You’ve probably seen the advertisements for the new diet bars sold under the brand Fullbar®, which were developed by Dr. Michael A. Snyder, a weight loss surgeon. According to Dr. Snyder’s website, people who eat two of these bars every day lose an average of 40% of their excess body weight in just three months.
Do they really work?
There’s really only two ways to find out -
- spend almost $200 to buy a case of real FullBar cookies all wrapped up in fancy wrappers,
- or just make some yourself.
You can find my recipe for “Fake FullBars” here. They use the same ingredients as the real ones, but cost a fraction of the price of Dr. Snyder’s diet bars.
And after you try your first batch, come back here and tell us if they worked. And we’d like to know what you think of the real FullBar diet bars too, if you’ve already tried them. So far, the reviews of the real FullBar diet bars on the blogosphere have been mixed – so we’d really appreciate your opinion.
I tried the “real” cookies, discovered the brown rice syrup bothered my stomach (12 pack for $20). Then I started to eat a 1/2 bowl of the cereal with unsweetened almond milk 1/2 hour before eating, became tired of that, so tried your recipe, but used only honey. Happy to say, lost 15 pounds since alternating cereal with cookies before meals. Thanks for recipe!
Thanks for the input, Deb. It’s great to get some real-world experiences to show the rest of us what works – and what doesn’t!
I had better results when I used oatmeal instead wheat in the recipe. Thanks for the recipe.
When I read the Fullbar ingredients, I though the same thing you did–why not make my own? Then I figured someone must have already thought of it, and found your web site. If you don’t want to use soy, you can use whey protein instead. The protein will help you feel fuller, but nuts and seeds do that, too, and they also have “good fats” in them. I’m also sensitive to wheat, so I was thinking of trying puffed rice or oatmeal. If you ate a handful of almonds and/or an apple with a big glass of water or non-fat milk before your meals, it would have the same effect, and provide you with healthy stuff you need anyway. (But I’m still going to try the bars!)
I just had my first (real) fullbar 23 minutes ago, and already feel like lunch has been “spoiled.”
I found them at Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market this morning–about $8 for a box of 6. The TV ads had aroused my interest to some extent, but not enough to even get me to the website. As soon as I bit into one, I thought “Puffed wheat, just like I had for breakfast when I was a child, because it was one of the few cereals that met my mother’s strict requirements–cheap and not full of sugar.”
Anyhoo, I assumed there would be a recipe somewhere on the web–the taste made me think these wouldn’t be hard to replicate. Being lazy, I checked the internet before trying to replicate these on my own. The recipe looks great! I will probably add peanut butter.
Hi
I can’t wait to try your recipe! I’ve been making a fake version of my own using puffed wheat in the rice krispy treat recipe instead of rice krispys. Its pretty good, but the marshmallows are super sticky and I worry about the sugar content…thanks!~Kris
Hello-first off thanks for the Fake Fullbar Recipe! I would like to add that I have tried the real Fullbar and it kept me full…sometimes feeling over full which is amazing for me. I have been morbidly obese since my 20′s. Because of the price, I could not keep buying them. Hence, my search for a recipe that would be close to it. I have made your Fake Fullbar recipe and while it was good and it did make me eat less at lunch and dinner, it did not have the same fullness affect that lasted between meals and kept me from snacking like the regular Fullbar did. In analyzing the ingredients, I noticed that your recipe does not include the Soy Protein Concentrate. While I try to steer clear of soy for my own personal reasons, I would like to add Designer Whey Protein to it to see if that added extra protein will help in keeping the “FULL” feeling even in between meals. So, with that being said…I have baked with whey protein but I wasn’t sure how to add it to this recipe. Or even how much to equal 5 g of protein per bar like the real Fullbar has. Can you help with that at all? I truly believe this is a great recipe and with the protein added, I do believe it will truly mimic the Fullbar.
Thanks again!!!
Tammy
Hi Tammy,
This is an interesting question, and I’m afraid I can’t answer it. I might be able to help you a bit with the portions, though. I checked the Designer Whey Protein website, which states that a “serving” of their product has 18 g of protein. Since you want only 5 g in each bar, each “serving” of the powder would be enough for 3.6 bars. The website doesn’t say how big a “serving” is, but they should tell you on the label. You could then determine how many bars you get out of each recipe, divide that number by 3.6, and add that many “servings” of protein powder along with the dry ingredients of the recipe.
That said, I have never tried it myself, so I have no idea what it will taste like. You might need to add more oil if the powder makes the mixture too dry.
If you try this, or come up with your own solution, please let us know!
Thanks Jonni for getting back to me. I am such a goof at “baking”…I only follow recipes. But your breakdown made sense (and so easy…like I said, “Goof”) so it looks like I would need about 7 scoops which would give a little more than 5 g of protein per bar. That seems like so much. Guess it will just take some experimenting but being on a really fixed budget, it’s hard to do that and risk messing up and having inedible bars! Would also be so much easier if they had whey protein in liquid form…that would be easier to mix together.
I will let you know when I try this. If anyone else is game, please let me know what you did and how it turned out! Thanks so much, Jonni, for the recipe you so freely provided and your blog!
