After soda, energy drinks are the most popularly consumed beverage across the globe! Today we’ll answer the much-asked question: Are Bang Energy Drinks keto?
Energy drinks are packed with stimulants like Caffeine. They can help you fully function even if you didn’t get the beauty sleep last night!
Caffeine speeds up your metabolism and also helps cut down body fat. That’s why it’s a staple in most pre-workouts sold today.
Bang is a popular brand offering low-carb energy drinks. But low-carb doesn’t always mean it is keto-friendly right off the bat!
As the name suggests, Bang Energy Drinks provide you with a BANG of energy! They were originally made for fitness enthusiasts looking for a quick stimulant pre-workout.
Bang energy drinks use sugar-free sweeteners that prevent you from sudden insulin spikes. High-sugar drinks can make you feel lethargic, ultimately beating the whole purpose of an ENERGY drink!
But as a keto dieter, we are often limited by choices and have to be very careful while grocery shopping!
In this article, we’ll find out how Bang Energy Drinks fit into the Keto universe. I’ll also talk about the famous Bang Keto Coffee and explore other keto-friendly alternatives!
Is Bang Energy Drink Keto Approved
Bang Energy Drinks are keto-friendly as they are free from carbs and calories. They use sugar-free sweeteners that do not spike your blood sugar.
The Keto diet allows you less than 20g of carbs per day! That’s why Bang Energy Drinks fit perfectly well in this low carb diet.
While there are plenty of energy drink brands in the market, only a few are fitness oriented!
Bang energy drink is a clean source of fuel for any lchf diet. You can have it as a general recharge drink or use it as a pre-workout on keto.
These caffeine-rich drinks are gluten-free and completely vegan. They contain Super Creatine, which is the only form of creatine that can survive in a liquid for long periods of time.
Not just keto, Bang energy drinks are great for any fitness enthusiast looking for optimum performance!
It contains a blend of BCAA’s, CoQ10, Creatine, and a whopping 300mg caffeine, which serves as the perfect workout fuel.
The BCAA’s help you recover faster while the CoQ10 provides you with some solid bursts of energy!
You’ll be amazed to know that they have a massive range of 21+ flavors to choose from!
While they are all similar in terms of nutrition, you should always scan the labels and look for any hidden sources of carbs.
Consider the case of Russell Stover Sugar-Free Candies: They have only 2g of net carbs and may seem to be very keto-friendly at first glance!
But the sugar alcohols they use (Maltitol) is almost as bad as table sugar and can quickly throw you out of ketosis!
Cotton Candy and Sour Heads from Bang Energy Drinks have to be the best flavors in my opinion!
Is Bang Bad for Keto?
In our modern world, nothing is pure Black or pure White. We live in the grey era where things are a mix of both black and white!
Bang Energy Drinks seem too good to be true! How come it’s so sweet yet has no sugar? What’s the truth about the sweeteners they use?
Sweeteners
Sugar-free sweeteners can be put under two categories: Artificial or Plant-based
Guess which ones are the good ones? Yes, plant-based sweeteners are always preferred as they are more natural. Some of the examples include Erythritol and Stevia.
Unfortunately, Bang energy drink contains Sucralose and Acesulfame Potassium, both of which are artificial sweeteners.
But what’s wrong with artificial sweeteners?
Well, artificial sweeteners have always been a controversial topic in the keto community!
These sweeteners can interfere with ketosis in a very small percentage of people. And you won’t find out unless you try!
Stuff made in factories is highly complicated and there’s no one-size-fits-all approach! In fact, majority of the people do just fine with artificial sweeteners while on keto.
So what’s the solution?
The solution for Bang Energy Drink is the same as I suggested for sugar-free jell-o on a keto diet.
You should consume it in very small amounts initially and check how it affects your blood ketone levels.
If all goes well, then congratulations! You have added a new food option to your otherwise restrictive diet.
With that said, both these sweeteners are FDA approved and have proven safe in over 80 studies! You can spot these in most sugar-free products available on the market today.
Caffeine
One serving of Bang Energy Drink on keto provides you with 300mg of caffeine, which is equal to 3 cups worth of coffee!
Studies show that 200-250mg of caffeine is enough to significantly boost your energy and alertness.
I would never recommend going over 300mg per day as it can cause unpleasant side effects like nausea, difficulty sleeping, anxiety, etc.
So you shouldn’t have more than one serving of Bang Energy Drink per day on the keto diet or any other diet for that matter!
Having said that, Bang is one of my favorite keto energy drinks and I often have up to 3 cans within a week.
It never caused me any trouble and my blood ketone levels stay the same throughout the day!
Bang Keto Coffee – Is It REALLY Keto?
Seeing the rapid growth in the Keto diet food industry, Bang came out with their own Keto Coffee!
Well, it should be called Bang Keto PROTEIN Coffee instead, as it has a whopping 20g of protein per serving.
Think of it as a marriage between Bang Energy Drinks and Premier Protein!
The macros in Bang Keto Coffee are worthy of applause because it has the perfect balance of carbs and proteins.
Bang Keto Coffee comes in five different flavors:
- Birthday Cake Bash: 120 calories, 2g fat, 20g protein, 5g net carbs
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Blast: 120 calories, 2g fat, 20g protein, 4g net carbs
- Cookies & Cream: 130 calories, 2g fat, 20g protein, 5g net carbs
- Heavenly Hazelnut: 130 calories, 2g fat, 20g protein, 5g net carbs
- Mocha Madness: 140 calories, 2g fat, 20g protein, 6g net carbs
Averaging around 5g net carbs, we can say that their coffee isn’t really low carb as per the keto standards!
