Maintaining weight on a budget

IsabeausRose
IsabeausRose Posts: 129 Member
edited September 2017 in Goal: Maintaining Weight
I have reached my goal weight but am continuing to lose weight because I cannot afford the increase in groceries to maintain my weight. Can you tell me some cheap high calorie foods I could add to my diet? I know peanut butter is one. I was really hoping to finally add veggies but they are so expensive here and the cheap grocery store has such reduced prices they never have sales yet the produce is still expensive. It would cost me $20 a month just for one banana a day and I just don't have the money. So I need to trade a low calorie food I'm currently eating for a high calorie food of the same price. Help appreciated ty.

Replies

  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
    Have you looked at frozen veggies? Olive oil & butter are calorie dense.
    How many calories per day are you looking to add?
    What did you eat that you could afford before you lost weight?
  • IsabeausRose
    IsabeausRose Posts: 129 Member
    Veggies would cost me $30 to $50 dollars a month where I live. I'm looking to add at least 300 extra calories to my diet since I am on 1200 calories. I used to have an extra $100 dollars for my groceries before I lost weight so I was able to eat more but my rent went up for just that much last June so I have lost that option.
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    Use calorie dense foods to up your calories - oil, butter, oatmeal, other grains like wheat flour, rice, bread, pasta, beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes. Full fat milk, yogurt, cheese. Buy and use more sugar than honey.
    Add fruit and vegetables for micronutrients - frozen vegetables and berries are good; carrots, broccoli, rutabaga, beets, onions, apples and oranges keep for a long time.
    Eggs and nuts are calorie and nutrient dense. Peanuts ad almonds are usually cheaper than other nuts.
    Splurge on small amounts of fatty meat, fish and other seafood.

    Eat something from each group every day. Variety is healthy. Pick whatever is cheap that day but still looks appealing.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    Rice is one of the most calorie rich things you can buy for the money. Potatoes are also fairy cheap and good for you. Buy fruit and vegetables based on when they are in season. For meat, buy the bulk packs and freeze any excess. Dry beans and dry pasta are also fairy inexpensive.
  • Meghanebk
    Meghanebk Posts: 321 Member
    edited September 2017
    Generally the cost of full fat options of foods are the same/less expensive. Make sure you're buying whole milk, full fat cheeses, butter instead of low-cal spread, etc.

    Do you have a food pantry in the area? Fresh fruit/veggies will probably hardly ever be there but it is a good option for stretching your budget with other foods. Canned veggies are better than none. Keep an eye out for sales on those, and stockpile what you can. Here's one way to search for programs you may not know about: ampleharvest.org/find-pantry/

    Frozen veggies are often better and cheaper than fresh in areas without lots of fresh veggies. Stuff your freezer with them when they go on sale. $6.50 got me half a freezer full of broccoli, corn, and spinach last week.

    My multiple-job broke student coworkers like this free ebook for recipes and shopping tips:
    https://cookbooks.leannebrown.com/good-and-cheap.pdf
    It may give you some ideas.
  • kokonani
    kokonani Posts: 507 Member
    Oatmeal, dry pasta, dry beans, potatoes.
  • Noreenmarie1234
    Noreenmarie1234 Posts: 7,493 Member
    OP I think the way people read this post was thinking you were underweight then gained weighed to overweight with medication then had to lose back to where you are now but are still losing. I don't think they realized you meant you were put on meds to HELP gain weight and now want to keep that weight you gained because you keep losing? Is that correct in how I am understanding your problem?

    Peanut butter is great. I find I can get really good coupons making it only 1-2 bucks per jar which can pack on easy 200-400 calories. When I don't have much money but am looking to add cheap calories I like to add pb&J because they usually have great sales on pb and bread and store brand jelly is usually only 1 dollar a thing. So you can make 2 weeks of PB&J sandwiches for 5-6 bucks and super tasty as well. (Cheapest bread at my store is 99 cent I don't know about where you are)

    Another thing is adding butter to your meals. A container of 4 sticks of butter is relatively cheap and packs on 100 calories per tblsp so could easily add a few hundred every day if you add onto your meals.

