waste. No coffee grinds, filters or extra beans to worry about storing!
We love Alpine Start for a solid cup of instant coffee (the dirty chai is amazing!). Kim, BFT’s Community Manager who is lactose-free and has to be cautious with powered coffees gave their Coconut Creamer Latte 2 thumbs up on a recent backpacking trip. Their coffee is strong and makes a larger cup than other instant coffees we’ve tried.
The Bearfoot Theory Outdoor Adventurers Facebook community are superfans of Maxim Gold Instant Coffee. It’s only $20 for 100 packs and it already has a little cream and sugar mixed in. I usually like to double up on the Maxim for strength and put two packets per cup of coffee.
French Press
Using a french press to make your camp coffee is an easy method when you are car camping and have enough storage space. This requires carrying coffee grounds and a measuring spoon to add the coffee rather than the convenience of instant coffee. Although it is not a lot, you want to take into account that it adds more weight to your pack and will need a good rinse to wash away coffee grounds when you’re done. Remember to align with the Leave No Trace Principles when disposing of your coffee grinds at the campsite–that means pack them out! (This is the reason we prefer instant coffee for backpacking).
Snow Peak makes a great lightweight, stainless steel french press option that won’t break under pressure and will make you a solid cup. Or if you have a JetBoil you can buy a French Press attachment that can turn your JetBoil into a French Press.
Coffee Percolator
This method is also known as Cowboy Coffee. When you’re brewing a pot or making coffee for a crowd, a coffee percolator like this one from GSI Outdoors will help keep you caffeinated at the campsite. Since this is a little bulkier, it’s not ideal for backpacking, as it requires more water and coffee grinds—so stick to using the percolator while car camping. It’s great for large groups!
Aeropress
You might already know our love affair with the Aeropress, if not, you can read all about the Aeropress here. As far as brewing methods go, the Aeropress is our favorite gear for a delicious cup of camp coffee on trail, in the van, and even at home. It makes a strong cup of coffee and cleanup is a cinch. Plus, it’s lightweight, inexpensive and a whole lot of fun since it’s super easy to use. Pick up the AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker for yourself and let us know how it goes!
Pour Over
The classic pour over is a quick and easy way to get your caffeine fix while camping. This simple setup only requires a mug and the top coffee brewer that are lightweight and easy to clean. However, consider yourself warned: uneven, rocky or grassy surfaces are prime coffee spilling spots, so pour your camp coffee with care! This lightweight pour over coffee maker by GSI Outdoors is great for backpacking.
The Ins & Outs of Making Coffee While Camping
How to Boil Water
The best way to boil water for your morning cup of camp coffee is with a portable, lightweight stove like the Jetboil Flash Stove which is a compact and efficient piece of gear for backpacking and car camping. If you’re in need of a bigger stove and a bigger pot of coffee, check out the Camp Chef Everest.
Read our complete guide to finding the best backpacking stove
How to Properly Dispose of Coffee Grounds While Camping
In every situation, it’s important to carry in and carry out all trash, waste and food scraps in accordance with the Leave No Trace Principles. If you have leftover coffee grounds from brewing coffee while backpacking or car camping simply bring a sealable bag or container to store them in until you can properly dispose of them in a trash can. This ensures the area will be just as you found it and that you won’t attract hungry critters looking for a caffeine fix.
Freshly-Ground Beans v. Pre-Ground Beans
For some folks, freshly-ground coffee is necessary for the kitchen and at the campsite. Not surprisingly, bringing whole beans will take up more room and you’ll need a coffee grinder to brew your coffee. So for freshly-ground coffee purists, grab the GSI Outdoors Java Mill, a lightweight, and portable coffee grinder. Otherwise, a bag of pre-ground coffee will for sure get the job done. For an easy space-saver and pre-measure the coffee beforehand so that you only bring what you need.
A Few More of Our Favorite Camp Coffee Must-Haves
What’s your favorite way to make camp coffee? Leave a comment below or join the Bearfoot Theory Outdoor Adventurers Facebook Group!
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The post The Definitive Guide to Making the Best Camp Coffee appeared first on Bearfoot Theory.