Millions of people have unsuccessfully tried to use diet pills as a weight loss tool. A large percentage of those millions have learned that fad diets don’t work either. They know a well-balanced nutrition and exercise plan is the sure-fire way to lose weight.
Unfortunately, healthy foods are more expensive than fatty, salt-filled, preserved, processed foods. People have said, “You have to be rich to lose weight.” This is not true. If a person is on a budget, they don’t have to live on dollar menus.
It is possible to lose weight while watching the bottom line. Here are a few tips.
- Buy the store brand. Store brands are almost exactly the same product as the brand names.
- Bagged salads are not only reasonably priced, but healthy as well. Some brands call these pre-chopped salads. These pre-chopped, bagged salads are healthy and don’t require a lot of prep time.
- Take advantage of coupons. Mailboxes overflow with coupons. Instead of just throwing them away, take two minutes to look at the sales to see if there’s anything you need.
- Take advantage of customer reward cards. Cards are free to customers so why not take advantage of them?
- Never go to the grocery store hungry. Eating before going to the store makes food resistible – going hungry makes food irresistible.
- Purchase items for a purpose. Each item should be bought for a specific meal or snack.
- To pound home number 5, make a list. Don’t buy anything not on the list. Avoiding the “impulse buy" at the register saves dollars and calories.
- Take advantage of seasonal produce sales. While bananas are fresh all year, the seasons bring reaping and sales. Peaches, nectarines, strawberries, blueberries and plums go on sale from May to September. Squash, apples and pears are abundant in autumn. Pomegranates, grapes and peaches go on sale around the winter holiday season.
- Buy frozen fruits and vegetables only to be drunk in shakes. While frozen may be less expensive, the freezing and bagging process adds preservatives to produce. However, frozen blueberries and raspberries spice up the taste of protein powders.
- Question “natural” products. Many products claim to be “natural.” Nothing is more natural than fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fish, eggs and meat. Eating truly natural products eliminates the need for expensive processed foods.
Try eating natural foods. As Ben Chiarini, produce manager for Giant Eagle in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania said, “There are always decent bargains in the produce department and eating fresh is the best way to go to stay healthy.”
Sources:
- “Efficient Grocery Shopping” by Diane Laney Fitzpatrick
- “Muscle On A Budget” by Kevin Larrabee