    What are your favorite things to eat now so we can suggest higher calorie but comparable in price options ?
  • countcurt
    countcurt Posts: 593 Member
    I now know a lot more about your situation. Which is much more complex than typical. I don't know if you had/have an eating disorder because you don't state so one way or the other. The suggestions you're receiving are all over the map in terms of their potential implications for your overall health, perhaps more so than typical given you have some medical issues in the background of your weight management.

    Given that you have access to health care (since you were seeing a psychiatrist and obtaining medication) have you considered asking for a referral to a dietician or nutritionist? I suspect they would be much more able to help you than an anonymous group on a fitness message board.
  • IsabeausRose
    IsabeausRose Posts: 129 Member
    edited September 2017
    OP I think the way people read this post was thinking you were underweight then gained weighed to overweight with medication then had to lose back to where you are now but are still losing. I don't think they realized you meant you were put on meds to HELP gain weight and now want to keep that weight you gained because you keep losing? Is that correct in how I am understanding your problem?

    Peanut butter is great. I find I can get really good coupons making it only 1-2 bucks per jar which can pack on easy 200-400 calories. When I don't have much money but am looking to add cheap calories I like to add pb&J because they usually have great sales on pb and bread and store brand jelly is usually only 1 dollar a thing. So you can make 2 weeks of PB&J sandwiches for 5-6 bucks and super tasty as well. (Cheapest bread at my store is 99 cent I don't know about where you are)

    Another thing is adding butter to your meals. A container of 4 sticks of butter is relatively cheap and packs on 100 calories per tblsp so could easily add a few hundred every day if you add onto your meals.

    What are your favorite things to eat now so we can suggest higher calorie but comparable in price options ?

    Ty for being supportive and understanding on here. I find myself feeling attacked at times and like people make assumptions i.e. overweight from overeating so therefore they can afford the food. Peanut butter is a great option and only 2 tblsp adds about 190 calories so that's great. I just have to mentally adjust to adding calories now. The medication I was put on added weight with no real increase in my calories, I know that doesn't make sense but again it causes metabolic disorder and raises triglyceride levels. I was on it for 13 years gained too much weight and now that I am off it the weight has just been falling off. My BMI is currently 23.8 and I promised myself I wouldn't go below a certain weight so I really need to get a handle on this so my ED doesn't kick back in. I wish there was a category that dealt with the emotional side of eating and weight and eating disorders. But thank you again for your kindness it goes a long way xoxo.
    The things I do like to eat are protein, Greek yogurt, granola bars. I eat bananas. I'd like to get some cheap veggies in my diet. I spend about $60 a month in frozen chicken breasts but that's a good price as with the yogurt I'm getting 90 grams of protein a day on 1200 calories. I also eat Dark Chocolate.
    My macros are 40% carbs 30%protein 30%fat and I'd like to stick with that.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    Best of health to you.

    Potatoes are cheap and filling. Frozen corn is a vegetable and fills up nicely too. Get full fat milk and use that as your beverage. Butter and vegetable oil can be added too for a quick fill me up.
  • LiftHeavyThings27105
    LiftHeavyThings27105 Posts: 2,086 Member
    Brown Rice is pretty calorically dense. I get the Kroger | Harris Teeter Brown Rice box for about $1.17. Sunflower Seeds are also really calorically dense. I get the Dakota Style Sunflower Seeds from Wal-Mart (as much as I DISKLIKE going to Wal-Mart) for $1.97 a bag.

    I really think that those two specific things (or similar) would really help you out on the cheap.

    And, yes - I might have just created a new word in the English language!!! "Calorically".......not sure that existed until now! :smiley:
  • 4legsRbetterthan2
    4legsRbetterthan2 Posts: 19,590 MFP Moderator
    Closed for moderation
  • Alex
    Alex Posts: 10,145 MFP Staff
    We have split off several posts from this discussion that were off topic and will keep this discussion closed but viewable since there are some useful posts on good high calorie foods on a budget.
This discussion has been closed.