I recently lost 20 pounds of quarantine weight and I am determined to keep it off. Actually I’m also determined to lose another 20 pounds because I gained 40 during quarantine.

I truly believe the real culprit of my unwanted pounds was stress eating on candy and chocolate bars. I mean what else are you going to do while hiding from the coronavirus and bingeing Netflix?

Since becoming more active and changing what I eat, I’ve seen the drastic change in my body’s size and shape. But what hasn’t changed, is my craving for sugary treats in between meals. And no, nature’s candy (fruit) just won’t cut it. I want chocolate and sugar in a bar like form.

I’m sure you’ve heard there are natural bars out there that are like candy but low calorie with real wholesome ingredients. I’ve gone through seasons where I’ve switched my family over to these types of bars instead of generic brand sugary granola bars. But often time no one eats it and then it’s all up to me to not let it go to waste. (And I’ll be honest, I don’t usually enjoy them).

I recently tried a product called Zing Bars and my intent was to try it myself and see if my kids would give it a shot. Then maybe convince my husband, (who’s the biggest lover of treats in our home), to give them a try as well. But instead here’s what happened…

A large box of Zing Bars came to our door. (You can order Zing Bars in large quantities which is ideal for big families like ours). This box contained Zing Bars of vastly different flavors, all 210 – 220 calories per bar, with mini bars at 100 calories. These bars all have a macro balance of fats, protein, and carbs and are all plant-based protein bars.

I warned my husband a box of Zing Bars would be coming to our door (and perhaps that was my first mistake). I expected to hear from him the moment he saw the box at our door. I didn’t. In fact, I heard the delivery truck pull up to our door, I heard the doorbell ring and I received no notice from my husband that our bars had arrived.

Later that day I looked into our fridge and found boxes of Zing Bars with a large portion of them gone. Then after my husband got home from work he rushed over to the fridge, grabbed all of the boxes and searched through them frantically. When I asked what he was doing he said he was looking for his favorite bars before anyone else got to them. I have a video of this entire scene- it’s hilarious. I’ll post this on our Instagram page.

Jesiah (my husband), doesn’t eat healthy bars. He eats a lot of candy bars and gummies. He will go on about how much he dislikes healthy bars. This is the first time I saw him eat healthy bars like this. And the kids followed suit.

Maybe it was because they knew Daddy liked it first. But my kids have been happily trying out new flavors of Zing Bars. There are times they find ones they don’t like but oddly enough they trade with each other and find that they like what the other didn’t. The best part is that they think they’re eating treats.

Zing Bars however are filled with healthy fats, non-GMO, with plant-based protein and good for you carbs! (The kind of carbs that don’t just stick to you but give you energy).

For my oldest daughter, these Zing Bars have been especially helpful with its healthy fats. Esperanza is 6 but has her daddy’s height, (Jesiah is 6’3), so she looks like she’s 9. Esperanza goes through these sudden growth spurts where she is constantly hungry no matter how much she eats. And you can tell she’s stretching out fast and getting skinny as she does.

These Zing Bars are healthy enough that I can encourage her to have them in between meals along with her usual snacks. The Zing Bars higher in calories are the ones she enjoys. They’re not very sugary so she’s not bouncing off the walls after eating them.

For me, I enjoy eating Zing Bars first thing in the morning and late at night. So, I am not a morning person. My brain is basically still sleeping even after my body is up. My kids are great at pouring their own cereal or putting peanut butter on toast for themselves. But for me, I can’t even muster the energy to figure out where the dishes are to put a meal together in the morning.

So I have my favorite Dark Chocolate Mint Zing Bar with a cup of coffee and I’m set for the day. If you’re not a morning person, dark chocolate will turn that around haha.

And with my decrease in calories as I lose weight I find myself starving at night. Completely out of the blue too. Like, I’m just getting comfortable in bed and ready to close my eyes when I’m suddenly dying of hunger.

These Zing Bars are so easy to hide under my bed or pillow. Especially the small ones. I get the ones with lower calories so I’m not over doing it at night, (because of course, your metabolism slows down at night).

These bars are a hit in our household! I love that we can order them through Amazon in bulk and they have all these unique flavors, so there’s something for each member of our family.

With the school year coming up this is especially an ideal snack for our home. We aren’t allowed products with nuts at school but nuts are an important source of protein and packed with so much wholesome goodness for kids. My kids have no nut allergies, so Zing Bars are a great snack to have after a long day at school as a pick-me-up.

Do you enjoy nutritious bars with your family? Zing Bars have a delicious bar just for you. Visit https://shop.zingbars.com/ to shop now!