However, they compensate with their rich flavor that is free from any weird aftertaste (a common problem in Erythritol flavored drinks!)
Bang Keto Coffee contains the brand’s trademarked formula: STRAIGHT 8
STRAIGHT 8 majorly contains C8, which is a type of MCT oil that is also known as caprylic acid.
But how does it help you with keto?
What are MCTs?
Even if you are a beginning into keto, chances are that you’ve already heard about MCTs.
MCTs or medium-chain triglycerides are special kinds of fats found in foods like coconuts. On the other hand, the majority of fat sources contain the LCTs (or long-chain triglycerides)
To explain the Bang’s Straight 8 technology, I’ll have to expose you to my geeky side!
See, the fats in your diet are differentiated based on the number of carbon atoms they contain.
- Long-chain triglycerides (LCTs) contain 13-21 atoms
- Medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) contain 6-12 atoms
- Short-chain triglycerides (SCTs) contain less than 6 atoms
Out of these three, MCTs are the instant source of fuel on a ketogenic diet. They can be quickly broken down and turned into ketones – the only source of energy on a low carb diet!
Now you must be wondering – “Where does C8 come into all this?”
C8 is a sub-type of MCT that has 8 carbon atoms inside and is known to be the best MCT out there!
Bang’s keto coffee has 1,000 mg of Straight 8 formula, which can send you in much deeper ketosis.
You are hit by a strong coffee aroma as soon as you crack open the can!
I was initially quite impressed with the fragrance, but the product tasted nothing like coffee. Think of it as a coffee-flavored protein drink but not actual coffee!
I like my coffee strong and leaning towards a bitter side, but this keto coffee is very sweet, and hence it’s not my “cup of coffee”!
I’m better off with a protein shake and a plain black coffee (for the caffeine!)
I know there are people who like much sweeter coffee. If that is you, you are going to love Bang’s Keto Coffee.
The more products I review, the more I realize that we definitely have a trade-off between carbs and taste!
If you are willing to give away 4-5g carbs from your daily quota, you can really have delicious food that almost feels like cheating, but isn’t!
Now let’s look at some promising alternatives to Bang Energy Drinks on a keto diet!
Keto-Friendly Energy Drinks
Drinks are possibly the biggest source of hidden carbs and calories!
If you aren’t careful, it’s easy to drink up a lot of carbs and end up being kicked out of ketosis.
In fact, the majority of people are tempted to cheat as soon as they see a can of soda!
Most energy drinks in the market have as much sugar as a can of cola.
When in need of a quick burst of energy, look out for the “sugar-free” or “diet” version of your favorite energy drinks.
So what energy drinks can you have on keto?
Red Bull Total Zero
Red Bull is probably the synonym for energy drink, thanks to it’s excellent marketing!
This world-famous energy drink now has a ZERO carb version catering to fitness enthusiasts across the globe!
Just like Bang Energy Drinks, this one is also free from any sugar or calories.
In fact, their similarities go beyond just the macros! Red Bull Total Zero also uses Sucralose and Acesulfame, along with Aspartame.
Now some people are instantly turned off as soon as they hear the word Aspartame.
It can give major headaches to some people and studies have also linked it with cancer.
But keeping all the studies aside, millions of people go on regularly consuming Aspartame in their everyday lives!
A can of Red Bull Total Zero contains:
- Caffeine
- Taurine
- B Group Vitamins
- Aspartame, Sucralose & Acesulfame K
- Alpine Water
It has 114 mg of caffeine per 12 fl oz can, which is way less compared to Bang Energy Drinks.
I honestly feel 300 mg caffeine is too much in one serving!
So in my opinion, Bang drinks are good as a pre-workout while the Red Bull Zero can be your partner for the morning commute!
Homemade Keto Coffee
There are two possible downsides when buying energy drinks from the market:
- They are either loaded with heavy amounts of sugar which may kick you out of ketosis, or
- They may have artificial sweeteners with unpleasant side effects
With that said, moderation is the key to enjoying these keto-friendly energy drinks.
If you want something more natural, I’ve got a homemade recipe that can kickstart your lazy mornings!
It’s a very basic recipe that will keep you satiated for hours!
Ketoproof Coffee has all the good fats to send you into a deeper state of ketosis.
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp grass-fed unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp MCT Oil or coconut oil
- 2 cups of plain black coffee
- 1 tbsp heavy whipping cream (Optional)
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract (Optional)
Yield: 2 Cups
Instructions:
- Brew two cups worth of coffee through any method you like!
- Mix all the ingredients along with the coffee and blend it in a jar. You can use a hand blender or a mixer, whatever you are comfortable with.
- It takes as little as 45-60 seconds with an immersion blender.
Done! Enjoy your freshly brewed keto proof coffee!
One cup of Ketoproof Coffee contains 250 Calories, 28g Fats, 1.05g Net Carbs, and 1.1g Protein.
Conclusion
So are Bang Energy Drinks keto?
Bang Energy Drinks are definitely keto-friendly as they have zero carbs, zero calories, and zero sugar!
They are sweetened with Sucralose which is generally considered safe on a keto diet. However, it may interfere with ketosis in a very small percentage of people.
But I’ve never come across anyone having issues with Sucralose! Overall, Bang Energy Drink can be a great keto-friendly beverage.