Trying to lose weight on a tight budget!

My whole life I have felt....and been called....overweight. Although now I look back at photos and realize I was quite slim! The only time I ever lost significant weight is when my now-ex husband ended our 18 year relationship in 2012 by telling me he was sneaking around with my now-ex best friend and was leaving me for her!
I went into a depression and didn't eat a stitch of food for over three weeks, until my Mother made me go to the doctor. I lost about 16lbs. I could notice it in my face, thighs and my belly.
I started to feel better in a few weeks after medication and a lot of friendship therapy. I actually started to enjoy my new found size! For the first time in many, many years, I fit into a size 30 jean!! I was always a 36 or more!
A few months later, I met an amazing man, we are still together and going strong. But....recently I noticed I have put on at least 20lbs since the spring of 2013. My fav Guess skinny jeans (size 30!) which he bought me now no longer fit I can't even get them up past my knees. I cried for almost an hour. It's crazy how we never notice the weight piling up until it's too late but notice every little bit that leaves!
My finances also got seriously messed up and I am now living paycheck to paycheck. I can't afford most of the healthy stuff I want and should be eating, I can't afford a gym membership or any equipment. I DESPISE the cold so I don't get outside much in the winter. I sooooo want to fit back into those Guess skinny jeans....can anyone offer some pointers to someone on a serious budget?? Oh....and I have very little willpower or motivation. LOL I will be the first to admit, I am lazy...it's how I grew up. I didn't grow up in an active home, my mother is overweight.
Any advice will be appreciated....but please be gentle! LOL

In reality you don't need exercise to lose weight but the end result is nicer if you add exercise. I'm doing almost everything at home. You really do not need much money to start exercising, just the determination to do something each day. Check out the APPS tab on MFP to find a lot of apps like the Runtastic apps that are free or very low cost for the pro version. They feed the results fight into MFP saving you the time of doing so. Search the App Store or similar. Some of the apps do not feed into MFP so you have to manually enter in the results. I have under $20 spent on these types of apps that I use daily. I have an elliptical (bought well before joining MFP) but if you don't have one and choose to spend the money, now is a good time to pick up used exercise equipment at the resale shops since folks got them for Christmas and have already become tired of them. I also picked up a Total Core at a liquidation store (major savings) for $19. Walmart (Canada) has inexpensive skipping ropes if you want to add that to your routine. They also have dumbbells rather inexpensive. I paid $6 for two 3 lb dumbbells perfect for my arm exercises. I highly recommend a pedometer (about $15) then set a goal of 10,000 steps a day. I can easily get that accomplished in my home each day. Dollarama has resistance exercise bands for $2. There are a lot of YouTube videos (free) and depending on your library, exercise DVDs are free to rent. I chose not to join a gym but I did join a community activity centre that offers more than just exercise classes and equipment. It was $30 for the year and exercise classes are drop-in at $2 each. Set up a routine and stick to it.

When it comes to food, I avoid anything 'weight loss' specific and processed foods BUT that's the way we normally eat so there were no real changes that way for me. I only had to change portion size. Shop the outside aisles of the grocery store. Buy dried beans and rice in large packages and learn how to cook them. Even if you buy nothing, do splurge on a kitchen scale (about $15). That can be one of your most valuable tools in weigh loss for accurate tracking of calorie intake.

My whole life I have felt....and been called....overweight. Although now I look back at photos and realize I was quite slim! The only time I ever lost significant weight is when my now-ex husband ended our 18 year relationship in 2012 by telling me he was sneaking around with my now-ex best friend and was leaving me for her!
I went into a depression and didn't eat a stitch of food for over three weeks, until my Mother made me go to the doctor. I lost about 16lbs. I could notice it in my face, thighs and my belly.
I started to feel better in a few weeks after medication and a lot of friendship therapy. I actually started to enjoy my new found size! For the first time in many, many years, I fit into a size 30 jean!! I was always a 36 or more!
A few months later, I met an amazing man, we are still together and going strong. But....recently I noticed I have put on at least 20lbs since the spring of 2013. My fav Guess skinny jeans (size 30!) which he bought me now no longer fit I can't even get them up past my knees. I cried for almost an hour. It's crazy how we never notice the weight piling up until it's too late but notice every little bit that leaves!
My finances also got seriously messed up and I am now living paycheck to paycheck. I can't afford most of the healthy stuff I want and should be eating, I can't afford a gym membership or any equipment. I DESPISE the cold so I don't get outside much in the winter. I sooooo want to fit back into those Guess skinny jeans....can anyone offer some pointers to someone on a serious budget?? Oh....and I have very little willpower or motivation. LOL I will be the first to admit, I am lazy...it's how I grew up. I didn't grow up in an active home, my mother is overweight.
Any advice will be appreciated....but please be gentle! LOL

Also....I thought I would add that I am in Canada....and unfortunately our foods etc seem to be more expensive than in the US. There is a farmer's market near me but their prices can be high. I am also a picky eater, lol, I don't like a lot of veggies (peppers, onions, zuccinni, mushrooms, celery, cauliflower) so that makes cooking a little tricky and sometimes bland. LOL
Our (mine and my bf) budget is $65 a week right now. We always buy eggs and a few kinds of proteins (chicken, pork) for meals when it's on sale along with some frozen dinners for lunches. I could use some ideas for afternoon snacks and easy breakfasts though!


