How to diet on a budget

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Lulu4597
Lulu4597 Posts: 44 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I live on my own and am currently on a very low budget yet trying to diet and loose weight. Any ideas or tips of how to do so on a low budget other then drinking a lot of water?
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  • SGreen134
    SGreen134 Posts: 136 Member
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    I buy a lot of chicken when it is on sale and freeze. When I want a salad I buy a head of lettuce (iceburn and romaine) instead of the pre-bagged stuff. I have never been a cereal person until recently...I found out that I LOVE Kellog's Chocolate Delite's cereal with almond milk. I bought a few boxes last week when they were on sale and took advantage of our grocery store's double coupon day. Sometimes I will eat a container of cottage cheese ($1 and 360 calories) and some grape tomatoes for lunch...cheap and keeps me full. Buy generic or if you have an Aldi's or Woodman's shop there....they are usually less expensive.

    You can also eat less expensive foods that might not be as healthy however you canot eat as much of them if you are counting calories.

    GOOD LUCK!
  • Cheri1218
    Cheri1218 Posts: 268 Member
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    I agree with stocking up when things are on sale. You can also try Sam's Club or Aldi's for healthy food that's cheaper than regular store prices. Farmers Markets can be a great resource for cheaper produce too.
  • aquillen
    aquillen Posts: 5 Member
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    I find good deals on noodles and greens at the asian market. If you have one nearby ....
  • kathym59
    kathym59 Posts: 51
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    Baked potatoes and beans, yum!!
  • curvykim78
    curvykim78 Posts: 799 Member
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    Clip your coupons and watch the store sale ads. It won't make ya rich, but every little bit helps. :)
  • Cindym82
    Cindym82 Posts: 1,245 Member
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    I stock up when there's a huge sale, esp right now with shop rite's can can sale
  • columbus27
    columbus27 Posts: 178 Member
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    rice, oatmeal, tuna rinsed, and veggies
  • katejkelley
    katejkelley Posts: 841 Member
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    There are several websites that offer different store coupons. I think if you just google the kind of coupon you want, you'll find there are quite an assortment. A lot of vegetables and be cut up and frozen, so this time of year when there are a lot of farmers' markets around, you can get fresh produce fairly cheaply. Take it home, chop it up, and freeze it for use later when the prices go up. I'd check online for the best way to prepare different veggies for freezing. I found out chopped zucchini just turns to mush!
  • megs315
    megs315 Posts: 2 Member
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    I don't know where you're located, but I use a community co-op for produce and it's very inexpensive. Bountifulbaskets.org is in quite a few states now, it's only $16.50 a week and you get two large baskets of fresh produce, one of vegetables and one with fruit. I LOVE it. It's a ton of food, I usually only sign up every other week or so.
  • Illona88
    Illona88 Posts: 903 Member
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    Go to the farmers' market at the end of the day.
    They often sell what's left for a lower price than production, just so they don't have to throw it away (or at least in Europe they do, don't know about US).

    Don't expect to be able to use a grocery list, though. You can only buy what will be left.

    Also buy rice, pasta, oats, nuts etc. in bulk.

    You can also buy the very cheap bread and just toast it or put it in the oven for a bit to make it fresher and tastier.
    You can also put your bread in the freezer to keep it fresh for longer.
    Don't buy bread with loads of ingredients though. Not very good for you. It should just have basic ingredients like grains and water.


    Also, with what katejkelly said about freezing vegetables: you may want to blanch them first.
  • weeblex
    weeblex Posts: 412 Member
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    I live on my own and am currently on a very low budget yet trying to diet and loose weight. Any ideas or tips of how to do so on a low budget other then drinking a lot of water?

    Stirfry left overs.

    We have loads of frozen veg and rice. The rice we cook up and toss in the fridge, it keeps for days Any time we want a 300 Calorie dinner, toss stuff together. Monday night we put the left over meatloaf in with veg and some Worcestershire sauce. Last night I did it again with a hot dog each and the half a zucchini and other veg in the freezer and some soy sauce. Always tasty, always low cal. and really quick.

    Oh, and I don't fry in fat, just throw in some water and almost steam everything.
  • RejoicingL
    RejoicingL Posts: 95 Member
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    Around here farmer's markets are very expensive!! I agree with shopping sales and with coupons. Also look for a bang and dent type grocer near you. If you have an Aldi's, they offer great prices on healthy food from time to time. You just have to use it right away.
  • andcowsfly
    andcowsfly Posts: 18 Member
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    Look for "manager's special" at the grocery store. Many of these items are at their "sell by" date but can still be frozen for a period (such as meat) or they last beyond "sell by" (such as yogurt which often lasts a week beyond and can also be frozen). You may also opt to do this daily which does result in more visits to the grocery store but you can pick up your day's meals and snacks. Vegetables, especially bagged carrots and individual servings of apples will often be found in this setting. It has also been suggested to ask for a manager to see if there are any additional policies on food that is at or near expiration. (Some places will let you have it for free.)
  • stanvoodoo
    stanvoodoo Posts: 1,023 Member
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    Stocking up on sale stuff is great but skip the cereal, noodles and some of the other stuff mentioned.

    Stock up on some of the other items mentioned like chicken, tuna, veggies........

