We spoke to Styrkr’s Head of Sports Nutrition, Leon Veal, about the process of creating our revolutionary new energy bar.
“We had lots of interest from our customers about creating solid foods to complement our gels, salts and drinks products.” says Leon, “so we began to research the possibilities. We noticed a gap in the market: current products either compromised taste or usability, functionality or durability. There was no one bar to rule them all. So we got to work.”
“Our brief was tough but simple: our bar had to be durable, fast-acting, effective, delicious, fulfilling yet light all at once.”
“After much deliberation, we decided to model Styrkr’s first foray into solid energy food on the traditional rice bar used historically by cyclists,” he continues.
“The premise was to make something that was light enough to carry, durable enough to last, soft enough to chew and delicious enough to be truly satisfying and help fight flavour fatigue.”
“They also had to provide a highly effective source of carbohydrates for athletes in a race/training scenario and be durable enough to withstand the rigours of long adventures/races.”
How did we do it
“In terms of the actual process of making the bars, we researched the current bars on the market versus the needs of the athlete,” Leon continues. “We then explored delivery systems and how quickly we could deliver those carbs to riders and athletes during racing/training.”
“We made several prototypes of different bars. These were tested extensively by a range of athletes for durability, effectiveness and taste/flavour. A significant number of top athletes – including Ed Laverack, Rich Gill, Francis Cade, Chris Hall, Sam Andrews, James Turner, Celina Hanson, Marie-Louise Kertzman and Jake Vita – gave feedback and rated the bars on a number of critical aspects. The results indicated clear winners in each category. It’s these iterations that form the BAR50’s available today.”
“During the process we also settled on using glucose as our primary carb to ensure that the carbohydrates were delivered quickly and effectively when athletes need them most.”
“Finally, the bars then underwent refining and the final version sent to our athletes for final validation. After a few rounds of refining, the perfect bar was born and released out into the market.”
The final product
BAR50 is a nutritionally complete, high-energy snack that contains a perfectly balanced amount of carbs, proteins, fat and fibre. Revitalising and flavourful, it has been engineered to help boost energy, combat tiredness and fight flavour fatigue on longer adventures.
Every BAR50 contains:
50g+ of carbohydrates – Perfect high-energy snack to maintain your hourly carbohydrate goals
250kcal per bar – Each bar provides 250kcal, ideal for quick-release firepower
High electrolytes – Helps improve hydration and prevent muscle cramp
Soft, chewy and durable – A soft, chewy texture that’s pleasing to eat, but dense enough to pack a powerful punch
Fast, light and natural – Created using puffed rice and all natural ingredients, BAR50 is fast to digest and easy on the gut
Vegan and gluten-free – Vegan Society registered and gluten-free, so you never have to compromise your regime.
Thanks to everyone involved.
