Review: Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bar & I Am No Body Builder
JFG Nation, over the years I’ve noticed that a lot of people who follow me on Instagram or Twitter are people who like to work out – crossfit people, workout junkies, flexible dieters, fitness models both male and female, etc. It makes sense – besides the hashtag games that people play, the food world has changed where fit people have been able to incorporate indulgences into their diets.
For me, as the creator of this site, it’s a very interesting audience because I myself am no body builder. And I don’t say that smugly – I know of several junk food fast food blogs where the creators are fit maniacs and I am in awe of them. I know of a few junk food blogs that go the entire opposite direction – they embrace their inner and outer fat kid and I love that too. Me? I’ve always been stuck in the middle, and trust me I am not someone who has a particularly fast or slow metabolism. I would love to workout more, but just…haven’t. I’m definitely one of those people who is like “I just got through two weeks on P90x and I feel great!” followed by “I’m going to nap for ten days.”
Which brings us to today’s product, these Quest bars. I’ve eaten protein bars in the past, but mainly to get through a long day of trial as an attorney. Most of these bars, like CLIF bars, are fine – serviceable in my eyes. I know these Quest bars, however, have a reputation of tasting the best out of the protein bar category. At least that’s what all the fellow foodie workout people say on Instagram.
So when Quest sent me these, I wasn’t sure what to think…am I the right person to be reviewing these, since I’ve only tried one other Quest bar in the past? Is this junk food or more of an indulgence for fit people? I wrestle with these questions because I’m TRYING not to be a fraud…so tell me in the comments below: are you a fit person? Whatever the answer to that question is, second: how would a bar like this fit into your life? Indulgence? Health food? Junk food? And if you’re a fan of Quest, why? How do these compare to other protein bars? Educate me, JFG Nation. I’ll do my best to give an honest opinion of these.
Today’s review: Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bar!
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bars were sent to me by Quest who says this is part 2 of a new flavor trilogy from Quest Labs.
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bars is launching on September 7, so…..actually I’m not sure if I’m even supposed to be writing about these right now. Did I blow the secret, Quest? I have no idea.
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bars seem to have a good amount of fiber and very low sugar. It has both stevia and sucralose inside.
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bar recipes????? What the – has anyone done this? Made other foods OUT OF Quest bars???
They sent me a whole box of these Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bars, which made the workout people in my office very very happy. Christmas in August.
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bars smelled exactly like blueberry muffins when I opened the package. Sort of artificial in how spot-on it was, but a pleasant aroma nonetheless.
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bar – side view.
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bar – top view.
Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bars had what looked like dried blueberries and chunks of muffin embedded into the bar itself. I bit into it – it had the familiar protein bar chewiness I’ve come to expect from a protein bar. The flavor was… Pretty good! The blueberry muffin flavor came out right away, and the bar wasn’t super sweet at first (which sort of matches how real blueberry muffins taste.)
Instead, the more I chewed this Quest Blueberry Muffin Protein Bar, the more the sweetness came out, pushing the blueberry flavor to the forefront. Not bad. The muffin-looking chunks sort of represented the thicker muffin top feel of a regular blueberry muffin. My only complaint was that the aftertaste had a definite artificial sweetener flavor but I’ve come to find that with many protein bars.
BUT in terms of the blueberry muffin flavor, they did a pretty good job. Definitely one of the better protein bars I’ve ever had, frankly. The other Quest bar I’d eaten was more chocolate-flavor-based, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I like this one though – the protein solids gave the whole thing a creamy flavor, which I think matches better in the choco-bars, but this was very very good.
Thanks for letting me try this, Quest! I hope I didn’t spoil any surprises :/
Purchased at: Sent to me, launches September 7.
Cost: Whatever Quest bars usually cost
Sincerely,
The JFG
Discuss - 13 Comments
I consider myself a fit person, and I see Quest Bars as a permissable indulgence, like a high-protein candy bar that tastes good but I don’t feel guilty about eating. Pro tip: Nuke your Quest Bar in the microwave for like 7-10 seconds to soften it up. It becomes a fork-and-knife operation but tastes even better in my opinion.
I have Quest bars only occasionally because they are so expensive, but the major pro for me (apart from the good taste of most of them) is that they are one of the few brands without soy, and I cannot have any soy because of a medicine. I am a very active, generally fit person, but not a weight-lifter type, so I’m not after that aspect of it so much.
