Welcome to this review of the Muscle Pharm Combat Crunch Bars. Muscle Pharm is one of the most respected bodybuilding supplement companies in the world. They offer a full line of sports nutrition products like whey protein powder, pre-, post- and intra-workout supplements.

This product was developed to be a complementary supplement product to a bodybuilder’s normal supplement regime. If you have ever followed a strict diet for fitness purposes, you know how “taxing” it can become eating strict all the time. This product is designed to solve that problem. This product is a solution to that problem. (For more muscle building supplement product reviews from different brands, go here.)

Combat Crunch Bars Features & Benefits

One of the distinguishing features of the Muscle Pharm product line or company is that all of their products are produced in a GMP-certified facility. This is a high mark of distinction as it requires strict adherence to the guidelines set forth. Plus, it is not a one-time certification but an ongoing one. You can get an idea  as to the breadth of the guidelines here: http://www.auditing.com/audit_checklist_for_GMP.htm.

This is important to mention as supplement fraud has been a real problem in the past as discussed by the FDA here.

Let’s now talk about the specifics about this product. This protein bar, and it can be classified as such as it has 20 grams per bar, is meant to be a welcome substitute to those tired perhaps of taking protein powder drinks day after day. Besides the protein in the bar, it has clearly been designed with flavor  in mine, too.

The two flavors that are available currently, chocolate chip cookie dough and chocolate peanut butter cup are very tasty.

That ties in with its tagline or unique sales proposition, which is, “Delicious taste with only 210 calories; fueling sport with a multi-layer baked protein bar.”

Protein and energy bars are increasingly popular and are seen as meal replacement options as well as an alternative to traditional muscle building supplements. Muscle Pharm, and other supplement companies, want to capitalize on that.

In order for these products to work, they must have a strong nutritional profile. So, does this protein bar or energy bar product meet a standard where it could be used as a legitimate substitute? Let’s look at its nutritional profile. It has the following core profile:

• Calories — 210
• Carbohydrates — 28 grams
• Protein — 20 grams
• Sugars — 5 grams
• Fat — 7 grams

It also has calcium, iron and vitamins E and C. One thing of note is that it also has 5 grams of sugar and 459 milligrams of sodium and 39 milligrams of cholesterol.

What about its ingredient profile? Its ingredients are:

Protein Blend (Whey Protein Isolate, Milk Protein Isolate), Isomalto-Oligosaccharide (Prebiotic Fiber), Chocolate Chunks (Chocolate Liquor [Processed with Alkali], Sugar, Cocoa Butter, and Vanilla), Glycerin, Vegetable Oils (Palm, Palm Kernel Oil), Sugar, Almonds, Water, Soy Protein Isolate, Maltitol, and Cocoa (Processed with Alkali), Contains less than 2% of: Resistant Maltodextrin, Salt, Soy Lecithin, Natural Flavor, Sucralose, Vanilla, and Tapioca Starch.

One notable element is the protein blend of whey and milk protein isolates. It also has Isomalto-Oligosaccharide, which helps aid assimilation. It also has a lot of chocolate and cocoa as well as sugar, which undoubtedly gives it its superb flavors. This is the chocolate cookie dough option but the other chocolate peanut butter cup is identical with the exception of the non-inclusion of chocolate.

So, is this a legitimate substitute for most supplement products? The answer is that it is NOT a meal replacement nor is it a pre-, intra- or post-workout supplement per se. What it is is a healthy snack for intra-workout fatigue that also is healthy providing protein and a good dose of carbs to provide energy.

Currently, this product is only available in only two flavors, chocolate chip cookie dough (my personal favorite) and chocolate peanut butter cup. There is no word yet as to whether or not Muscle Pharm will produce other flavors like the Quest bars.

Combat Crunch Bars Price

The price range of this product is from $29.88 to $35.88 at this point in time. When Amazon suppliers began selling it, it will most likely be cheaper.

Guarantee

Muscle Pharm offers a guarantee on all their products if you buy from them. However, if you open the box, you will have to opt for another product of equal monetary value. The same guarantee basically is in place with buying directly from MusclePharm.

Combat Crunch Bars Customer Reviews

This is a new product but it’s already selling well. It’s already the #29 best selling product on bodybuilding.com. Currently, there are 34 customer reviews there giving the bars an average score of 9.8 out of a possible 10, which is outstanding. Below are a few testimonials outlining different experiences about the product.

