Struggling With Eating Healthy

candyliquor
candyliquor Posts: 27
edited November 10 in Health and Weight Loss
One of the things I struggle most with, with losing weight and eating healthy, is how to do it with a very, very limited budget. I only work part time right now so I have very little income and am trying to save to move out (I am living at home with negative/toxic family members), but at the same time I /want/ to eat healthier, make healthier choices, but it's daunting when it's all so very expensive.

Normally I would ask my dad (although I hate asking anyone for anything in this house) for help in buying a few things, but he recently lost his job and is very, very stressed about it (which in turn makes me very stressed out as well, since him being stressed causes him to drink). So if I want to eat healthy, I need to do so buying groceries on my own, but it's all so very expensive and it winds up easier buying non-healthy alternatives and that's a habit I want to get out of.

Any help or tips in making cheap but healthy meals would be very, very appreciated and I would be so thankful for that. Thank you. =)

Replies

  • clambert1273
    clambert1273 Posts: 840 Member
    frozen veggies/fruit... that is how I have to do it while feeding 5.. I live in a state now where the fresh produce kind of sucks and is REALLY expensive. I haven't had one issue using frozen...

    I buy my fresh staples like apples, grapes etc... I miss getting my flat of strawberries for $11 from the strawberry field next door :(
  • straysilverfox
    straysilverfox Posts: 11
    I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but I lost a lot of weight when I was younger just eating peanut butter jelly sandwiches and hot/lean pockets. The trick was quantity of intake and a job that was very physical (unloading trucks). I'm sure I wasn't the pristine example of a healthy person given the quality of food, but it's much better than burgers and fries (and cheaper, too!)
  • candyliquor
    candyliquor Posts: 27
    @clambert1273‌, hopefully my grocery store will have a 10/10 sale on frozen vegetables! I have no problem tossing some in a salad or some pasta (or even with just a tbs of parm cheese). And yes, fruit right now is super expensive now that it's out of season, which sucks since I love fruit. Apples however are cheap at my store, so I always grab a bunch and eat them throughout the week.

    @straysilverfox‌, I actually did that a few weeks ago when my work hours had were during the afternoon/evening and took my lunch to work. Though by the end the week I was feeling horribly dizzy and lightheaded from not eating enough nutritionally. I had no idea what was wrong with me until I looked back at what I'd eaten throughout the week. Def. not enough for me, but it's certainly a good cheap idea! Thank you!
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    Some cheap ideas: beans, lentils, eggs, canned frozen fruits and veggies, cabbage, kale, collards, potatoes, rice, oatmeal, peanuts, canned tuna, peanut butter,
  • dramaqueen45
    dramaqueen45 Posts: 1,009 Member
    Agree with above- cheap and easy- dried beans and lentils, eggs, rice, oatmeal, peanut butter, etc. Also, I don't know if you have an Aldi around where you live, but I have found that they have very good produce and it's cheap too. In fact, Aldi has many good options and cheaper than a regular grocery store usually.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    The only requirement for losing weight, is to eat at a deficit. Eat what you always do, only in moderation.
  • kevinmacpa
    kevinmacpa Posts: 84 Member
    Cheapest way to eat healthy is by buying whole food and cook it yourself. Processed food are not as healthy and expensive.

    Why not buy a whole bag of brown rice? White rice is even cheaper, but due to the higher fiber in brown rice, I would go with that if financially possible. Regardless, a bag of rice is cheap and can last you at least several weeks if you eat it every meal and everyday.

    For protein, go with chicken, the cheapest meat. Chicken breast is the best choice, skinless is top choice for bulking or cutting. But skinless chicken breast is the most expensive. To stay within budget, go for drumsticks with skin, or chicken leg with or without skin. At where I live, skinless chicken breast averages to about 2.70 USD per lbs, but I know where to find deal and can get it for 1.99 USD per lbs some times. Chicken leg usually average to about 1.5 USD per lbs.

    For chicken breast, I season with some spice, cook them in frying pan. Use medium heat and steam them for about 10 min. 6 lbs of raw chicken breast come out to about 4 lbs cooked. Each lbs of cooked chicken breast has about 100 gram of protein. That should be enough for most people's daily need unless you are trying to bulk.

    Buy some nuts like peanuts, walnuts, almonds in bulk and snack on them. They have healthy fat and a little protein as well.

    Add fruits and vegetable to your meals or snacks. Buy them when they are on sale.

    Take multivitamin each day.

    If you eat like this, your food plus vitamin supplement should be no more than 5 to 6 dollars per day. For a month, it totals to less than 200 dollars, and this would be very nutritional and much better than what you had been eating.

    Buy some tupperware and pack your food so you can bring to work. Some rice with chicken and veggie. Nuts and fruits for snacks. Sounds pretty good if you ask me.
  • azulvioleta6
    azulvioleta6 Posts: 4,195 Member
    If you are only working part time, you can use the extra time to cook from scratch and to prep foods.

    Next summer, do u-pick and freeze or can your own fruits and veggies. You could also use that extra time to grow a garden. I spend about $50 a year on seeds, supplies and community garden rental--I get all of my fresh veggies this way for several months of the year and have lots to preserve. I also grow a few things (parsley, kale, carrots) over the winter.
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