Maintaining your budget and living within your means is an important part of your financial health and wellbeing. Doing so can help you reduce your stress and keep your financial house in order so that you can continue to enjoy your life as is. However, looking after your budget doesn’t have to impact your actual health. There’s a common misconception that you cannot eat healthy for cheap. While it can certainly be easier to find unhealthy or processed foods for cheap, that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible to buy healthy foods for cheap. In fact, once you get into the habit of finding healthy foods for cheap, it can be quite simple.
6 Ways to Eat Healthy and Save
1. Create a Weekly Meal Plan
When grocery shopping, it’s surprisingly simple to overspend if you don’t have a plan. Not to mention, it’s easy to let extra snacks sneak into the cart that might not be that healthy. Creating a meal plan or menu ahead of time does two jobs: it helps you stick to a healthy menu, and it helps you stick to a regimented shopping list.
Just because you’re planning your meals in advance doesn’t mean you have to eat the same thing over and over, either. Finding opportunities to overlap some of your ingredients can prevent waste and keep things simple without being boring. For example, you could plan several of your meals around ground beef, and have a wide variety of dinners.
Plus, by having a weekly meal plan, and shopping accordingly, you can cut back on food waste significantly. One of the pitfalls of fresh fruits and vegetables is that they don’t stay shelf-stable for long. If you plan your meals and shop weekly, you can ensure that everything you buy gets used.
2. Use Your Freezer
While fresh produce is awesome, sometimes it can be more expensive. Frozen produce is just as nutrient-dense, without the additives of canned produce, so don’t be afraid to buy frozen. Furthermore, if you DO buy fresh fruits and vegetables, it’s worth learning how to freeze them properly. That way if you can’t eat what you buy, you don’t waste anything.
Meat, of course, can also be frozen. You can freeze it while raw, or you can cook it and freeze it for later if you prefer. This can be a great way to take advantage of sales on certain cuts of meat or meat products, even if you can’t eat it all in a week.
3. Get Gardening
There’s not many things better than fresh produce from your own garden. Fortunately, you don’t have to have a huge garden or a lot of space to get some savings. Seeds for vegetables like tomatoes, lettuce, and potatoes can be a few cents and provide you with months and months of goodness. Those are pretty significant savings.
If you’re new to gardening, you can start with one or two plants to see if it’s a good fit for you. You may also be able to join a community garden, where you can enjoy a small portion of the crop in exchange for your help.
4. Buy In-Season
While it’s nice to splurge on certain fruits and vegetables year-round, you can realize some significant savings by shopping for what’s in season. One of the best ways to do this is by visiting your local farmer’s market. Farmers in your community can sell their produce, often at a great price. The reason? Because there’s no up-charge for shipping and handling the produce because it’s coming from some other part of the world.
Not to mention, the produce you find at your local farmer’s market is often fresher and organic.
5. Avoid Beverages
While it can be tempting to buy beverages, even healthy ones, they can add a significant amount of money to your weekly grocery bill. Even smoothies and health drinks are processed and can have ingredients you may not want. By buying fruits and veggies directly, you can control exactly what you eat (even if you make your own smoothies). Instead, stick to drinking water. It’s great for you, and it’s a lot cheaper than buying a multitude of drinks.
6. Go for Dry Goods
It can be tempting to opt for the time-saving option when it comes to grains and legumes. Canned beans and instant oats are convenient and fast, but they can be much more expensive. When you can, opting for dry beans, rice, and oats can get you more bang for your buck. It may just take a little more time and preparation to cook them.
If you still find yourself in need in emergency cash for groceries gas or rent, get started with a loan from Jora Credit today.