Our latest Taste of Home Award winner is going to help you get out of bed in the morning.
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All my life, I’ve never been a huge morning person. Everyone keeps telling me that one day I will magically start waking up at 7 a.m., but that has yet to be the case. I still have to set my alarm to wake up in time for work, which also means that I usually skip breakfast in favor of a few cups of coffee.
I know that this is not sustainable—my dietitian has made that clear—but I am endlessly frustrated by all this “routine math” that involves figuring out sleeping, eating and workout schedules. Don’t even get me started on factoring in a shower!
There is no “magic pill” solution to my quandary. At least, that’s what I told myself until I spotted a new box in the granola bar aisle at Jewel-Osco, my local grocery store. I saw these Nutri-Grain Crunchy Granola Bars and was intrigued. Maybe my complex problem could be solved with a simple solution.
Taste of Home Award
Nutri-Grain Crunchy Granola Bars
I Never Thought Granola Bars Were My Jam
To me, a granola bar evokes a school lunchbox snack, or a last-minute bite you shove into your purse as you head to the airport. And oftentimes, granola bars are either totally bland or overly sweet. They mostly serve as something to tide you over until your next “real” meal. I had certainly never considered them for breakfast before.
In my ideal life, I jump out of bed and onto my Peloton bike with little issue. But in reality, I’m someone who needs to eat before working out, or else I get very dizzy; and if I eat too close to a workout, I get nauseous. Because of that, the “most important meal of the day” usually brings on a bunch of stress as I try to get the timing and quantity just right. This is why it’s so easy to skip my morning workout.
However, exercise always puts me in a better mood, and I’m much more productive and creative at work when I do it. So I had been trying to find a breakfast I could eat beforehand that would fuel me just right.
These Crunchy Granola Bars Caught My Eye
When I spotted these granola bars on the store shelves, the flavors stood out to me immediately: Chocolate Chip Chia and Honey Oat Flax. As someone who loves incorporating chia and flax seeds into my meals for their nutritional value, I loved seeing these ingredients in granola bar form. When I flipped over the box, I saw that each serving contains 4 grams of fiber and 3 grams of protein, which sounded like a great option for a quick breakfast—especially for me, the reluctant breakfast-eater.
While I like both flavors, the Chocolate Chip Chia is my favorite. Unlike other granola bars with chocolate, this one isn’t dunked or dipped; it just has small chocolate chips embedded into the bar. The mini chips offer flavor without being overpowering. And the texture of the bars really is crunchy—they’re not too crumbly, and they don’t feel like you’re going to break your teeth, which is a problem with some other crunchy granola bars.
These Granola Bars Have Changed My Morning Routine
Now, I don’t hit snooze seven times before waking up anymore. Three days a week, I set my alarm for 7 a.m. After I wake up, I walk over to my dresser and grab one of these Nutri-Grain Crunchy Granola Bars. I eat it while I pick out my workout clothes and get dressed. I take my dog for a walk around the block, then I hop on a Peloton ride at 7:30 a.m. for a quick workout before a shower.
It might seem silly that such a simple solution made me a morning workout person, but I’m not going to dwell on it. Being able to get something in my system before working out has helped me avoid any dizziness, and it’s not so filling that I get nauseous. These granola bars have fit so seamlessly into my routine that I genuinely can’t remember what I did without them, and that’s why they’ve earned a spot on our list of Taste of Home Awards. Keeping a box in my bedroom might seem odd, but it totally works for me—and that’s all that matters.
I found these at Jewel-Osco, which is owned by Albertsons. According to Nutri-Grain, the granola bars are rolling out to Kroger, Walmart and Target this spring and summer, so keep an eye out on your next grocery store visit. That is, unless I buy them all first!
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