Health Food is too.......

staclo

What is killing us is that we really want to move and we would need to pay double what we pay now for our mortgage. And we RENT now...we can't even find a rental for less than double what we pay now. Then I hear how the housing market is doing better and people are buying houses which will in effect raise the prices of homes. If I had no faith I would be crazy...for real!! LOL

Oh let me tell you!! I am SOOO thankful that we even have a home, b/c in our area, people are losing their jobs due to the car industry crashing. But, we moved into our house 5 years ago thinking we'd build a little equity and be out in 3-5 years. Ha! I have no clue when we will be able to move. We have a tiny house, and with 6 of us, it doesn't work so well! But that's ok. I'm just plugging along until things pick up a little bit more.

JenniferAnne73

I don't have cable, I check out movies from the Library. I don't have a cell phone, only a home phone. I do have dial up internet at home. We go out to eat maybe once every six months. We buy all of our clothes at the thrift store. Trust me, there is not a dime to squeeze from anywhere. When you have to buy less expensive food, you just learn to cook it without adding more bad stuff. But I can tell you, it is not easy and it is not intentional or for lack of knowing better. It just is.

dial-up? what is that? :huh:

What..do you highjack DSL or Cable internet service too?...LOL

staclo

To the OP...sorry for getting so off topic! And I'm not one to make excuses; it's just nice to know that I'm not alone in my struggles!!

JenniferAnne73

What is killing us is that we really want to move and we would need to pay double what we pay now for our mortgage. And we RENT now...we can't even find a rental for less than double what we pay now. Then I hear how the housing market is doing better and people are buying houses which will in effect raise the prices of homes. If I had no faith I would be crazy...for real!! LOL

Oh let me tell you!! I am SOOO thankful that we even have a home, b/c in our area, people are losing their jobs due to the car industry crashing. But, we moved into our house 5 years ago thinking we'd build a little equity and be out in 3-5 years. Ha! I have no clue when we will be able to move. We have a tiny house, and with 6 of us, it doesn't work so well! But that's ok. I'm just plugging along until things pick up a little bit more.

Yeah...we are just looking forward to me finding a good job and we aren't going anywhere until then. This one toilet situation with the 5 of us is just soooo hard. It's funny though because I am constantly reminding myself of how good we have it compared to many years ago and I think...how did they do it?

aymie24

:flowerforyou: Ok...here it is...I keep reading how so many people would love to have tips, so here are some great, free resources. Those of you who want tips relevent to your area, see if your local extnesion service offers group classes, those are usually open to the public and/or only require that 50% of the class be "eligible", meaning receiving food stamps and/or WIC.

http://www.extension.org/pages/Stretching_Your_Food_Dollar

http://extension.unh.edu/FoodNutr/FNStretch.htm

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/clarke/news/stretchingdollars.htm

http://extension.psu.edu/livingbetter/stretch_food_dollar.html

http://healthyrecipes.oregonstate.edu/

staclo

:flowerforyou: Ok...here it is...I keep reading how so many people would love to have tips


http://www.extension.org/pages/Stretching_Your_Food_Dollar

http://extension.unh.edu/FoodNutr/FNStretch.htm

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/clarke/news/stretchingdollars.htm

http://extension.psu.edu/livingbetter/stretch_food_dollar.html

http://healthyrecipes.oregonstate.edu/

Awesome...thanks!! :happy:

pickadilly2009

I do have a little gem that I found about a year ago. There is a store not too far from me that sells the stuff the regular stores could not. Like a new product that didn't go over really well or the cans that get a dent or boxes that get cut a bit when they are openeing the packagine box. I can get all kinds of great stuff from there. It has helped my food budget a lot! Maybe do some research and find out where your local stores send there 'scratch and dent' items.

GinaB30

It does cost more because a whole skinless chicken breast is $4.29 per lb and leg quarters are on sale for $0.66 per lb. A bag of regular spaghetti noodles is $1.25, whole wheat are $1.85. A can of peaches is $1.18 and a lb of fresh peaches is $2.99. So yes, it is more expensive to eat healthy. When you are on a strict budget and have to feed more than yourself, you will choose the leg quarters, white noodles, and canned peaches because you can make two meals out of it instead of one as well. You don't have the luxury to buy hot pockets and soda pop or chips. You buy food so you don't starve and the bag of white rice at $ 0.85 that you can get 4 or more meals out of makes a lot more sense than the bag of brown rice at $1.95. I am happy for those that can eat healthy and not worry that they will still have enough food around to feed their family for a week. Some just don't get that choice.

I hear you on this one too! I'm trying very hard to cook/eat as healthy as I can. I also have 4 kids to feed. I would like to be able to afford to have everyone go to a much healthier lifestyle as well. I just keep telling myself that it's baby steps. I'm making sure that they always have some kind of fresh fruit to snack on. I'm not buying the junk cookies and crackers. I offer as many healthy choices as I can afford right now, and I'd LOVE to know how to best stretch my dollar in this area.

For whoever suggested turning off the cable...good suggestion. We did that over a year ago to save money. We also have the smallest possible phone & internet plan within reason. We have to have higher-speed internet b/c both me and my husband go to school online.

Do you know that here (Canada NS) for 5 skinless boneless chicken breasts it can cost UP to $30 and about $25 normally.....a *sale* is when it goes to about $14
We buy frozen skinless boneless when we can afford it....that stuff is $29.99 for about 15-18 pieces (some are small!)
When it goes on sale for $19.99 or even $24.99 that's when we buy it.
Crazy how much some of the healthier stuff does cost.

That's crazy! I think about 4lbs of skinless boneless chicken breasts are around $15 here, but I always wait until they go on sale. I can usually get them for around $8.

I wish it were that cheap!
We were walking down the chicken/meat aisle one day @ sobeys and we were looking for some chicken and the fresh boneless skinless was $30.00 for 6 small sad pieces, my husband wondered if they were coated in gold dust...lol

hasiangirl

ive nevered used it as an excuse...but i have noticed when i eat healthier I spend more money...the price of turkey and chicken are more expensive than hamburgers and usually by double...the produce here is only cheap 2 out of 12 months because the other 10months are winter....I actually just spent 7dollars on a bag of clementines the other day (2lbs)....the fresh brocolli was about 3 dollars for a small head of it ... but its not so much the produce that's expensive it's the meat...I love getting my protien in and i love the fact of eating meat...so when i change my eating habits i only buy chicken (skinless boneless) and ground chicken and ground turkey ...and the skinless boneless chicken was 9.50 for a little over a pound the ground chicken was the cheapest and thats what i mostly eat which is only 5dollars a pound and ground turkey is usually 8 dollars a pound

staclo

ive nevered used it as an excuse...but i have noticed when i eat healthier I spend more money...the price of turkey and chicken are more expensive than hamburgers and usually by double...the produce here is only cheap 2 out of 12 months because the other 10months are winter....I actually just spent 7dollars on a bag of clementines the other day (2lbs)....the fresh brocolli was about 3 dollars for a small head of it ... but its not so much the produce that's expensive it's the meat...I love getting my protien in and i love the fact of eating meat...so when i change my eating habits i only buy chicken (skinless boneless) and ground chicken and ground turkey ...and the skinless boneless chicken was 9.50 for a little over a pound the ground chicken was the cheapest and thats what i mostly eat which is only 5dollars a pound and ground turkey is usually 8 dollars a pound

We just started cooking with tofu in addition to meat, b/c it helps with the protein and it isn't as expensive. Plus, it adds to the variety. I think we've averaged it about once a week so far, but it helps.

aymie24

ive nevered used it as an excuse...but i have noticed when i eat healthier I spend more money...the price of turkey and chicken are more expensive than hamburgers and usually by double...the produce here is only cheap 2 out of 12 months because the other 10months are winter....I actually just spent 7dollars on a bag of clementines the other day (2lbs)....the fresh brocolli was about 3 dollars for a small head of it ... but its not so much the produce that's expensive it's the meat...I love getting my protien in and i love the fact of eating meat...so when i change my eating habits i only buy chicken (skinless boneless) and ground chicken and ground turkey ...and the skinless boneless chicken was 9.50 for a little over a pound the ground chicken was the cheapest and thats what i mostly eat which is only 5dollars a pound and ground turkey is usually 8 dollars a pound

We just started cooking with tofu in addition to meat, b/c it helps with the protein and it isn't as expensive. Plus, it adds to the variety. I think we've averaged it about once a week so far, but it helps.

