Losing my job

My husband and I are on a fairly limited budget as well, so our food choices aren't always "perfect" as far as health is concerned, but they are affordable. When I find that I have to eat higher-calorie foods because that is what we have to eat (like pbj for lunch, etc.) I just work out extra to burn the extra calories. As far as meeting needs for things like protein, fat, carbs, etc. it really can be done. We do a lot of canned and frozen veggies (try to buy unsalted ones), and beans are a great source of fiber and protein--just higher calorie so work out a little more. I also so things like soup with lots of veggies to make things like meat go further. As to the gym, I cannot afford a gym membership so I run/walk/bike and do other exercises like push ups, crunches etc. at home and outside, and we bought Jillian Michael's 30 day shred (which is *awesome*) last year, a great $10 investment! Instead of focusing on what is going to be harder, try to look at this as a challenge, then when you are in a good financial place again you can reassess. Sorry to hear about your jobs, but good luck!!

My boyfriend went through a period where he was so dead broke between school and a poorly paying job that his food budget was literally about $30/month. And he made it work, and he lost a lot of weight on it.

His daily meals consisted of a bowl of oatmeal in the morning, lunch was a full bag of frozen veggies with some Cheesy Ragu sauce on it and dinner was one of those Knorr instant pasta packet things. He also drank 2+cups of V8 and a yogurt for a snack somewhere throughout the day. If he had an additional craving, he had a peanut butter sandwich (no jelly) for some protein. And that was literally all he could *afford* to eat. It's boring, and it's certainly not ideal (especially in my case, I don't do well with a routine meal-plan, I need variation) but it worked wonders. This was before I met him, but he went from 300lbs to 180lbs. And he wasn't working out at all on this plan, he didn't have the time (full time school plus full time job working at a gas station >_<).

He maintained the weight for about a year before getting back up to 250lbs because we started dating and I show my love by cooking. A lot. And I mean A LOT. From scratch brownies, cookies, enchiladas, pizza, burgers, you name it, I was cooking it. So we both gained a lot of weight in the initial months of dating.

I was yo-yoing between 160 and 170 at the time, but the excessive cooking and baking caused us both to gain weight. So now we're trying to lose it again, each in our own way. He has returned to his previous meal plan, deprived as it may seem, and has lost 20lbs so far. So I know that it works, and I know that it is maintainable.

While it seems like not much, and it certainly isn't varied, I know that it works and it's cheap. Hope that it helps, at least in some way.

And I will think good thoughts for you to find a new and better more awesome job.

Also, does your gym have a working membership? Mine does: work for so many hours for them for free, in whatever capacity and you get a free membership. You should consider looking into it.

Hi,

I'm in the same boat as you, having just lost my job. I know you don't want to but ditch the gym membership, thats money that can go towards your food budget and you can replace it with walking/jogging outside or dancing and using youtube for workout classes. You don't even need to spend out on DVDs. I have been doing Jillian's 30 day shred via you tube.

Good quality food can be done on a budget, it just might require a bit more thought. Consider having a 'meatless' day each week. Meat tends to be the most expensive component of a meal. For fruit and veggies, don't be afraid of frozen ones. If you have a slow cooker (i think its called a crock pot in America) there are some great recipes that you can make which don't cost a lot. Shop carefully, look for items which are reduced and if you can use it, buy them, freeze them. Meal plan if you can, that helps you make the most of all your ingredients and cut down on food wastage.

This: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=&f=33 is an excellent (mainly UK) forum based around people living 'old style' lives - this means cooking good healthy nutritious meals from scratch for minimum spend. It'll also give you tips on how to reduce various expenditure on things like detergents and cleaning products.

Its really important to keep a routine going while you're not working and looking for another one - this is a good time to fit in a workout from home, so by the time you are back in employment, it is second nature.

Good luck through this next period, try not to let this jeopardize your progress to date.

I have been there and you can get through this! Plenty of cheap, healthy foods you can eat. Eggs, beans, lentils, brown rice - dried versions of beans are very cheap and incredibly healthy. I would just spend extra time at the grocery store looking over all of my options, including some options you may have previously passed up. There are also lots resources online like http://www.poorgirleatswell.com/ and many others.

Look at food as fuel and not as something to comfort you...... Feed your body filling fiber filled foods that will keep you full.
Beans are inexpensive and good for you... so use those in pasta dishes and soups to add substance....... Chicken is not expensive-- bake or grill it- not breaded or fried......

and although salad fixings can be pricey- shop what is in season and you will get more bang for your buck.. farmers markets at end of day, they will barter with you rather than have to lug it back home....

I'm sorry you're losing your job. That's a tough break, and I wish you the best in finding something else.

As for food, how about a few crockpot meals that will give you leftovers? I started making soups and freezing them, which if you still have some time on the job, you can prepare things ahead, freeze them and then you will have some backup food for when you're home more often.

There are also other great recipes (non-soup) that people love. Just google crockpot or visit flylady.net. Probably recipes on this site too.

If you don't have a crockpot, you can still make food ahead of time and freeze it. If you can stock up on essentials like shampoo, toiletries, etc. to reduce the number of times you have to go the store, you'll save money that way, too.

FYI, there's a group called SHARE that for a small amount of money, you can get a few bags of groceries at the end of the month. It's non-profit. A lot of churches are distribution points, and you can volunteer to help, too. They basically buy food wholesale and pass on the savings to people who buy into it. It's a couple of bags at the end of the month I think. My mother's church used to do it and plenty of people bought SHARE food packages.

I just googled it and the one I found seems to be specific to the mid-Atlantic/Northeast, but I think it has national reach. Here's the one site I found (http://sharefoodprogram.org/)


Good luck!

I had food stamps when I got layed off. It isn't much, but at least I could buy some healthy things to eat. Call your local office and see if you qualify (yes, you can even qualify while working as well I learned)

Sorry about your jobs. My husband was laid off 11 days ago so his last check went to rent and the rest of it has gone to food. We are doing the best we can to ration what we have til unemployment kicks in. Great value veggies in a bag in the frozen foods are cheap. hamburg in the tubes are pretty inexpensive.

The freezer is your friend. Find recipes the two of you enjoy and buy the ingredients in bulk, then make a ton. It may be repetitive, but I make my breakfasts and lunches for two weeks for about $50, and it's mostly vegan. (That's a health choice, not a suggestion)

It works out that the both of you are home so you have time to cook.