Diet on a budget??

carribear

Hello all hope everything is good with everyone!

I was doing some thinking and wanted to get everyone ideas and opinions on what to get when your dieting on a grocery budget. Fresh fruit and vegetables aren't always the cheapest things to buy and they go bad fast. I have always found that the one thing that always stops me from dieting is the cost. It cost to get fresh food, it costs to buy healthier food, it cost to go to the gym, etc...

I also don't like to get up in the morning so not only cheap but fast. Snacks that I can through in my purse and go kinda thing.

Thank you all in advance for all the help and good luck to you!!

jim180155

If you want to eat healthier, eat whole foods and stay away from processed foods. Prepare them ahead of time either at night so they're ready in the morning, or do a bulk operation on the weekend so you're set for the week. Forget throwing snacks in your purse. Put them in a bag and put the bag in the refrigerator at work if you have one.

You can also just keep eating the junk you're eating now. If you want to weigh less, just eat less of the junk than you're eating now.

Money and budgets are no excuse.

Chief_Rocka

I find that being broke makes eating less a breeze

AliceDark

Frozen vegetables are just as nutritious as fresh, if not more nutritious (they're picked and frozen right when they're ripe, and oftentimes fresh vegetables have been sitting on a truck and then a shelf for awhile).

It doesn't cost anything to go outside and take a walk, or do bodyweight exercises, or just turn on music and dance. You don't need to go to the gym to exercise.

TrailRunnermn

Since winter is around the corner, my "go to" foods are tubers like sweet potatoes and yams (very cheap) and also I'm diggin' pearled barley, carrots, and lentils. All very, very cheap...even the organic versions.

trekkie_bbs

I have saved a lot of money by watching what I eat. I love salad and other fresh fruits and if you shop around you can find them cheap. Research each fruit you love or the veggies you love on google or your preferred search engine and search how to make them last longer or if you can freeze them. You would be surprised by all the things you can freeze and how good some can be eaten frozen. Also keeping some fruits and veggies separated can make a huge difference on how long they last. Just spend some time to research it.

By the way I lost my first 100 pounds eating at McDonalds, Wendys, Burger King, Sonic's, and so on. Calorie counting for me was the only way I could have reached the weight I am at now which makes me half the man I used to be and I am proud of it!

If losing weight is in your heart you will do it. Otherwise you are just practicing until you decide you want it bad enough.

TossaBeanBag

I thought diet and budget were the same thing

segacs

I find I save tons of money by eating healthier:

• Fewer restaurant meals and fast-food stops
• Food lasts longer since I eat less of it at a time
• Healthy foods tend to be cheaper than unhealthy ones, as a very general rule
• Logging and planning my meals helps me shop more carefully, with less waste

There's no need to shop at Whole Foods ("Whole Paycheque") or buy pricey organic stuff or imported exotic fruits. Basic staples are cheap and nutrious, and last a long time. And with all the money you save, that gym membership seems like a bargain!

#NoExcuses

Oh, and your profile says that one of your goals is to have a baby in the near future. Well, that's certainly not cheap either! Though, if you want one badly enough, it's worth it... just like eating healthy and taking care of yourself is also worth it.

RodaRose

Skip breakfast. Eat your calories later in the day.

MKEgal

A USDA cookbook for people using SNAP, which is very well done, varied, tasty, etc. - the exact opposite of what you'd expect from the gov't.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/MKEgal/view/2014-09-19-cheap-eats-cookbook-696460

And don't skip breakfast.
In fact, make breakfast your largest meal, lunch medium-sized, and dinner more of a small snack. That's been shown to result in larger weight loss than the usual American plan of eating a tiny or nonexistant breakfast & a huge dinner.
See the last half of this post for the studies:
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/MKEgal/view/2014-06-10-some-studies-about-weight-loss-667818

MoeHameed

Agree with what everyone said. Eating healthy actually makes you save money. Good luck.

RodaRose wrote: »

Skip breakfast. Eat your calories later in the day.

I think that is a bad idea.

harmoniaxx

RodaRose wrote: »

Skip breakfast. Eat your calories later in the day.

I have to disagree that skipping breakfast is a good idea. I know breakfast is the one thing that keeps me satisfied/full and going throughout the day.


OP, there are cheap ways to diet. It may not be the absolute healthiest, but for example, I bought 64 cans of the progresso soup from Sams, for like 70 bucks. Thats 2 months worth of soup if I wanted to have one a day for a meal, with 200 calories per can. I say the solution is buying in bulk. Sams, Costco, etc. is the way to do it. It really is just a matter of being smart about bargain shopping. If you look hard enough, you can find anything for cheap.

tchell99

I spend far less when I am closely monitoring what I eat. Less eating out, fewer adult beverages, and mostly make my own meals, often in bulk. I plan the weekly menu around what veg, fruit, fish/meat is on sale and pick up extra sale items of things that keep (canned tomatoes, oatmeal, etc.).

MKEgal

carribear wrote:

wanted to get everyone ideas and opinions on what to get when your [sic] dieting on a grocery budget ...
I also don't like to get up in the morning so not only cheap but fast. Snacks that I can through [sic] in my purse and go kinda thing.

Eating lower on the food chain is less expensive.
Go for whole grains, beans, vegetables (frozen is fine) & fruits.
Use meat as a flavoring, not the star of the dish.
Learn to use spices.
Look for bulk packs. Cook a family-size pack of bone-in chicken all at once (throw it in the slow cooker while you're at work), pull it off the bone, portion it out, freeze some & keep some in the fridge. Then you also have chicken stock with no sodium.

For breakfast, fruit, nuts, yogurt, a PB sandwich, a glass of milk (put it in a water bottle for more security) are all grab-n-go.
Oatmeal is pretty quick. Add nuts & raisins & it's more filling & nutritious.
Greek yogurt, dry oatmeal, and chopped fruit makes a delicious breakfast.
Make extra waffles on the weekend, cut up the extras, portion them into a zip lock, add a small container of syrup. Nuke & dip.

Luna99999

I love budgetbytes.com for cheap recipes. They're not necessarily low-calorie recipes, but they're healthy enough you can incorporate them into a weight loss diet. Or I often adapt them to make them lower calorie.

I don't normally do throw-in-your-purse breakfast, but I hear you on cheap, low calorie, and not too time-consuming.

Microwave scrambled eggs: spray cereal bowl well with cooking spray, then crack 2 eggs into the bowl and whisk. I add some raw spinach on top. Then microwave 30 seconds (if just eggs) or 50 seconds (if you add spinach). Give it a stir, then do another 30-45 seconds. Done. Delicious and cheap, no pans to wash.

Or I make one of the baked oatmeal recipes from budget bytes over the weekend, then pop a slice in the microwave each morning for breakfast. Or you can eat it cold.