Dvоhmаn
Thеѕе thіngѕ are аwеѕоmе!!! Muсh bеttеr соnѕіѕtеnсу and tаѕtе thаn Quest bаrѕ, аlthоugh Quеѕt ѕtіll hаѕ the аdvаntаgе of muсh grеаtеr variety. Thе peanut buttеr сuр is lіkе a giant реаnut buttеr cookie in bar fоrm with сhосоlаtе аnd сrіѕріеѕ on top. Gооd vаluе wіth the BOGO, nоt ѕurе аbоut where the рrісе wіll еnd uр аftеr іt іѕ over, thоugh. I love Muѕсlерhаrm рrоduсtѕ, аnd thіѕ іѕ dеfіnіtеlу up tо thе ѕtаndаrdѕ I hаvе come tо еxресt from thеm.
 
Phillipha
Thеу аrе vеrу сhеwу аnd crunchy at thе ѕаmе tіmе. Thе crunchy pieces оn top of thе bar rеаllу еnhаnсе thе еxреrіеnсе аnd make іt so much better. It is so hаrd tо оnlу еаt one аnd I wаnt to еаt 2-3 аt a tіmе. MusclePharm you dіd a grеаt job with thеѕе bars.
 
DеnnіѕGA
I аm very іmрrеѕѕеd with thе over whelming peanut butter tаѕtе thіѕ bаr hаѕ. I аm a huge peanut butter fаn and MuѕсlеPhаrm did a grеаt jоb getting the tаѕtе right оn thіѕ оnе. Thе bаr is аmаzіnglу very ѕоft аnd сhеwу аnd I саn’t gеt еnоugh оf thеm.
 
HenryMF
I have bееn a MuѕсlеPhаrm fan for a lоng tіmе аnd I аm glad thеу fіnаllу came оut wіth bаrѕ. I really love thе Cооkіе Dоugh it іѕ really chewy аnd thе сrunсh ріесеѕ оn tор just рut іt оvеr thе tор fоr me. I аm аlѕо glad nоw I dоn’t have to buу thе Met-RX bаrѕ anymore, аnd thіѕ wіll bе the оnlу bаr іn mу bag from nоw оn.

gjnr7522
Thеrе аrе all kіndѕ оf сrеаtіnе аnd protein рrоduсtѕ out thеrе. One nееdѕ their vіtаmіn c аnd vіtаmіn e. Everyone mау be lооkіng fоr a gооd fat burnеr or a weight lоѕѕ pill аt their local hеаlth fооd ѕtоrе. People trу their atkins dіеt аnd their nо2 ѕuррlеmеntѕ, but me, I wаnt tаѕtе. One nееdѕ a good nutrіtіоnаl ѕuррlеmеnt but thеу аlѕо nееd a tаѕtу оnе, too. Thіѕ gіvеѕ a nice jоlt аnd tаѕtе tоо. I dоn’t thіnk thеу hаvе to bе еxсluѕіvе.

GoiRish3
Bought bоth flavors but so fаr have оnlу tаѕtеd thе cookie dоugh. It tasted lіkе a candy bаr wіth a ѕlіght cookie dоugh flаvоr. Looked nothing lіkе thе рісturе. Was a lоt more thin. I rеаllу wаntеd tо trу these оut ѕо bаѕісаllу $15 buсkѕ a box wаѕ a gооd deal ( if уоu got the BOGO dеаl). Thе regular рrісе is thе dеаl brеаkеr for me. 30 buсkѕ fоr 12 bаrѕ? If уоu hаd оnе as a ѕnасk еvеrу dау іtd соѕt уоu 77.50 іn bаrѕ аlоnе a month. And they tаѕtе bеttеr than mоѕt snack bаrѕ ѕо іtѕ gоіng tо bе tough for me nоt tо dеvоur them. If рrісе іѕ nоt аn issue for you, order thеm thеу are рrеttу gооd edit: сhосоlаtе реаnut buttеr wаѕ рrеttу gооd аѕ wеll would рrоbаblу pick сооkіе dough over іt.

Pros?

• All products in the Muscle Pharm line are made in a GMP-compliant facility
• It is great tasting judging from the many reviews on the product
• It has 20 grams of protein per bar
• It has a probiotic blend to help with digestive assimilation

Cons?

• MusclePharm is offering only two different flavor options
• The product has sucralose in it (Splenda) an artificial sweetener
• The 210 calories per bar is high
• It has milk, soy, tree nut and peanut in it and is made in a facility that processes those foods and egg products as well
• It has a high degree of sugar (5 grams) and chocolate in the chocolate cookie dough option

Where Can I Buy It?

You can buy this product at bodybuilding.com or direct from MusclePharm. So, what’s the verdict? It’s a great product.  It is made in a facility that is GMP-compliant, which indicates high purity and by a company that seems to really value carefully made products. It taste great, too. Is it as good as others on the market? It certainly is competitive and will be so as time goes on. I think as the product becomes more popular, Muscle Pharm will produce more flavor options. I hope this review of the Muscle Pharm Combat Crunch Bars has been helpful to you.

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