10 Ways to Eat Healthy on a Budget
Being a professional dancer and fitness instructor living in NYC the word: budgeting, quickly became my best friend. It forced me to become strategic and creative when trying to fulfill the wants and needs of my healthy lifestyle. While I will always prioritize investing in myself, there’s ways to save, budget, and know when it is necessary to invest a little more and when it’s smart to hold back.
1. Meal Prep.
This one is a biggie.
Being well prepared will is the first way to save the most money while trying to fulfill a healthy lifestyle.
We all know that instant gratification we get from taking that first bite of food, and how we really do almost instantaneously feel relief. Sometimes in those moments prior to that blissful sensation we don’t think clearly because we are just. so. hungry. Either quickly buying something out, or not fueling our body with whole nutrients tends to be what happens next if you aren’t prepared.
In order to create change we need to form new habits and patterns. The best to start forming the habit of meal prepping, is to make it apart of your routine.
First step I take in meal prepping is writing out meal ideas for the week. When you write something down it reinforces its importance, like how saying something out loud finally makes it “real”. Finding ways to hold yourself accountable and make it both light and fun will be crucial in creating new patterns. PLUS Oprah says to write things down and say things out loud so, if Oprah said it, I’m doing it!
When writing your meals for the week, try to use ingredients that can work for several different meals. This way you aren’t cooking 4 completely separate meals while using 100 different ingredients.
Grocery shopping and meal prepping all in the same day can feel a bit overwhelming. Splitting them up and making them into smaller tasks, I’ll do one thing one day, the other the next, allows it to be more digestible for your mind.
After all your food is prepared I suggest dating your meals to keep track of what was made when. I also arrange the fridge to have the food that needs to be eaten first towards the front. Because it is true, we do eat with our eyes first!
2. Plan your grocery list.
I’m sure some of you are already writing down your grocery list, my next tip just takes it that extra step. As I mentioned prior, when creating a grocery list I like to base my list off of complete meals. This makes it so that my list is more specific to what meals I will be creating, instead of individual ingredients I like.
If you decide to plan your grocery lists this way I would suggest you also consider building your meals from the ingredients you may still have left in your refrigerator or pantry. That way you leaving nothing to go to waste.
Next, you’ll want to gain a rough estimate on how much money the grocery list you made should cost you. Then say the number out loud, and write it down. This imprints that goal budget in your mind enabling you to stay on track.
3. Cook in bulk.
Okay, I get it, meal prepping still sounds overwhelming. But cooking in bulk is a way to slowly introduce meal prepping into your lifestyle. Each time you cook just adjust your recipe measurements to either 2-4x in size. You’re now focusing on only one meal and simply making A LOT of it.
When cooking in bulk I like to use a meal that can also be repurposed in a few different ways the following days. For example whenever I make my homemade veggie burgers, I cook them in bulk. This burger recipe usually creates about 8-12 patties. And I’ve used them as burgers (duh), on top of salads, cut up into a rice bowl, and even re-seasoned them into vegan taco meat. That way eating the same thing a few nights in a row won’t become repetitive.
4. Drink More Water.
Water, water, water. If you’ve been in my classes, or my program, or know me in real life, then you know how passionate I am about your daily water intake. It truly is the easiest and most simple change someone can make when wanting to live a healthier lifestyle. By only upping your water intake, and focusing on it for a couple weeks, you will see major improvements in your hair, skin, energy, focus, and bodily functions.
Let’s try the “write it down” activity again, but for this one it’s a 1 week tracker. Each time you purchase a beverage that isn’t water, write it down with the price. By the end of the week you’ll add up how much you spent. Being able to visually see the amount of non-water drinks you consume will reinforce that reality in your mind, and may come as a shock to some (it surely did for me, those matches man, get me every time).
Now, that you are aware of how many extra beverages you consume and how much it’s costing you per week, set a goal for the next week. Small, simple, and achievable goals will be key. Such as, “Next week I will consume only water 2 out of 7 days” would be a great way to start.
5. Shop seasonally.
Buying watermelon in the winter is going to cost you more than when you purchase it in the summer. Eating seasonally also provides your body with fuller more complete nutrient dense produce. When produce is picked before their ripeness, their nutrients aren’t fully developed. So not only will you get a better price but also a more nutrient dense product. Which is what I like to call a win, win, win, win (know that song?)
6. Go meatless.
Maybe you are already vegan or vegetarian so you have this one covered but, for any meat eaters out there this one is for you. If you still are wondering how do vegans and vegetarians get there protein we will continue to cover that in my future blogs. But, in short there really are SO MANY WAYS. Products such as vegetables, beans, legumes, and grains have high levels of protein and nutritional value. With the nutritional value being higher the price tag is also lower. Whether you are out for dinner, or buying at the grocery store subtracting the meat will be sure to subtract some numbers from your bill.
And maybe it is even as simple as that, when you are eating out try to choose the vegetarian option. Most vegetarian options at restaurants are cheaper, and you’ll also have less of a possibility of getting food poisoning, just saying.
7. Don’t buy everything organic.
Yes, organic has amazing benefits and is higher quality food but, your diet does not need to be all organic for you to be healthy. Focus on the “dirty dozen”. These are 12 types of produce that usually have the highest amount of pesticides in them. The “dirty dozen” include: strawberries, spinach, kale, cherries, peaches, tomatoes, pears, celery, grapes, potatoes, kale, and nectarines. So if you’re wanting to go organic start by prioritizing and splurging on these specific produce over others.
8. Bake your own bread.
Not only is this the much cheaper option, it is also the much healthier option. If you aren’t a big nutrition label reader yet, I will help will you become one. Bread only needs 4 ingredients: flour, yeast, oil, and water. Of course different flavor breads or styles will require a bit extra but those are the ingredients needed in the most basic of breads.
Yes, this task is more time consuming, as well as harder to master, however the reward is well worth it. Especially if you are someone who consumes bread daily (ME!), you will benefit greatly from baking your own.
9. Buy in bulk.
Without a doubt you get more bang for your buck when you are purchasing in larger quantities. But you need to be strategic here and ask yourself these three questions:
this a product I use often?
What is the shelf life?
It is actually saving me money?
The items I always purchase in bulk are oils (olive, avocado, and coconut are the only ones I use), nuts, beans, and grains. All of these products for me are amazing to buy in bulk. Beans are super cheap, and a great source of protein. Cooking dried beans does take time, but when you buy in such large quantities not having to buy beans again for months sounds better to me.
Nuts are another great item to buy in bulk. Nuts can be super expensive and you’re always going to get a better deal when you buy more at once. They also are my quick source for protein, fats, fiber, omega-3 and omega-6. Whether I am snacking on them, or adding them into my meals, I eat them daily.
10. Create homemade snacks.
Snacks. Need I say more? There is just something about small bites, crunchy goodness, and finger food that really gets me going. When I began meal prepping my snacks, is when I began to really see the joys in life (it’s true)! There are so many creative and simple ways to make your own snacks. Click here to see the recipe to my healthy homemade almond butter granola. This is such an easy recipe and you can make a lot at once since it stores wonderfully. A few other snacks I tend to recreate the most are: homemade popcorn, crackers, chips, and protein bars!
There are so many ways to eat healthy on a budget and these are just a few of my simple tips that are easy to start incorporating into your lifestyle today!
Did any of these tips connect with you the most? Or do you have other tricks to add? If so, please leave your comments below, I’m all about learning more ways on how to continue living this lifestyle, affordably!
Be sure to follow me on instagram @jennamorgan.s for more inspiration!