Beans are an excellent way to add protein and variety. Not to mention the amazingly low cost!!! If we didn't eat bean based main dishes at least once a week, there is no way I could do organic for 6 on $500 a month. We made baked falafel last weekend and it was such a hit, I ended up making it two nights in a row!

linz1125

At first I was worried that my grocery bill would go up, but it has acutally decreased about $10 a week...not much but is still nice. I get to eat a little better and have money in my pocket

junkgypsy

I think it's more of a convenience issue for most people.

I can go to McD's (ew, by the way, haha) and get a double cheeseburger, fries, and a HUGE over-sweetened sweet tea for $3.00 plus tax.

It's almost too easy to find cheap, unhealthy food.

Eating healthy does require extra effort, and in some cases, extra money. I get most of my produce at a local farmer's market, and it's much cheaper than the grocery store, but when food is out of season or the market doesn't carry it, I have to get it where I can.

I live paycheck to paycheck and do believe that it is cheaper to eat unhealthy.

I'm committed to eating healthy and have learned to cut out expenses elsewhere so that I can afford to eat better.

Sorry if you think that's an excuse.

JoyousMaximus

I have a suggestion for everyone that is talking about how expensive boneless skinless chicken breast is. Have you considered buying either whole chicken (not as healthy a breast but still good for you) or chicken breast with the bone and skin still attached? I know around here is can be much cheaper (I've seen bone-in chicken breast get as low as $.99/lb) and you can remove the bone and skin yourself. More work but WAY cheaper. Also, you can grind your own meat. A manual grinder is about $30 new but it can be a lot cheaper to by the meat and grind it than buy it pre-ground but again it can be a lot more work.

BrendaLee

I have an idea! Turn off your cable tv, that will save a lot of money, I know I did it in Jan!
Then you can spend a little more on the healthy foods, sitting around and snacking is also lower. Win win

Guaranteed if I didn't have TV, I'd eat 50% more out of boredom.

BrendaLee

American's are spoiled and they'd rather give up on their health before they turn off the cable or operate on one car unless absolutely necessary or cut out all text messaging packages on their cell phones or worse...their kids cell phones.

I don't think that's a fair statement. I'm not American, but I still take offense to it. lol

BrendaLee

I was at Sobey's tonight, and I just simply can not afford chicken. I remember when my friend from the US came up to visit she couldn't believe the cost of chicken here.

Chicken may as well be gold here in NB.

lisalocket24

So, are you living off apples or actually buying groceries? Yes, an apple is cheaper than a Snickers bar, but Kashi meals are $4.00 compared to .94 cents for a Banquet meal. 93/7 beef is close to $4 a lb, and 80/20 is close to a $1 per lb. Kashi cereal is about 3.94 for a 12 oz box even a Wal Mart, and the huge 3 lb bags of Walmart Brand Capn Crunch are like $2.50. Nature's Pride all natural bread is 1.97, and the cheapo white Walmart bread is .89 cents. It's not an excuse, it's a legitimate reason for difficulty affording healthy, fresh food, and especially for anything pre-made and healthy.

I agree when u are pressed for time and cant prepare every meal. I am on the road with my family 90 percent of the time. If we tried to prepare meals after ballgames etc..... then we would be eating at midnight!! Not so good when u have a 2 year old.

apalesko

I think the difference for most people (especially those with LOW income)...
Is that they can't afford to run back and forth to the grocery store all the time to pick up fresh things, especially when those thins go bad quite quickly.