I do like to walk....mostly in the summer. When it is -18 degrees celcius out like today, I realllly would rather not go for a walk!
I never thought to check youtube for workout and meal ideas, thanks to all for that advice!

I should have noted that we are in Canada as well, Ontario. I find a lot of American prices higher than Canadian but there is more selection. Smoothies might be one solution to using more vegetables. Just be careful with the calories. I here you on the walking out doors at those temps. I have been doing most of my walking in my home. I get walking in when shopping as well. One of the malls a couple of towns over has a mall walking club. Maybe there is one near you?

hey there, I'm a student on a budget and here is what has helped me



budgetbytes.com so many great CHEAP healthy recipes. She breaks down the price per serving and some of her recipes are in the mfp database!!!

also, the crockpot is a real life saver I will buy whatever hunk of meat is on sale, throw it in the crock pot with anything really (dressing, boullion, stock, veggies) and it comes out delicious every single time! you can throw a whole chicken in, cook it, pull the chicken off the bone and make a stock in the crock pot. I eat this with rice and its a very cheap meal. 10 bucks MAX and it lasts for DAYS

i try to go to the store and buy what I need for a specific meal, and then leave. I buy things that I have a concrete plan for. I used to buy buy buy tons of produce at a time, or other perishables that seemed like healthy choices, but had NO plans for them and they would rot. Buy what you need for a specific meal, and cook in bulk!


blogilates.com
is a website by cassey ho. Totally FREE mat workouts that are really fun and challenging. All you need is a yoga mat. or the carpet!! i am working my way through her FREE beginners calendar, all with workouts attached. I bought my yoga mat at marshalls for about 13$

hope this helps, and best of luck on your journey, you can do it!!

Try agirlcalledjack.com amazingly cheap and healthy recipes. She has become well known here in the UK speaking about the problems around food poverty and the rise in use of foodbanks.
If you want to eat healthily and cheaply it can be done you just have to be prepared to think creatively and spend some time planning ahead. Others have given some very good advice.
Good luck!

Tasty beans & rice recipe:

Put 2 cloves of garlic and 1/2 onion (both chopped) in a pan with a little olive oil for a few minutes, then add 2 cans of beans, 3 chopped tomatoes, and spices (get as experimental as you want):
cumin
chili powder
paprika
a liiiittle oregano and a liiiittle cinnamon

Add some chopped kale or spinach and cover, let simmer til the tomatoes cook down and it's nice and saucy. Top with chopped cilantro. I make this while I boil a cup of brown rice and then divide it up into lunches for the week. Avocado and Tapatio are the best toppings, but I know avocado is expensive. Tapatio is not, however. Also you'd save a lot using dry beans, but I'm a fellow lazy person

Check out your local thrift stores for DVDs, weights, and interim clothing as you shrink. Why buy new when people are getting rid of perfectly good stuff you can snag cheap?

If you follow the whole chicken advice, take the carcass when you're done, stick it in a crockpot, cover it with water (don't fill the pot completely if it's a big pot and a small carcass), throw in some carrots and garlic if you have some on hand, a few herbs and spices you like (sage, parsley, and black pepper make a good basic stock), a little salt, and leave it on low for a long time. I usually cook mine for close to 24 hours. Then strain the "stuff" out and voila-chicken broth that's basically free, low calorie, and good. It freezes well too. Use it to make soup, saute veggies, cook your rice for added flavor and nutrition, even use it for a snack.

This won't help you now, but do you have space for a small garden in the spring? Helps with the fresh food budget AND it's exercise. You'll have to make a small investment in plants or seeds to start with, maybe buy a few tools (look at yard sales and second-hand stores). It's not going to work for everyone, and it's definitely work, but it's a gods-send to us.

Where do people find these farmer's markets where things are cheaper than the grocery store?! We went to one this weekend to compare, and everything we checked was more expensive yet than the organics at our local store.

I wholeheartedly agree, unless you go around the time they are about to close and make them an offer.