    A great plan is to make ahead one or two meals and break them up into meals that you can just re-heat at meal time. That way you can buy meat in bulk at the better price, cook one or twice and eat for a week or two and if you did it every week or so you would end up with a variety of meals to chose from.

    Crock pot meals are super easy and would last a week or more.........

    Some of the other foods mentioned may be inexpensive but have no nutritional value which in the end is more costly....

    Best of luck!!!
  • Phaedra2014
    Phaedra2014 Posts: 1,254 Member
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    I live on my own and am currently on a very low budget yet trying to diet and loose weight. Any ideas or tips of how to do so on a low budget other then drinking a lot of water?

    Yes! Read the supermarket ads that come to your mail box once a week and plan your meals around what's on sale. You'll be amazed at the rotation of fruits, vegetables and meats you get on your table. I don't buy any fruit or vegetable that is priced above a dollar. I grocery shop once a week and hit two stores if I need to. I get my meats on sale, especially the ones that are on clearance because the expiration day is the next day....I freeze the meat and it stays there until I need it.

    Yesterday a supermarket in my area was selling 99% fat free turkey at 99cents a pound because it was expiring the next day! I bought 5 packets, came home and put them in individual freezer containers. 5 bucks for 5+ pounds of 99% fat free turkey is a steal.

    When fish is on sale, we eat fish. When chicken breast is on sale, we at chicken breast. if green leafy veggies are way above a dollar, I buy frozen spinach, mustard leaves etc. and that gets served. You get my drift.

    You can eat healthy meals on a budget. It just takes some planning.
  • NotGivingUpDammit
    NotGivingUpDammit Posts: 13
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    I'm in the same boat and here's how I do it:

    NO MEAT. Meat of any kind is too expensive. I'm not a vegetarian - I eat meat sometimes, but usually when I go out, which is seldom.

    Beans and rice. If you eat those you don't need meat and they are cheap.

    And by beans, I actually mean legumes - split peas, lentils, all kinds of things like that are affordable and lentils are awesome because you don't have to soak them. (They are also very high in fiber and fiber will help you lose weight big time.)

    If I want something kind of like meat, I'll buy Boca patties. Still high-ish, but cheaper than meat.

    Vegetables when you can, but look for sales. I love red bell peppers for instance, but I only buy them when they're getting to the end of their shelf life and go on sale.

    If you buy produce, cook it, don't waste it. If you have to, cook soup or something and put it in the freezer. Get some plastic containers for that purpose. Also for taking food to work for lunch.

    I make a lot of veggie soups. They're healthy and a good way to clean out the fridge and not have to throw things away.

    Lots of spices to keep things interesting. If you have access to an Indian grocery store you can get spices very cheaply. There is a HUGE markup on spices in regular grocery stores. I also buy pepper corns and grind them in a coffee grinder.

    I also have a relatively hot palate and need a lot of chili peppers to keep me happy. Jalapenos are cheap in Texas, luckily. I have some dried Thai chiles and cayenne pepper powder in the cabinet for when I can't afford fresh peppers.
  • maybebaby40
    maybebaby40 Posts: 75
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    For Me- I use ground turkey instead of beef- at my local club store it is always cheaper- I also balence cost against the nutrition label and if others in the family will eat it to
  • cmurray234
    cmurray234 Posts: 112 Member
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    I suppose it depends on where you're from. I live in the US. There are a good number of things you can get from your local Aldi.


    -canned tuna
    -frozen tilapia
    -chicken breasts
    -ground turkey

    You also get a lot of bang for your buck out of soup. Make a big batch of your favorite and freeze into individual portions. Buy fruit that's in season. In the wintertime when you get sick of apples and oranges, buy frozen fruit and bags of spinach and whip up green breakfast smoothies to get your fruits and veggies in for the day.

    Don't be discouraged. You CAN eat well on a low budget.
  • shaynak112
    shaynak112 Posts: 751 Member
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    What's your budget?
    Get things in bulk! My bf and I got 5 kg of oats for about $8 the other day ... that wasn't even at a bulk store ... it was just a really big box! Soooo that will last us a long time. And he eats oats A LOT! (I only eat them for breakfast every day ... he eats them like 2 or 3 times a day!).
    We have huge bags of beans and rice as well, as we eat those regularly. For like $5 or $10, you can get bags that will last you at least a month!! (Depending on how often you have it.) I think our rice has lasted at least two months ... but I don't eat it quite as often.
    Then veggies are pretty cheap as well ... and fruit ... get the ones that are on sale! Try and freeze some of the items in soup or something.
    SPICES! They can make your beans, rice, veggies, etc. different every day.
    But yeah, we eat beans about 5 x a week. Rice about 3-4 x a week. Veggies every day.
    Pasta is cheap but not always health - still, everything in moderation - whole grain pasta once or twice a week to fill you up is fine, especially if you pair it with veggies!!
  • kashmirdreamer
    kashmirdreamer Posts: 31 Member
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    No meat, less processed foods, bulk, etc. We bought a whole cart of "healthy" choices and non-processed foods, think more veggies, simple switches from what you normally buy, and no meat. I'm vegetarian so it's easy. If you research budget foods, many of them are healthy such as buying bulk dried beans and soaking them overnight. I also find if you plan your meals and don't waste food, you will save more. Cooking at home saves a lot over buying processed convenience foods.

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