......and I don't know where you guys are from but here in NS Canada, we pay a LOT for produce (depending on the time of year).....but then when summer hits we get the good deals from locally grown stuff...
I LOVE fresh cherries, grapes, etc- but I can't afford to pay the high prices in the winter...and I've seen a head of brocolli cost $3.99 before, for a very SMALL one....it's crazy!
I think it depends on the income and where you live- personally I think it is quite expensive to eat 100% healthy all the time.
Take for example low fat whole wheat tortilla's....LOVE those.....they are $3.99 here for a 10 pkg. A pack of 10 does NOT last long when you have three kids and two adults to feed.

lol edit// except one of the three kids only eats breast milk at the moment..=oP

So true! I live in Japan, and let me tell you, grocery shopping, especially for vegetables and fruit, is a whole different story here. When grapes are in season, for example, I can get about thirty of them for four dollars. That's the cheapest they ever are! Broccoli is usually a couple dollars, apples are a dollar a piece when they're in season, etc. And there are times when it costs about 70 or 80 us dollars to buy a single melon.

xsargex

I think the difference for most people (especially those with LOW income)...
Is that they can't afford to run back and forth to the grocery store all the time to pick up fresh things, especially when those thins go bad quite quickly.

......and I don't know where you guys are from but here in NS Canada, we pay a LOT for produce (depending on the time of year).....but then when summer hits we get the good deals from locally grown stuff...
I LOVE fresh cherries, grapes, etc- but I can't afford to pay the high prices in the winter...and I've seen a head of brocolli cost $3.99 before, for a very SMALL one....it's crazy!
I think it depends on the income and where you live- personally I think it is quite expensive to eat 100% healthy all the time.
Take for example low fat whole wheat tortilla's....LOVE those.....they are $3.99 here for a 10 pkg. A pack of 10 does NOT last long when you have three kids and two adults to feed.

lol edit// except one of the three kids only eats breast milk at the moment..=oP

So true! I live in Japan, and let me tell you, grocery shopping, especially for vegetables and fruit, is a whole different story here. When grapes are in season, for example, I can get about thirty of them for four dollars. That's the cheapest they ever are! Broccoli is usually a couple dollars, apples are a dollar a piece when they're in season, etc. And there are times when it costs about 70 or 80 us dollars to buy a single melon.

My wife was talking about when we go to Japan getting an old time photo done, wearing Kimono's. I was like sweet, I can dress up like samurai and hold a sword. I was down with it. She then responds "oh yeah it'll be about 1000.00 dollars" I'm like YEN!?!? Damn, I can go to the theme park and do the Western picture for like 20 bucks. Holy COW!!!

sassycat

What is killing us is that we really want to move and we would need to pay double what we pay now for our mortgage. And we RENT now...we can't even find a rental for less than double what we pay now. Then I hear how the housing market is doing better and people are buying houses which will in effect raise the prices of homes. If I had no faith I would be crazy...for real!! LOL

Oh let me tell you!! I am SOOO thankful that we even have a home, b/c in our area, people are losing their jobs due to the car industry crashing. But, we moved into our house 5 years ago thinking we'd build a little equity and be out in 3-5 years. Ha! I have no clue when we will be able to move. We have a tiny house, and with 6 of us, it doesn't work so well! But that's ok. I'm just plugging along until things pick up a little bit more.

Amen, sister!! I live in a crackerbox house too with a family of five. I bought this house 10 years ago before the "unexpected 3rd child came". We are cramped--having one bathroom (small) with three other girls---sometimes the mornings are nightmares from hell! I do thank God for what I do have and I can afford (barely) my mortgage + other bills, etc. It is nothing fancy, but I was never the type to keep up with the Jones'. My little town of 1,000 people - well it looks like a ghost town. (One grocery store and one dollar general-yahoo for this store :laugh: )

thumper44

I have a suggestion for everyone that is talking about how expensive boneless skinless chicken breast is. Have you considered buying either whole chicken (not as healthy a breast but still good for you) or chicken breast with the bone and skin still attached? I know around here is can be much cheaper (I've seen bone-in chicken breast get as low as $.99/lb) and you can remove the bone and skin yourself. More work but WAY cheaper. Also, you can grind your own meat. A manual grinder is about $30 new but it can be a lot cheaper to by the meat and grind it than buy it pre-ground but again it can be a lot more work.

I AGREE TOTALLY.

Boneless, skinless chicken. :noway: That's a LUXURY choice IMO.

Your paying alot extra money because someone else deboned it and took skin off.
Totally absurd if you ask me.
I wouldn't say alot more work. A few slices here and there, and skin is off and breast is away from bone.

I used to buy chicken breasts with bones, and sometimes re-use the bones and make some chicken stock. I did the same with a whole chicken.

I haven't bought chicken breasts for years though.
Now it's chicken thighs from Costco, buy a big amount and split it up into 4. When using 1 of those 4 packs, our chicken stir fry's make 3-4 meals.

hasiangirl

ive nevered used it as an excuse...but i have noticed when i eat healthier I spend more money...the price of turkey and chicken are more expensive than hamburgers and usually by double...the produce here is only cheap 2 out of 12 months because the other 10months are winter....I actually just spent 7dollars on a bag of clementines the other day (2lbs)....the fresh brocolli was about 3 dollars for a small head of it ... but its not so much the produce that's expensive it's the meat...I love getting my protien in and i love the fact of eating meat...so when i change my eating habits i only buy chicken (skinless boneless) and ground chicken and ground turkey ...and the skinless boneless chicken was 9.50 for a little over a pound the ground chicken was the cheapest and thats what i mostly eat which is only 5dollars a pound and ground turkey is usually 8 dollars a pound

We just started cooking with tofu in addition to meat, b/c it helps with the protein and it isn't as expensive. Plus, it adds to the variety. I think we've averaged it about once a week so far, but it helps.

the only thing is i love my meat....i was raised mostly on red meat....so now that im giving that up i need something telling my brain im eating meat atleast...and i do like tofu, but that doesnt cut it as a substitute...I eat atleast one real meat product a day lol I know thats sad, but I think its just something that was learned as a child to do

hasiangirl

I have a suggestion for everyone that is talking about how expensive boneless skinless chicken breast is. Have you considered buying either whole chicken (not as healthy a breast but still good for you) or chicken breast with the bone and skin still attached? I know around here is can be much cheaper (I've seen bone-in chicken breast get as low as $.99/lb) and you can remove the bone and skin yourself. More work but WAY cheaper. Also, you can grind your own meat. A manual grinder is about $30 new but it can be a lot cheaper to by the meat and grind it than buy it pre-ground but again it can be a lot more work.

the only thing is a lot of people dont have good self control...I know i dont and if i buy the chicken with the skin I will devour it...I'd crisp up the skin and eat all of it...*sighs* one of the reasons I dont indulge ever... because with my addictive personality type I will not just stop at one...as is true with prob a few other people...atleast i hope im not the only person with this prob lol (cuz maybe i should see a shrink if i am):ohwell:

misty589

I was at Sobey's tonight, and I just simply can not afford chicken. I remember when my friend from the US came up to visit she couldn't believe the cost of chicken here.

Chicken may as well be gold here in NB.

what part of nb are you in?
I'm in saint john and we travel twice a year to mulders meat in Oromocto for their sale I get big boxes of chicken breasts for $20 and LOADS of other stuff. I don't ever buy meat at the grocery store, it's crazy especially poultry. I looked at ground turkey and chicken yesterday at the superstore and it was a small little lump about 1/2 - 3/4 of a lb and it was more than 7 dollars! can you imagine..............

totallytasha

I agree with this one. Managing my money in the paycheck-to-paycheck land means I go get groceries once a month. Which also means that I eat all the fresh stuff for the first week or two, and by the end of the month am living on non - perishables, and pretty much whatever I can get til I get paid again.

Some healthy choices are the same price or cheaper, and the apple over snickers makes sense. But sometimes it's not just possible to eat healthy without spending more, and that's when those dollar burgers start looking like the smart choice.

I'm not saying that all the excuses are justifiable, cuz there's some pretty bad ones out there. But I definitely understand the difficulty.

totallytasha

I think it's more of a convenience issue for most people.

I can go to McD's (ew, by the way, haha) and get a double cheeseburger, fries, and a HUGE over-sweetened sweet tea for $3.00 plus tax.

It's almost too easy to find cheap, unhealthy food.

Eating healthy does require extra effort, and in some cases, extra money. I get most of my produce at a local farmer's market, and it's much cheaper than the grocery store, but when food is out of season or the market doesn't carry it, I have to get it where I can.

I live paycheck to paycheck and do believe that it is cheaper to eat unhealthy.

I'm committed to eating healthy and have learned to cut out expenses elsewhere so that I can afford to eat better.

Sorry if you think that's an excuse.

Yeah, meant to use this as a quote. Apply!!! :blushing:

visiologist

ABSOLUTELY agree! Well said.

But did someone say we are eating LESS? I don't get this. Now that I am eating 6 meals per day and working out like a fiend, my calorie consumption has gone way UP! My metabolism is burning like a furnace I think - I used to weigh nearly 200 lbs, but now I am about 179 and trying to build lean mass up slowly - I've been increasing my calories a bit every few days until the scale no longer goes DOWN or stays the same but creeps up slightly. I'm now eating 3,500 calories a day and finally starting to see a slight upward trend.

I wonder if a lot of people are actually in "starvation mode" and don't realize it.

Mike

GinaB30

I have a suggestion for everyone that is talking about how expensive boneless skinless chicken breast is. Have you considered buying either whole chicken (not as healthy a breast but still good for you) or chicken breast with the bone and skin still attached? I know around here is can be much cheaper (I've seen bone-in chicken breast get as low as $.99/lb) and you can remove the bone and skin yourself. More work but WAY cheaper. Also, you can grind your own meat. A manual grinder is about $30 new but it can be a lot cheaper to by the meat and grind it than buy it pre-ground but again it can be a lot more work.

the only thing is a lot of people dont have good self control...I know i dont and if i buy the chicken with the skin I will devour it...I'd crisp up the skin and eat all of it...*sighs* one of the reasons I dont indulge ever... because with my addictive personality type I will not just stop at one...as is true with prob a few other people...atleast i hope im not the only person with this prob lol (cuz maybe i should see a shrink if i am):ohwell:

Even the chicken with the bone IN is quite expensive most of the time (the chicken breast that is)....
The WHOLE chickens are crazy expensive too- these teenie tiny SAD little birds were $13....and I"m talking....they made a pigeon look tasty!

czewwhat

I have a suggestion for everyone that is talking about how expensive boneless skinless chicken breast is. Have you considered buying either whole chicken (not as healthy a breast but still good for you) or chicken breast with the bone and skin still attached? I know around here is can be much cheaper (I've seen bone-in chicken breast get as low as $.99/lb) and you can remove the bone and skin yourself. More work but WAY cheaper. Also, you can grind your own meat. A manual grinder is about $30 new but it can be a lot cheaper to by the meat and grind it than buy it pre-ground but again it can be a lot more work.

the only thing is a lot of people dont have good self control...I know i dont and if i buy the chicken with the skin I will devour it...I'd crisp up the skin and eat all of it...*sighs* one of the reasons I dont indulge ever... because with my addictive personality type I will not just stop at one...as is true with prob a few other people...atleast i hope im not the only person with this prob lol (cuz maybe i should see a shrink if i am):ohwell:

Even the chicken with the bone IN is quite expensive most of the time (the chicken breast that is)....
The WHOLE chickens are crazy expensive too- these teenie tiny SAD little birds were $13....and I"m talking....they made a pigeon look tasty!

Are there 4-H groups in your area? 4-H kids raise and sell livestock for their fair projects here. maybe you could buy some dressed out birds fresh and support the 4-H . IDK about where you are though.