ADDRA Labs has launched its new ADDRA High Performance Protein Bars targeted at muscle recovery, repair, and remodeling.

The high-protein bars were designed with a focus on performance nutrition on rest days. Each bar is compact, melt-resistant, and gluten-free, with two dairy-based and two vegan options. Crafted with the help of culinary professionals, consumers can enjoy four flavors: Apple Pie, Chocolate Cherry Almond, Peanut Butter Cookie Crisp, and Chocolate Cookie Dough.

With a base of 17-18g of high-quality protein, ADDRA’s innovation comes from boosting each bar with an additional 1.5g of leucine. Based on the latest scientific research, this new formulation provides muscle recovery benefits comparable to 30g of quality protein but with the convenience and lower calorie load of a much smaller protein bar. Plus, each bar has just 3-7g of added sugar.

“As an endurance athlete, recovery is an essential part of training,” says Adam Vadeboncoeur, the 2024 USATF 100k National Champion. “ADDRA bars give me the perfect balance of protein and leucine, which supports my recovery and maximizes my performance.”

“Leucine is the key Branched Chain Amino Acid essential for triggering muscle protein synthesis to help athletes with muscle recovery, adaptation, and repair,” says Eric Zaltas, Co-Founder of ADDRA Labs™. “By functioning like a ‘player-coach,’ leucine serves as an essential building block for new muscle proteins and signals to the whole amino acid ‘team’ to start muscle protein synthesis.”

By identifying the largest marketplace gap and physiological opportunity for endurance athletes with protein, ADDRA’s founders say it was designed specifically for the recovery and adaptation needs of endurance athletes. 

New research has highlighted that endurance athletes need even more protein per kilogram of body weight than strength athletes.¹ However, many endurance athletes fail to reach these higher recommended intakes, let alone optimally dose protein throughout the day.²

“It’s not just about grams of protein,” says professional cyclist and sports medicine physician, Andrea Cyr, “but the quality of that protein. Quality means the concentration of key amino acids per serving with leucine being the queen of the bunch. Without the proper amount of leucine, muscle adaptation will not be as good”.

Zaltas, a former member of the US National Road Cycling Team and 1993 National Team Time Trial spent over 20 years at one of the world’s largest sports nutrition companies after completing graduate studies in human and sports nutrition. He partnered with Matt Schuster, a 15-year veteran of the advertising world to help bring it to life. Schuster left his post on Madison Avenue in 2020 to pursue a life and career in endurance sports. He achieved quick success as an athlete, becoming an elite amateur in triathlon in just a few short years, receiving numerous accolades, podiums, and championship qualifications, including the Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

“From the very beginning, we focused on creating a bar that truly meets the demands of endurance athletes,” said Schuster. “Our bars are not only functional but they are practical and they taste good. At ADDRA, we strive to support our athletes in every aspect of their training and recovery.”

1. Williamson E, Fung HJW, Adams C, West DWD, Moore DR. Protein Requirements Are Increased in Endurance-Trained Athletes but Similar between Females and Males during Postexercise Recovery. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2023;55:1866-75.
2. Gillen JB, Trommelen J, Wardenaar FC, Brinkmans NYJ, Versteegen JJ, Jonvik KL, Kapp C, de Vries J, van den Borne JJGC, Gibala MJ, van Loon LJC. Dietary Protein Intake and Distribution Patterns of Well-Trained Dutch Athletes. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab, 2017;27:105-114.