Tammy
Hello,
I have been looking into the fullbars when i came across your recipe. I am going to try the recipe but had a few questions. First i was reading about the brown rice syrup and found someone suggested agave nectar. Do you now anything about agave nectar? Second in your recipe it says to cut into 24 squares. How big do you cut your squares?
Thank You Very Much
Have a Blessed Day!
Miss Katie
Hello,
It’s me again.lol I forgot to ask if you know if the ingredients are safe to consume while breastfeeding? My son is 15months and only breastfeeds at night or before nap time. Do you think it would be safe to add psyllium seed husk powder to the recipe? or do you think that would be too much fiber for “comfort”?
Thank you very much
Have a Blessed Day!
Miss Katie
Hi again. I’m afraid I can’t help you with the psyllium seed question. The best person to ask would be your medical advisor – someone who is very well informed about breast feeding issues.
Hi. I don’t know anything about agave nectar, except that it’s sweet. The concern I have with the entire fullbar issue is that the sweetness of the ingredients could cause someone to overeat if they’re addicted to sugar. Any sweet syrup, whether it’s natural or not, could trigger overeating with some people.
I think with my pan I was able to make three cuts in one direction and five in the other direction. That would give six bars on one side and four on the other, for a total of 24. If they seem too big, you could always cut them smaller.
Hi Katie and Jonni-
I use agave nectar all the time and I love it. While I don’t have diabetes, being obese, I would like to keep it that. Agave Nectar is considered a low Glycemic Index food in that it does not spike your blood sugar. I used it in the first bars I made rather than using honey.
I am researching alternative protein powders or liquids as I understand even whey protein “isolates” contain hidden MSG. Trying to do this all natural as much as possible. If I ever get something down pat that tastes good…HAS to be edible…I will share. Trying to match the 5 g of protein in the real Fullbars.
Take care!
Tammy
Fullbar does work. Made my own from my owwn recipe, not as good. Will try this recipe.
Found your blog while browsing Google. Bookmarked. Looking forward to more nutrition tips.
Does your Recipe hold together? Seems it might fall apart. Which ingredient binds it together? Let me know.
Yes, it stays together. The syrup is really sticky.
GREAT RECIPE!!! Thank you so much! I have never had a full bar so I don’t know how this compares but this recipe is awesome! I found your recipe while searching for unbiased reviews on the actual “full bar”. I decided I would try your recipe and if it worked possible buy a full bar to compare…that’s not going to happen! I am not going to waste money on a full bar when I can make your recipe that tastes wonderful! I am an avid baker so I am always looking for good tasting treats…this not only is good tasting but it fills me up like I had an entire meal! I couldn’t believe it! I followed the recipe almost completely. I added less honey and I added a cup of dried cranberries which only added about 16 calories a bar. The cocoa is a great addition and I would suggest using it though it is optional. thanks again!
great recipe and the process you have given to weight loss is also very helpful. I think that will also help me to loss my weight and stay fit.
I tried this recipe for the first time, substituting a 1/2C Craisins and 1/2C walnuts for 1C of the puffed wheat. I had one and made my morbidly obese husband eat one with a large glass of water 1/2 hour prior to dinner. So far, so good. He thought they were really good and loved the idea of dessert before dinner. Then I served chicken noodle soup. We both ate about 1/2 of what we would normally eat for dinner, leaving out the standard bread, crackers and beverage. Weird.
The bars were very tasty, and I will definitely try adding combinations of ingredients to keep them interesting. I cannot wait to see if they make a difference in our eating habits and overall weightloss efforts. Stay tuned!
I want to try this recipe but I would like to add protein to it. any suggestions? Thanks!
The ingredient list on the “real” fullbars includes soy protein. I didn’t include it my made-up recipe, but you could certainly experiment with it and add the soy protein along with the dry ingredients. Let us know how they turn out.
I use Whey protein a lot before and after my bodybuilding routines. Whey helps a lot in building muscles.’*,
Wondering what type of MRP to use? I battle with losing weight. I have tried an MRP for 1 or 2 dishes and a single meal a day. Imagining it might at the very least jump begin to inspire me regarding the fat reduction procedure.
I make my own frozen diet meals.
I have concerns with soy (as it seems a few others do), and can not use any dairy products, so whey is out of the question…
so I think I’ll make the recipe with rice protein powder (and probably with seeds and peanut butter, as well) to see how that works.
Also, I wanted to comment on the agave nectar discussion. While it is a low glycemic index food I just found research that notes that it is EXTREMELY high in fructose and comes with all the related ill-effects (google the articles for more information).
I love agave nectar, but will probably be searching for a new sweetener besides that (and honey), too.
Diet decisions are always so difficult, aren’t they?
Suki
Hey! Just had my first real full bar – haven’t had dinner yet, but thought it was the puffed wheat and went searching for the recipie. It seems to me, that if the soy protein is added and you potentially switch out some of the alternative recipies, then could have a meal replacement bar, wholly nutrional and at roughly 150/bar. Sounds perfect for my style. I can’t wait to make a batch. At 40 BMI i’m teetering the line of gastric bypass, but really do not want surgery.
THANKS!
Hi Heather. I’m not so sure about the meal replacement – no leafy greens in the recipe, so it probably doesn’t have everything you need to stay healthy. Let us know if it actually helps you eat less at mealtime, like they say it’s supposed to.