energy bars

[dave rockness]

Any thoughts on energy bars?  How good are they in supplementing one's diet?  Are there certain brands that fit best within a marathon runner's training plan?  If so, which brands?  If so, when is the best time to eat them? 

For those who discourage energy bars, what "snacks/energy boosts" do you use to serve the same purpose?  I am becoming more serious towards my training diet and appreciate any insightful input.

[Sasha Pachev]

All they ever gave me was a root canal job. I have not had any tooth problems since I stopped eating them. Supposing that I could figure out a solution for the teeth, the cost is crazy. Barely enough for one bite is a couple of bucks!

I just eat honey/peanut butter sandwiches and bananas when I am hungry. Powerade when I feel a serious blood sugar drop.

[James Winzenz]

I used to be a big fan of the Clif bars, but have recently found something even better:  Odwalla bars!  Not only do they taste fantastic (try the berries gomega one), but they are soft, easy to eat and go down well.  I haven't tried all of them, the only ones I have tried are the strawberry pomegranete and berries gomega.  I have no desire to try any chocolate or other flavors, and my little brother told me that the banana nut bar wasn't very good.  But I have found something I really like and it works well for me.  I typically eat an odwalla bar between 1-2 hours before a race, depending on how long the race is.

[adam]

I like the powerbar harvest bars. If you can get past the usual powerbar taste they are pretty good.