I do find it amazing that when I am in a relationship I start to gain weight. But, that is a whole other story. I am in the same boat as you when it comes to budget. I look for whole grain everything. It not only makes you feel full longer it gets things moving out of your body as well. I am not sure where you live but, we have a store in Missouri called Aldi's, It is a discounted grocery store. For example I needed eggs today. At the regular grocery store they were 2.28 a dozen at Aldi's they were 1.29 a dozen. They have a lot of produce and a brand called Fit and Active that is the healthy choice. See if you have that type of store in your area. Usually when I am in full swing with this life change I have cereal/oatmeal with juice and fruit for breakfast, Sandwich, salad or soup for lunch and dinner depends on how many calories I have left. I find the key is no matter what you eat practice portion control . I have been taught you plate should look like a swim suit meat and starch for the top ( a 1/4 of the plate each) and vegetable are the bottom ( 1/2 the plate.) Hope that help. Oh one more thing. If you are going out to eat and know which restaurant a head of time go to their website and look at the nutrition page. You will be surprised what you can eat. It isn't always salad. I went out this weekend and I would have ordered Fiesta Lime Chicken But, looking at the website found out it was 1250 calories so instead I got the Cajun Lime Tilapia which was 325 calories and I took some of it home. Research and exercise are your friends. Good Luck
Lynn
1

So sorry about your ex-husband. I suggest U tube as well and I like Jillian Michaels and Jessica Smith kickboxing. It free. Try Mall walking its free and its warm inside. Do A couple times around the Mall and then site and get a coffee or maybe window shop and get in more walking. There are plenty of creative ways to exercise, I.e., when you are cooking do squats in the kitchen or bicep curl with cans of food. Please friend me and I will be glad to help you:happy:

Have you checked your local library for DVDs? There are so many available and you can get quite a variety!

"I think what that poster was trying to tell you is that if you are focusing on something like skinny jeans vs. the bigger picture of being healthy, it will not matter what advice you receive because your mindset is not conducive to doing what needs to be done. That's not being tough on you, that's being real. It gets pretty maddening for regular posters when people come in and lament about not being a super cute size they used to be and omg, being healthy is SO expensive! It's really not. It's about prioritizing and not copping out with BS excuses, like "low fat" food being too expensive.

I can't even"
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First of all....I wasn't "crying over my skinny jeans" it was the fact that I had gained the weight back and hadn't really noticed. It just happened to be at that point of trying to wear the jeans that it really sunk in. Some people seem to take my wording quite literally! Yes...I want to be healthy....but I also need motivation in front of me to give me that push I need. Those jeans represent that. Because, if I can fit into the jeans....and maybe even smaller ones, that means I am losing the weight and getting healthier. It is tangible unlike the goal to be healthy...that is not something I can see or touch. But in losing the weight, better health will follow. My bottom line is to be a healthy weight for my age and height.

You do not know me to assume that I am more worried about being a "super cute size" than being healthy so please don't make those assumptions based on a paragraph I wrote. Maybe I worded it poorly, but one should still never assume.
I have struggled with my weight all my life, coming from an overweight family who did not excercise or eat healthy. My ex (whom I was with for 18 years) was also not healthy and was very overweight, obese even according to his BMI. Growing up & living that way, made for some very bad habits in my life. Those habits are incredibly hard to break. I also know enough to realize I am not only fighting to change bad habits but also genetics and my age.

I have stated over and over here that I am JUST BEGINNING! I joined this site to get support and advice to help me make a lifestyle change but that is going to take time. It was a huge step for me to post on a site like this because I knew I would get some comments stating the harsh truth....but I didn't think some people would be so rude about it. Making sarcastic comments is NOT helpful in any way. And calling what I say BS....also not helpful. Everyone has different opinions. My excuses are excuses yes....but they are valid ones in my opinion. Because like I have also stated a few times....people's idea of what things cost and what is expensive varys quite a bit. What seems expensive to me might not to you.

I took a big step in joining this site, hoping for some positive, friendly advice....and yes truth. But maybe some should think about how they are wording that TRUTH because it comes off as quite rude and abrasive...which does not work for me. There are polite ways to say things and point stuff out. I do not respond to negativity. I respond to the many other encouraging people that have commented on here.
And if the "regular posters" are maddened by us newbies....then just leave us be to the people who have the patience, understanding and encouragement that we need since we are all just beginning.

I can't say it enough....everyone is different in SO many ways. Please realize that before commenting on someone's post.
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Hi.....so first your ex really sucks! You have handled things well! Do you have stairs at home? Do you clean? Just try to push yourself into some kind of normal. That seems to work for me. Food....yes it does costs....how about smoothes? You can replace at least a meal with one. Good luck!

This thread is making me super curious about Trader Joe's. I have never been, and we don't have one in my area...but I was under the impression it was like the designer boutique of supermarkets and everything was priced CRAZILY...no???

I keep seeing it mentioned as a budget store. I am confused but intrigued now!