We all know that we need to eat healthy, well most of us do at least. 😉 We also know that we need to save money. Balancing those two can be a challenge at times, though you certainly shouldn?t use it as an excuse not to eat healthy.
When you walk around the grocery store, it can seem like all of the healthy foods are the most expensive, and that you will have to break the bank if you want to keep stick to your dietary choices.
That fact is that really isn?t the case, but a myth in my opinion. While it may not be easy you can find some cheap ways to eat healthy. You just have to want it and stick to a plan. The good news is that it can be done, and plenty of people have done it before you. If you?re looking for some ways to eat healthy on a budget, the simple tips below should give you an idea of how to get started.
Eat Healthy by Cooking at Home
Prepared healthy foods are some of the most expensive items in the grocery store. If you are buying prepared and packaged meals and other food items that are marketed as ?health food?, you are sure to pay a premium. You may save time by going this route, but that time savings comes at a steep cost.
Instead, cook your own food using healthy ingredients. Fresh fruits and vegetables aren?t that expensive, and they can be used to create a wide variety of meals and snacks. If you want to cook at home but you don?t know where to start, there is a simple solution to that – the internet. The internet is a great resource to learn how to prepare some basic, healthy meals for you and your family. You will find that you can save a lot of money by cooking for yourself over buying health food, and you just might enjoy doing it as well.
Don?t Throw Out Food
Buying food gets much more expensive when you don?t actually use everything that you purchase. Plan your menus carefully for each week and only buy food that you are sure you will use in a timely fashion. If you get off-track and aren?t going to use something before it spoils, freeze it if possible so it can be used later. We do this quite a bit with vegetables we pull from our garden as it allows us to prolong the shelf life of the produce.
Food items that go unused are a complete waste from a budget perspective, as it?s basically the same as throwing money in the trash. By being more efficient with your grocery shopping and meal planning, you can save a good chunk of money and stretch your grocery budget even further.
Eat Seasonally
Buying fruits and vegetables that are out-of-season can be rather expensive, and they often don?t taste as good either. Try to plan your healthy meals with seasonal foods in mind so you can find fair prices and high quality product. This might take a little bit of a learning curve to discover what the seasons are like in your area, and when certain items are their most affordable.
Do a little internet research on your area to get a good idea of the timing of the seasons and look for recipes that take advantage of what is available currently. That way, you get a nice variety of foods throughout the year, and you are able to eat healthier without completing breaking the bank in the process. Going back to gardening, this is another great way to save money through gardening. By planning your gardening strategy you can have items that may be out of season but at little cost to you as it came straight from your garden.
Eating healthy while staying on budget is something that you will likely need to practice, but you can certainly do successfully with a little effort. Saving money and cutting calories is a powerful combination that just about anyone can benefit from, so focusing on this process is certainly worth your time.
Have you found it a challenge to find cheap ways to eat healthy? What are some of the tricks you use to balance eating healthy and staying on a budget?
Photo Courtesy of: AmySelleck