How to lose weight on a budget

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Ready2BEthin
Ready2BEthin Posts: 133 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
After spending on money on dvds, expensive packaged food and everything else you can think of.. I finally realized how to lose weight on a budget.

-Michelina's Lean Gourmets are $1, they are a perfect option for lunch and/or dinner
-Purchase frozen fruit and vegtables. A frozen bag of brocoli from walmart is $1. A bag of fresh brocoli, $3. and trust me, frozen last longer
-Can't afford a gym membership, go walking. Its FREE. Walk outside. If weather not permitting, go to your local mall, walmart, target wherever look at your clock and just walk around the store.. still counts as exercise same as if you were on the treadmill
-Instead of purchasing workout dvds or books, check your library you can rent for free or check with friends, family members and coworkers and see if they would like to dvd swap. Borrow each others dvds.
-Dont have weights? Use jug of water.
-Breakfast, Oatmeal is a great option, a box of oatmeal is $2.50 from walmart, and the packets will last you for days possible 2 weeks.

And the most important thing you can get for weight loss is DETERMINATION. Its free

I am not an expert, just a person like you trying to lose weight. I hope this advice can help someone else out there :)

Replies

  • mehaugen
    mehaugen Posts: 210 Member
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    I use cans of beans for 1lb weights :)
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,229 Member
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    LOL! Shopping has become my new favorite exercise. :)
  • kschr201
    kschr201 Posts: 219 Member
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    Agree on the frozen stuff. I try to buy lots of healthy fruits and veggies but I don't have a car or the ability to go to the store every few days, that and I spend all my free time studying. frozen stuff helps me stretch to shopping every few weeks while still eating my veggies.
  • trlyblssd79
    trlyblssd79 Posts: 101 Member
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    Thnx for the post! Great advice!1
  • Ready2BEthin
    Ready2BEthin Posts: 133 Member
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    I agree. Im not denying that fresh fruit & vegtables and staying away from any packaged foods is most likely the better option. But for alot of us on here, we dont have the ability to purchase those things. So for now, frozen food is the way to go, and it does work still for weight loss. And btw great advice on the using cans for weights :)
  • phoebe2488
    phoebe2488 Posts: 106 Member
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    If you have cable, most systems have an on demand exercise channel. You can get all kinds of workout videos for free!!!
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  • raw_sugar
    raw_sugar Posts: 87
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    Dancing is great exercise and free when done in the privacy of your own home.

    I also found that after the initial kitchen purge, my grocery bills went down as I wasn't buying as much junk food.
  • Radcliffe83
    Radcliffe83 Posts: 82
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    not buying food is cheaper than buying food
  • SheRa1964
    SheRa1964 Posts: 155
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    I am on a t-i-g-h-t budget. Thanks for all the great advice. :)
  • Barneystinson
    Barneystinson Posts: 1,357 Member
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    One word - ALDI.

    I freaking love that place.
  • qwills2cats
    qwills2cats Posts: 108 Member
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    I have saved so much money by not going out to lunch at work. Now I take a bag of frozen veggies to work each day. At lunch I poke a few holes in the bag, throw the whole thing in the microwave and then slice open the bag for an instant bowl. I can even justify spending money on fruit and produce I would have said was too expensive before because I am not spending money on crackers and cookies etc... And frozen chicken breasts, the George Foreman, and a jar of salsa are my quickie dinner.
    No gym here either so I am walking and running and even dug out an old Richard Simmons DVD to exercise with. I am going to check out my uverse to see if they have an exercise channel.
  • MrsCurtisinTX
    MrsCurtisinTX Posts: 88 Member
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    Thats all great information!
  • unmitigatedbadassery
    unmitigatedbadassery Posts: 653 Member
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    I agree with almost all of that except the Michelina's. While most of these 'healthy' foods are low in fat and calories, they are ridiculously high in sodium, sugars and chemicals. A far better option would be to stock up on chicken breasts when they go on sale. Normal price around here is about 1.99/lb (I see them for .99/lb all the time) and when you break that into portion sizes you are going to get rougthly 4 servings per pound. That breaks down to .50/serving. Throw in some frozen veggies (which I get for $1.59 for about 2 servings) and you're good to go! $1.30 per serving and you are good to go!
  • Ready2BEthin
    Ready2BEthin Posts: 133 Member
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    This is all really great advice. Thank you all for adding to it. I mentioned Michelinas because I had an extreme habit of eating lean cuisines and the switch saved me so much money, some are high in sodium, however their are some that are under 500 mg in sodium. I have seen comments said where eating healthy is expensive, I hope we all helpd people see it can be easily done on a budget. Thanx everyone :)
  • mabelebam
    mabelebam Posts: 150 Member
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    Thanks for the helpful tips! I'm a student with a limited allowance, and when I started my journey, one of my goals was to prove to my sister that I didn't need an expensive gym membership to lose weight. I substituted the elliptical and treadmill with outdoor running with my dog, scouted around for discount workout DVD's, and borrowed copies from friends.

    Another alternative is to search on Youtube or the Net for Yoga, cardio or other workouts. Found a good variety of moves for both beginners and advanced exercisers. Plus it's free! :) Who said weight loss had to be expensive?

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