Healthy Groceries for around $100/month

Greetings fellow MFPers! I've had this on my mind for a while, and I thought I'd write a post on it, just in case anyone else could use my model.

Disclaimers: I live in Texas, and the cost of living here isn't terribly high. I'm citing my grocery prices locally; yours may be different.. A week's worth of groceries here typically costs me around $20. The remaining $20 goes to things I don't buy every week. It covers items that I buy bi-weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, etc. For example: Seasonings, sauces, rice, oatmeal, etc. Also, I live alone with just my dog. So this is a one-person meal budget. It may not work properly for people with mouths to feed. If you lift or do other heavy exercise, this plan likely won't work for you. You'll probably wind up needing to double the amounts or more. Sorry I can't be of more help! But for people like me, who are trying to lose fat through diet and light exercise (rather than gaining muscle), it's a great starting point.

Backstory: Some of you know, I've been dealing with depression and a particularly rough patch of life. I gave myself until April to mope around and eat my feelings (gaining 20 pounds) and then I told myself I would start taking care of myself again. I did this in various ways, but I'm talking about groceries here.

I've always had a problem: I hate cooking for one. I feel like it's a waste of my time and energy. But eating out or ordering in all the time was getting really expensive, both financially and physically. So when I decided to start taking care of myself, I knew this would involve some cooking. I resigned myself to it.

So I decided that I would start walking to the grocery store and getting groceries for a couple meals at a time and walking home. Two healthy decisions! Eventually I got that down to one trip a week.

Here's what I get EVERY WEEK when I go to the grocery store:

One package(2-3 pounds) fresh boneless skinless chicken breasts: (~$5)
One package (10 oz) fresh salmon* (~$8)
2-3 pounds of whatever fresh vegetables look good that week. (Generally $2-4)

*Salmon can be replaced with cheaper fish or another meat. I mostly have it in here because I love it and it's full of good fats.

That's my week's worth of lunches and dinners. For $15-$20.

About every other week, I get my snacks. I usually grab one of the 5-lb bags of apples that cost about $3, a package of raw almonds that's about $4, and a 3-pack of seasoned seaweed sheets. ($1. Don't judge me; they're a delicious, nutrient-dense, calorie-light munchy-snack.)

So that's about another $8.

About once a month, I get:
One 2-lb bag of rice ($2-$3)
One container store-brand organic one-minute oats ($3)

Every once in a while, I get soy sauce, terriyaki sauce, lemon and lime juice, sugar, spices, a package of dried fruit for a change, etc. This usually winds up being about $5 a month, because I don't need to get every one every month. Some months, I don't need to get any.

So.

$20 x 4 = 80
$8 x 2 = 16
$5 x 1 = 5

So we have 80 + 16 + 5 = $101.

Bam.

I generally eat about 5-6 ounces of chicken at a meal, which is around half a chicken breast. The salmon I buy is generally in two 5-oz portions anyway, so that works for two meals. That 3-pound pack of chicken is good for six or eight meals.

My prep generally includes preparing 2 servings at a time. I throw the rice in a rice cooker and forget about it until it beeps (I eat about a half-cup of cooked rice at a time.) While the rice is cooking, I preheat the oven to $350. I line a baking pan with foil and put my protein in the middle. One whole chicken breast, or both salmon fillets. I pack the vegetables around the outside or the protein (Broccoli, green beans, asparagus, squash, carrots, whatever. I get different veggies every week.) and then add my seasoning. It usually winds up being about a quarter-pound of veggies per serving, so that's 8 meals.

You can use almost anything you like as seasoning, just make sure you check the serving size and plan accordingly. Soy sauce, citrus juice, herbs and spices, pasta sauce (A serving is a quarter cup, and if that's how much you use it isn't too bad), balsamic vinegar, herbed butter, whatever. Sometimes I even like to use salsa, even though it's high-sodium.

So I top that off with foil (and usually a little water in the bottom of the pan) and throw it in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes. I serve myself up one meal, and then I put the rest in a container for lunch the next day.

Breakfast usually consists of a bowl of oatmeal, lightly sweetened and seasoned, and I mostly drink water. For a few extra dollars, you can add on tea bags to make hot or iced tea, water flavorings, herbs and berries for water infusions, etc.

Breakfast generally runs me about 300 calories (I'm including coffee with creamer in this, because I don't do it every day and it's free at my office)

Lunch and dinner usually run 350-400 calories

I allow myself 200 calories of snacks--Generally, an apple and a handful of almonds.

That tops off at about 1300 calories. MFP often suggests you eat 1200, but I think most people aim a little higher than that. I, personally, aim for about 1400. This gives me about a hundred calories of wiggle-room that I can fill with "a little extra" or one thing or another and, coupled with regular (light) exercise, has allowed me to lose ten pounds since I started in April (I topped off at 150; I just broke below 140) and I feel healthier and more energetic the longer I stick with it.

Now you'll notice that there isn't a full 21 meals/week on here. Mostly, that's because I account for real life. I aim for the 80/20 rule: 80% of the time, I try to stick to my diet plan. The other 20% is for when real life happens--I forget my lunch at home. Someone buys pizza for the office. A friend invites me to dinner. I'm just plain not hungry. I don't have the energy for more than a drive-through on my way home.

Whatever. It's life, and it happens. So I account for it in my budget, and try to not to buy food that I'm not going to eat. (Worst case, I make one extra run to the store for stuff for one or two meals.)