I used to be super fit (sort of let myself go the last year or so after a trip to Italy, Italy is one big carb IMO) and I would eat these and their protein chips on a regular basis. My favorite is the chocolate chip cookie dough. 100% agreed with Monica above, nuke them for a couple of seconds and they are much better.
I do a pretty challenging outdoor bootcamp class 6 days a week. Im fit but not as thin as I could/should be. I like snacks! But I do eat a quest bar every single day between breakfast and lunch. Chocolate brownie is my favorite. Helps me control my cravings for chocolate candy.
I am a fit person…. now. I used to eat just literally whatever I wanted (tons of sweets) and was at a fine weight when I was in college (but not fit or healthy) and then gained 30-40 pounds when I started working (I guess as I got older). Now, I am back to my normal weight and actually fit – as in, I actually can do things that I love – run, bike, rock climb, etc. That’s what keeps me motivated – to be able to do all these things.
So, that being said, this bar, unfortuantely, would not fit into my lifestyle, as my thing about eating healthy is real food and really watching my added sugar – no processed stuff except for fun every once in a while, and if I wanted a fun junk food I probably wouldn’t pick a protein bar! I don’t really buy into protein bars/energy bars – to me they are just pretty much candy bars, rebranded, and not as good.
I love your blog, by the way! When I do have junk food every once in a while, this is where I get some many of my ideas from (Cinnabon Oreos was the last one!). Plus, I think I live vicariously through you with all these yummy sweets!
@J
They’re not “as good” as candy bars because they are NOT candy bars. Look whats in them & the nutritional content- chances are this is cleaner than what 90% of people consider “healthy real food”
Respectfully disagree. Maybe it’s somewhat ‘cleaner’ but still tons of sugars (even if it’s in the form of ‘other’ sweeteners) and really processed. By ‘real’ food, I mean actual food, like nuts and nut butters and seeds and dried fruit (if you are talking high-energy food for hikes and long runs).
Nothing inherently wrong with food that is processed. Comes down to the sum of the parts. Hell, its nearly impossible to achieve adequate intake of vitamins & minerals without their addition in common foods during processing such as breakfast cereals.
5g counting sugar alcohols. Even if the other 3 non fiber carbs are high GI, 14g of fiber effectively negates that by slowing down digestion
Sorry if I seem like a jerk, but there is just as much scam and junk science being pushed on the public surrounding organic and all natural food and what constitutes “healthy” as there is by manufacturers of Twinkies, etc
Attempted to compete in Crossfit 2 years ago, competing in my first bodybuilding competition in 3 weeks. Raised on processed junk, work for Taco Bell. Food is food. Yes, there is a difference between chicken/broccoli/sweet potatoes and a Pop Tart. But deep down, they’re still food.
*Has not actually eaten a Pop Tart since March and has a box packed for the competition along with a package of Choco Chip Oreos*
Personally, I feel very different eating real whole foods. It may just be me, but for me it made a huge difference. I don’t believe food is food or calories are calories. I owe my current energy, fitness, etc. to what I eat for sure – that was my jumping off point, before activity or anything else. Your experience may be different – hey, whatever works
I eat bars daily (Quest bars, OhYeah ONE bars, B-Up bars, etc.) I’m very underweight, and protein bars are an easier way to help me get nourishment (macro-wise and fiber-wise). And they taste good. And you didn’t spoil any surprises with this bar – I’m not saying this to sound snobby, but I tried this bar MONTHS ago, when it was still a test product and didn’t have an official Quest label on it (I’m part of their Quest Labs program thing, haha). If you want any protein bar recommendations from the brands I listed above (and no, I don’t get paid or any other compensation whatsoever), I review a lot of them on my Instagram and I can give you top recommendations. I’m a bar queen, eating them daily 🙂
I’m the sort of person who does the absolute minimum of exercise and self-control required to stay in shape. I keep protein bars in my desk drawer because things always seem to get busy exactly at lunchtime (regardless of how I move lunchtime around), and I don’t do so well with being hangry. It’s for the good of all of us, really.
Consumer products are for whatever consumers care to buy them, really. I drink Gatorade as the occasional indulgence just because I like the taste of Gatorade. I buy the ridiculously huge protein bars with like 30g, intended for bodybuilders, because they’re more filling. I doubt the company would care that I’m a 5’3″ woman whose only heavy lifting is the occasional 50-lb. paper box.
These types of protein bars are fine, as long as you aren’t eating them constantly or using them to replace whole food meals.