eating healthy on a budget
raetonycass
Posts: 58 Member
I need some advice for eating right on a budget. I have $75 a week to feed my family of 5 and our pets (1 dog, 2 cats, loads of fish). That is my grocery budget. Eating fast, processed foods are so much cheaper than eating healthy, unprocessed foods.
0
Replies
-
http://budgetbytes.blogspot.ca/
Try this site, I've found some good recipe for really cheap on here. And eating fast food or processed food might be cheap now but in the long run with your health and that of your family it wont be. I have been buying dried beans and using them alot more, they have helped me and they can go in so many different things. Good Luck0 -
Try your local farmer's market? I do this and usually get fresh produce for half of what grocery stores would charge. (Better quality too i.m.o.)0
-
http://budgetbytes.blogspot.ca/
Try this site, I've found some good recipe for really cheap on here. And eating fast food or processed food might be cheap now but in the long run with your health and that of your family it wont be. I have been buying dried beans and using them alot more, they have helped me and they can go in so many different things. Good Luck
I love using dried beans. I make red beans and rice, 5 bean chili, 16 bean soup, homemade refried beans from dried beans, and black bean soup each at least once a month, sometimes twice. When I make my chili my family eats it for at least 2 meals like plain chili and then chili/cheese baked potatoes or baked fries. When I make all the others I usually eat leftovers for lunch for a few days.0 -
We eat pasta and pasta sauce (which you can get really cheap) chicken and salad, we even have oatmeal for supper some nights... We do have every so often smoked sausage (which is processed) but we don't make it a habit...0
-
Try your local farmer's market? I do this and usually get fresh produce for half of what grocery stores would charge. (Better quality too i.m.o.)
Going there tomorrow. I get tomatoes, green beans and peppers there. I even have a friend who works a booth and always hooks me up with some extra.0 -
Beans and rice. $75 a week for a family of 5 is tough regardless of the kinds of foods you serve. Check out places like the dollar stores for frozen fruits and vegetables. Try to stay away from the frozen boxed meals as much as possible. Dollar stores can also be good sources for seasonings and spices.
Is there a Grocery Outlet in your neighborhood? They have excellent deals on canned goods as well as pantry staples like flour and sugar. Their produce and dairy can be hit or miss, and sometimes is more expensive than the big chain grocery stores. They also have great deals on pet food.0 -
eMeals
lots of plans to choose from0 -
Check out www.poorgirleatswell.com too for ideas too.0
-
If you shop at walmart or a big chain, keep an eye on their featured meats and look at the expiration dates. We had a big display of the yellow $2/lb boneless skinless breasts and I ended up marking down 5 boxes the other day. What was $12 was now $8, I got two big packages, about 12lbs of breasts, for $16.
I can't imagine how hard it must be to feed a family of five. That chicken would last me 2 months probably but for you it'd be two weeks.....
Do you shop at sam's club/costco? I honestly probably spend half of your monthly budget for just myself. Makes one think a bit...0 -
A few things we have done for cutting some costs and eating healthier, is buying nice lean pork or beef roasts and cut our own steaks portioned to a proper serving size, we definitely get more bang for the buck. As well we have found that cutting down on the amount of starches served with our meals and increasing leafy vegetables such as baby spinach and different types of lettuces has really helped stretch the amount of meals you can get out of more expensive items. Another thing i do a lot with salads, veg and pasta, is I don't use store bought dressings, simple oil and vinegar mix with a cheap seasoning such as pre made greek goes along way, infact lately I have cut out the oil all together and use a more flavorful vinegar such as rice vinegar (you don't need much in a bowl full of food to make it taste great). I'm not sure on the grocery prices where you are from, but it has worked for us.0
-
That's a tough budget
Beans, rice, potatoes, lentils, pasta, porridge (oatmeal I think in America?) are all cheap, and super filling. Fresh fruit and veg can be cheap too if you stick to the basic stuff, and save the more exotic choices for when they're on special offer.
Just thought, re the dog. Does your local butcher give away bones?0 -
I buy everything on sale, and stock the freezer up.
If chicken is on sale, I'll buy a bunch of chicken.
Spiral hams go on sale for half price around
certain holidays. They're vacuumed sealed, and
last for ever in the freezer. I just checked, and I
paid $15-$16 per ham. Make a nice ham dinner,
then use for sandwiches. When you're sick of
ham, cut it up in to bite size pieces, and freeze
it along with the ham bone. BAM ham and bean
soup at a later date.
I find it's a lot cheaper to eat better, than to eat
out or frozen foods. When I cook, it might be a
little more up front, but you have to think about
all the left overs. Works out to be much cheaper
in the end.
0 -
some good ideas. I always have brown rice on hand as well as pasta. Chicken breasts are so large I share one with my 2 youngest kids. I do the whole fryer chicken about once a week and that provides for 2 meals. I buy hamburger in bulk and separate myself into smaller sizes. We do a lot of breakfast for dinner because that is always cheap if you don't eat bacon. I buy a box of pancake mix and make the whole thing at once as either pancakes or waffles. I freeze those to heat as we need them. What I am running into now is so much of my diet is super high sodium not to mention calories. I'll keep working at it.0
-
We hit our local bulk food store and get rice, beans and while wheat pastas for cheap. Items like nuts and dried fruit are also cheaper there.0
-
Also, do you make your own soup? Costs very little to make a huge pot of soup that's filling and nutritious. There's lots of recipes online but you can pretty much make soup from anything you have around on the day - it's a great way to use up leftovers or veg that's reaching the end of its life.0
-
I make some soups. Chili, black bean, 16 bean, potato. My family complains when I do though. I usually pair it with salad.0
-
*bump0
-
Check for local butchers instead of getting meat from a grocery store. When my husband and I were on a strict budget (and lived in town), we went to a local butcher. Their chicken breasts were $3.50/lb vs the $6+ the grocery store charged. Ground beef was $1.85/lb vs the $4ish the grocery store was. Yeah, it can be a bit more running around but it can save you some $$0
-
Last night I had a salad with half a head of Romaine lettuce, half a can of black beans, 4 tablespoons salsa, 1/4 cup of shredded mexican blend cheese and jalapeno slices.
