MET-Rx
Peanut Butter Pretzel
TL:DR
In 2 Sentences
One of the few mass‑market bars that combines around 30 grams of protein with 400‑plus calories and robust vitamin/mineral fortification in a dessert‑leaning, sweet‑salty package.
When to choose MET-Rx Peanut Butter Pretzel
Best for busy, active days when you truly need a meal replacement or post‑workout recovery in a wrapper—not for those seeking minimal ingredients or low sugar.
What's in the MET-Rx bar?
MET-Rx Peanut Butter Pretzel packs a meal-sized punch: 30 grams of protein (top-tier among bars), big-carbohydrate energy, and a multivitamin’s worth of fortification. The protein comes from a multi-source blend—whey and casein (milk proteins), soy protein isolate (often as crispy inclusions), and egg white—designed to deliver complete amino acids and varied digestion speeds.
Most of the sweetness and chew come from refined syrups and sugars, while the “pretzel” shows up as enriched wheat flour pieces and the “peanut butter” from peanuts, peanut flour, and peanut butter.
It’s substantial, sweet, salty, and very much in the “meal-replacement” camp rather than a minimalist, whole-food snack.
- Protein
- 30 g
- Fat
- 12 g
- Carbohydrates
- 47 g
- Sugar
- 28 g
- Calories
- 410
Protein
3015HIGHProtein is driven by a multi-source blend: whey isolate/hydrolysate and casein (milk proteins) plus soy protein isolate and egg white. That combo covers all essential amino acids and mixes fast- and slow-digesting proteins, which is great for muscle repair—but note these are highly refined isolates and concentrates. If you’re allergic to milk, soy, or egg, this blend rules it out.
Fat
129HIGHFat here is a mixed bag: fractionated palm kernel oil and dairy fats (butter, heavy cream) add saturated fat for structure, while soybean/canola/corn oils and peanuts contribute mostly poly- and monounsaturated fats. Expect more omega‑6s from the seed oils and a notable saturated component from palm and dairy. The peanuts add some nutritious unsaturated fat, but the overall profile leans toward processed oils.
Carbs
4720HIGHCarbs skew heavily refined: corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, cane syrup, table sugar, and fructose deliver quick sweetness, while enriched wheat flour (pretzels), tapioca starch, and a bit of oats add starch. This is fast-burning fuel that can spike and fade rather than slow, steady energy. Oligofructose adds a touch of prebiotic fiber, but it’s a small counterweight to the syrups.
Sugar
284HIGHSugar is high (28 grams), sourced primarily from refined syrups—corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, cane syrup, and sucrose—plus added fructose. These are not fruit-derived sugars; they’re fast to absorb and taste great, but they’re not designed for gentle blood-sugar curves. Glycerin also keeps the bar soft and slightly sweet, though it’s not counted as “sugar.”
Calories
410210HIGHAt 410 calories, this reads like a portable meal. Roughly speaking, most calories come from carbohydrates (sugars and refined starches), then protein, with a smaller share from fat. If you want a true snack, this will feel hefty; if you want a meal in a wrapper, the numbers fit.
Vitamins & Minerals
The impressive vitamin and mineral numbers come from an added fortification blend, not from the base ingredients. You’ll see big hits of B‑vitamins (including 80% DV B12 and a whopping 320% DV biotin), fat‑soluble vitamins A and E (50% DV each), and minerals like iron (45% DV), zinc (50% DV), and copper (110% DV). If you already take a multivitamin, be mindful of stacking—especially for copper and B6.
Additives
This bar relies on several functional additives to keep it soft, cohesive, and shelf‑stable: glycerin for moisture; emulsifiers like soy lecithin and mono‑/diglycerides; seaweed- and plant‑derived thickeners (carrageenan, cellulose gum); and salts such as sodium citrate/phosphate for pH and texture. These are common in mass‑market bars and do their jobs well, but they also make the ingredient list read highly processed.
Ingredient List
Defatted soybean flakes
Cassava root
Cow's milk whey
Skim cow's milk
Cow's milk cheese whey
Eggs
Microbial sugar fermentation
Field corn starch
Corn
Sugarcane and sugar beet
What are people saying?
Sources
Range
“I buy the Met-RX Big 100 bars because they’re 30-32 grams of protein and they’re quite tasty.”
“I actually buy their cookies n cream bars pretty often. Like the taste, high protein and live an active lifestyle (commute on bike + workout often) so the calories are pretty good for my needs.”
“My favorite of all time it the Met-Rx super cookie crunch bar. 100g Bar for 410 calories, 32g protein, 42g carbs, 14g fat. It’s high in sugar but once in a while it’s my sweet meal. They taste SO good and take me a long time to eat”
Main Praise
Fans come back to the Big 100 for two things: it’s substantial and it tastes good for its size. Reviewers repeatedly highlight the 30 to 32 grams of protein and the fact that it actually keeps you full for hours, which you can’t say about many bars.
Several flavors have loyal followings—Apple and Salted Caramel Brownie get a lot of love—and even those who sample widely often keep a favorite MET‑Rx flavor in rotation. The texture, while dense, is often described as satisfying: a chewy base, some crunch, and a chocolate‑style coating that makes it feel like a treat.
For people who bike to work, lift regularly, or just miss real meals, it’s a convenient, ready‑to‑eat fallback. The broad appeal shows up in ratings too: the line sits around a 4.
5‑star average across more than 11,000 Amazon ratings, which is no small feat for a bar this big.
Main Criticism
The flip side is sugar and processing. Depending on the flavor, added sugar can land roughly in the 20 to 29 grams range, and the sweetness comes from refined syrups, not fruit.
Texture is a mixed bag: some batches are very firm—people joke about protecting their front teeth—and the pretzel pieces in Peanut Butter Pretzel can run dry and messy. Quality control complaints pop up occasionally (hard inedible chunks, underweight bars), and a few flavors come off as artificial or candy‑like.
If you prefer short‑ingredient lists, this isn’t that bar; it leans heavily on isolates, fillers, and stabilizers to hold its size and shelf life.
The Middle Ground
The praise makes sense once you view Big 100 for what it is: a meal‑replacement bar. On that metric, it’s effective—high protein, hefty calories, and fortification that can stand in for a hurried lunch or post‑training recovery.
Men’s Health and LIVESTRONG both nod to that role, while acknowledging the added sugar. On the other hand, Eat This, Not That!
rightly points out that the sugar can crowd your daily budget if you’re trying to keep totals modest.
Reddit mirrors this split: one user calls it their “sweet meal,” another buys them only when burning lots of calories, and a third warns that some flavors are just too sweet.
The nutrition label explains the divide: refined carbs and a long ingredient list make it feel engineered—which it is. Neither camp is wrong; the bar just aims at a specific job, and it performs that job better than it tries to be a minimalist snack.
What's the bottom line?
MET‑Rx Big 100 is a tool. Used as intended—a portable meal or recovery option—it’s a satisfying, protein‑dense bar that many people actually enjoy eating. The Peanut Butter Pretzel flavor leans into a craveable sweet‑salty profile, and the 30 grams of protein deliver real staying power.
But tools work best in the right context. If you want a low‑sugar, short‑ingredient bar, this isn’t it. If you’re sensitive to milk, soy, egg, wheat, or peanuts, it’s off the table.
And if you already take a multivitamin, be mindful that this bar’s fortification can stack certain nutrients. For athletes, manual labor days, travel, or times when meals slip away, Big 100 earns its keep. For quiet desk afternoons, you may want something lighter—and less syrup‑forward—so your snack doesn’t feel like a second lunch.