These days it’s important to eat healthy to live happy and long lives. But most people are afraid to start dieting or eating healthy. because they think that it will cost a lot of money.
But there are ways to save money even while dieting, here are some of the tips you can follow.
- Plan your meals and cook most of your meals at home – Although this will require some sacrifice on your part, believe it will be worth it once you see how much money you can save. What you need to do is plan your meals. Sit down and write down your menu for the week ( if you do your grocery shopping weekly). Planning meals helps you stick to the grocery list and not make extra purchases. Also, if you like eating out for lunch during the workday, you will be able to save much more money by cooking your lunch. If you are pressed for time, you can do your meal preparation during the weekend. You can cook large portions and then have leftovers for some days of the week.
- Grow some of the food that you eat – Not everything you have on your grocery list needs to be purchased. You can grow herbs even with limited space in your home. If you have a small garden, you can plant some of your favorite vegetables like tomatoes or peppers. Gardening can also be a form of exercise, so you are hitting two birds with one stone! You are not only saving money but getting some physical activity as well.
- Stop buying junk food and soda – If you are serious about dieting and losing weight, these are the first two that should be deleted from your grocery list. Not only do they have no nutritional value whatsoever, but they can also cost a pretty penny, especially if you consume them daily. Instead of junk food, look for alternatives drinks and snacks that will not cause you to gain weight.
- Do not shop when you are feeling hungry – If you have a meal plan and stick to it, this would not be a problem. But on the day that you will have grocery run, make sure to have a meal at the house before leaving. This is because when you are hungry and you are the grocery, everything will look good! There is a big chance of veering away from the grocery list and do impulsive buying. When you are hungry, you tend to look for something to satisfy your craving and you might buy foods that will blow the budget you have allocated.
- Look for coupons that you can use – Some people who diet follow certain diets to help them with the process. The good thing is that there are coupons you can use. This is a website that has some promos for saving on the South Beach Diet. You may do some more research so that you can find some promos for other products.