It cost less than $1 and had 271 calories, 4g fat, 18g fiber, 15g protein.
I am only feeding a family of two but we buy in bulk and eat the same meals several days in a row to save on time and money.0 -
bump0
-
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/716023-what-are-the-healthiest-inexpensive-foods
Check out this thread.....and my response to them that might help you (below). Feel free to add me....we're broke and trying to make it just like everyone else. I can and will share recipes
-beans
-eggs
-frozen veggies (they're so much easier to just toss in with something like ramen noodles if you have to eat them) I also like to -make brown rice and veggies.
-if you have local farmer's markets, go there and use them. The prices are not always better, but when people want stuff to move they mark it down.
-buy in season. Watermelon in December is not cheap!
-rice
-low calorie drinks....if you cant get off the water, you can make your low calorie zero sugar drink mixes go further. My family prefers it when I add more water to the ones we have at home.
-Grocery store sales tend to run in cycles....pork one week, chicken the next, ground beef, ect. You need to learn to buy what is on sale. If you have the money, buy extra and freeze so you aren't running to the store and paying full price for something because you want it instead of what is on sale that week.
-grocery stores also tend to put stuff on sale with a theme. For example...the store closest to my house with have things like tortillas, salsa, beef, and cheese on sale all at once. Or every kind of noodles, pasta sauce, garlic bread, and ricotta cheese. If you can, buy the things that are on sale that you can incorporate into your own healthy recipes.
-take advantage of bogo sales....if your store offers free potatoes with the purchase of a roast and carrots...consider the deal and go for it. You don't have to use all the carrots or the potatoes...they can go towards another meal.
-crockpot....it is cheap cooking at it's finest.
-look for "manager specials". A store I used to work at used to sell porterhouse steaks for half the price after they'd been in the case for a few days. They weren't bad, being exposed to the air in the case and the lights make them look like there were on the way out....but they weren't.
-make your meat go further. I have a meat eater at home...a pound of hamburger for meatballs was enough for dinner for 2 and a giant lunch of leftovers for him (he's not trying to lose). Add breadcrumbs (buy or make your own) and an egg. Now a pound of burger turned into spaghetti and meatballs last 4-5 meals. There are recipes that encourage this...like porcupine meatballs (rice, meat, onion, garlic tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce and seasoning. Thats it!)
-google budget meals, and frugal living
-check local convenience stores. We have stores here that sell bread (on sale for .69 cents but can be up to $150 for white OR wheat), eggs (99 cents/dozen) bananas (.39), butter (on sale 1.99 for a pound), milk (sold in half gallon bags, 2 bags are .60 less than a gallon at the grocery store), onions(.39), and potatoes (.39) cheaper than any store in the area.
-coupons are great for things you are going to use. When you shop, compare prices and look for coupons on the package that are good right away!
-always check the discount produce bins, that aisle at walmart with discounted food and shop the sales. Go to multiple stores in the same area if you can do it fast and you get the best deal!
-meal planning is smart. Take the ad on Monday, plan the next week, go shopping Friday or saturday to get those deals. Repeat on monday...many times what wasn't on sale on Friday, will be on sale sunday. So you can pick up stuff on sale for the next week, and go back and get what wasnt on sale...if your brain can organize that.0 -
you can shop at health foods stores no matter what people say. i have 6 cats, 1 dog, 1 3 year old and a hubby, who they all eat all the time it seems, haha, and you can. along with toiletries, animal food, detergent, shampoo/conditioner and all of those things i spend than 75 dollars fo all of that. my rules, buy store brand. they are less expensive than processed foods that are name brands at regular stores. if buying fruits/veggies, go frozen. they are just as healthy. beans, rice, spaghetti. bananas are cheap as well. bulk is a great way as well. also, if you crave a great pizza, make it yourself. you know where everything comes from, and the ingredients again can be frozen. good luck.0
-
Shop at aldi if you have one near you. I spend about $100/week on groceries...that includes extras for SO, sons lunch for school, bottled water, and fruit. I buy ground turkey at aldi for $1.69/lb and drin and rinse after cooking. It's not hindered my weightloss...0
-
You CAN do it, it's just challenging! This site might help a bit with some ideas, although you've gotten some great ones here!
http://365awesomedays.blogspot.com/2011/09/my-75week-grocery-budget.html0 -
Try starting a garden in the spring. I still have tomatoes that are producing! Nothing else though as I'm a novice, but we got tons...and i do mean tons of zucchini, cucumber and some green beans alllll summer long. It was great!
When the supermarket has good meat for a decent price...I always buy two or three packages at a time (if I can afford that much) the same with other sale priced foods.
I know its difficult...some weeks more than others.
Add me if you like and we can trade off low budget/low calorie recipes!
:flowerforyou:0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.6K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.3K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.5K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 431 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.6K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.8K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions