Lifestyle · Nutrition · Jan 26, 2026

Up to 80% Killer: What’s Really in Your Sports Nutrition?

man holding an ultra processed energy gel

Our investigation compared leading sports nutrition products to the Joe Wicks Killer Protein Bar and found they shared up to 80% of the same ultra-processed ingredients

Think that sounds extreme?

So did we.

We took the full ingredient list from the Killer Protein Bar - a product deliberately designed by Joe Wicks to expose the dangers of ultra-processed food (UPF) - and cross-checked it against everyday sports nutrition products used by runners, cyclists, triathletes and other endurance athletes.

What we found was uncomfortable.

Because some of the most widely used gels and drinks on the market share more than half (and in one case 80%) of their ingredients with a bar specifically created to be as unhealthy as legally possible.

And there’s a good chance they’re in your sports bag right now.

The comparison

What follows is a direct, ingredient-by-ingredient cross-check between the Killer Protein Bar and popular sports nutrition products.

Key Findings: Killer Bar Ingredients Are Everywhere in Sports Nutrition

🧪 PH PF30: 50-80% of ingredients used are found in the Killer Bar
⚠️ SIS GO Gel & Beta Fuel Gel: 64-67% of ingredients used are found in the Killer Bar
🧯 Maurten Gel 100 & Solid 160: 45-50% of ingredients used are found in the Killer Bar

How safe is your sports nutrition?

The Killer Bar was designed to expose the risks of ultra-processed food and their ubiquity on UK supermarket shelves.

Every ingredient in it is legal in the UK. Yet Wicks himself described it as “the most dangerous health bar in Britain”, packing it with ingredients linked to serious long-term health risks when consumed regularly.

But here’s the part that should really make you pause:

The same ingredients used to make that deliberately dangerous bar may already be sitting in your cupboard, your kit drawer, or your race vest.

Behind that slick branding and your favourite pro athlete sponsorships, the ingredient lists could tell a very different story.

So it’s worth asking: