HEALTHY LIVING TIPS

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Savvy customers know that shopping from a grocery list can save time and money. However, setting a budget at the store can often be confusing. How do you create a budget? How do you know how much you can spend?

To begin with, it’s a good idea to look at your grocery budget the same way that you look at your rent and car insurance-as a bill. This makes sense, since we need food and it is an important expense. When doing your monthly budget, figure in your groceries the same way that you do your other bills. Don’t shop under the old “I’ll spend whatever I have left over on food.” Sometimes, that leftover money gets eaten up in day-to-day expenses and you might not have enough left over to shop with.

How much should you budget? There are several variables in this, including family size and income. According to the government, a family of 3 with little to no income would receive $389 per month in Food Stamps. Of course, that’s not saying that every family of 3 would spend that much, or that little, but it’s a good estimation.

A good way to look at your grocery list versus your grocery budget is to determine what staples you absolutely need. If you know that you go through 2 cartons of milk per week, and milk is $4.00 per gallon, then you know that your grocery budget is at least going to be $32 per month. Start making a list of those items that your family eats every month and then estimate the cost of those items. This will give you an idea of how much you have been spending.

If you then look over that list and see that the amount is too much, then do a re-take and try to figure out how you can cut back. Is there a discount store in which you can buy some of the items, like the canned goods? Is there is meat market or farmer’s market nearby where you can get food for less?

Once you have set your monthly budget, if you find that it is too high, try cutting it back $50. You might find that the quality of your pantry has not changed that much. If you think you can stand it, the next month, try cutting back another 5%.

Or maybe you decide that you don’t need to cut back on your grocery bill, that you actually need all of the items on your list. In that case, try cutting back in another area of your life. If you do your list and find that you actually will spend $400 per month on groceries and you absolutely cannot cut back, think about taking your lunch to work two days a week instead of eating out. Or one Friday night per month rent a movie and pop popcorn instead of going to the cinema.

In general, it is always cheaper to buy items that can be used more than once. Try buying for multiple meals instead of for one meal. A box of pasta can last through two or three meals, as can a bag of potatoes. Buying frozen dinners, while more convenient when it comes to time, is going to cost more money in the long run.

A really good tip is to try to work with the cash system. When you get paid, whether it’s monthly or bi-weekly, take your grocery money out of your bank and put it in an envelope and shop from that. It’s an excellent way to keep you from overspending.

All in all, remember that food is just as important of an expense as your rent, your utilities, and your childcare (if you have children). Treat it importantly and be wise in your budgeting so that you don’t short yourself on having a healthy lifestyle. With a little forethought, grocery shopping on a budget does not have to be too hard.

Although various brands of food spend millions of dollars a year advertising foods that aren’t necessarily healthy choices, there are healthy foods out there in your local grocery store, waiting to be found. With a few tips, a smart shopper should be able to find good buys that are good for the wallet, as well as the heart.

With so many choices when it comes to food, shoppers can sometimes feel discouraged when it comes to making healthy choices. Customers shouldn’t feel daunted when trying to find healthy food, however.

First, create a shopping list before you leave for the store. Cooking in a healthy way requires you to have all the necessary ingredients so you don’t want to forget anything.

When you’re making out your list and menu, be sure to keep the food pyramid in mind. In order to stay healthy, it’s best to have the right amounts of vegetables, whole grains, dairy, fruits, lean meat, poultry, fish, nuts, and beans.

You don’t have to eat organic to be healthy. As long as you eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, you’re doing well. Try adding these to your list instead of the canned variety. To get a good deal, and help out your local economy, consider visiting your local farmer’s market.

Although the taste might take some time to get used to, try using whole grained rice and pasta when cooking. These foods contain a lot of fiber, which is good for you.

As you’re buying meats, do your best to purchase lean cuts. With poultry, it’s good to use skinless pieces. Salmon is a good choice for fish since it is fairly inexpensive and doesn’t always taste “fishy.”

You don’t have to fill your entire plate with protein, either, which is good for your budget. The USDA only recommends that of your plate be protein, with the rest being fruits and vegetables and whole grains. That doesn’t even have to be meat-it can also be beans, tofu, eggs, or nuts.

The healthiest food options are usually located around the edges of the store. This is where you will find your breads, produce, and meats. The junk food aisles tend to be in the center of the store.

If buying canned food, try to look for food that has minimum salt. Fruits stored in fruit juice are a good option as well. If worried about salt, you can always rinse off the items before you use them.

Seasonality plays a part in produce. Fruits and vegetables tend to cost less, and are tastier, when they are in season. Some fruits, such as strawberries, can be frozen, too, and used in the off-season instead of purchasing them later when they are more expensive.

Snacking might have a bad reputation, but it can actually be good for you, as long as you don’t overdo it. When you pick out your snack foods, make sure you that you include both healthy and unhealthy snacks. Along with your ice cream and cookies, be sure to include nuts, apples, and bananas as well.

Last, but not least, although pre-packaged food looks more convenient, it is usually filled with sodium and saturated fat. When shopping for healthy choices, it’s always better to purchase the ingredients and prepare your food yourself. In the long run, you’ll end up paying about the same amount of money, but your menu will be much healthier.

In order to ensure that you save as much money and time as possible at the grocery store there are certain rules shoppers should follow. While they might not seem important, small changes in your shopping routine could add up to big savings in the long run.

To begin with, never go grocery shopping on an empty stomach. You’ll be inclined to purchase whatever is handy and looks good. You might even be tempted to buy things that you don’t normally eat. It’s also easier to impulse-buy when you’re hungry and that carefully planned budget might just go out the window.

Oddly enough, shopping on a full stomach isn’t that great of an idea either. You will still be biased, but this time in a different way. You might find that if you’re full, nothing looks good. If you feel really full, the sight of so much food might even make you sick. It’s best to go in between mealtimes, or to have a quick snack before entering the store.

Don’t shop when you’re in a hurry. Unless you have made a short list, know exactly where the items are located and how much they are going to cost when you get them and you already have this planned out ahead of time, shopping when you’re pressed for time can sometimes cause you to throw things in the cart without thinking about price.

Check your cabinets and refrigerator before you go grocery shopping and plan your meals around what you already have stocked. This seems simple, right? But if you check your pantry and see that you have potatoes, beans, and carrots, add tomato juice to your list and you’ve got homemade vegetable soup! When in doubt, try an online recipe site to get some ideas for easy meals.

The day before you go shopping, pick up a sales paper and see what the current specials are. This can also help you in preparing your shopping list. You might gets ideas for meals that you hadn’t previously thought of.

Buy food that can be spread out over several meals. A package of pasta can be used in several different ways: baked pasta, goulash, or a pasta salad. Likewise, a package of chicken breasts can be frozen and used for many different meals as well: served with rice and cream of mushroom soup, tossed with pineapple for a tropical meal, or even cooked in salsa for a spicy Mexican flavor.

Try to keep a budget when you shop, but leave a plus and minus number for something special. We are all trying to budget as best we can, but there’s no point in having extra money if you never enjoy yourself. So leave some room in the shopping budget for a little something ‘fun.’ As long as you don’t go too far with this philosophy it can work out for the best. After all, if you are constantly telling yourself you can’t having anything then you are more likely to give up on the budget altogether, or at least more often. As a rule try and have your ‘treat’ cost less than the most expensive item on your list.

It might sound simple, but watch the register as your items are being scanned. The people who work the cash registers are humans, too, and they might not know about all of the sales that are going on. It’s wise to watch what is being rung up and to point out any discrepancies. But please, be respectful, too.

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It can be difficult to keep your grocery store coupons organized, but if you can’t actually find your coupons when it’s time to use them, then the time you have spent clipping them has been wasted. Organizing your coupons first is a good way to be prepared and ready to save money at the checkout counter.

The first thing you need to do is to make a shopping list. If you make a list, then you’ll be able to match the coupons with the items that you need. After that, search through your coupon organizer and take out the coupons that match your shopping list. Now, you’re ready to shop.

And how do you organize your coupons? Well, there are several different ways.

Keeping two separate organizers is a good idea. One organizer is to stay at home. This organizer contains those coupons that you know you’re eventually going to need and use. The other organizer is portable and ideally fits into your purse or pocket. It contains those coupons that you need on that specific shopping trip.

Using an old shoebox or a recipe box is an inexpensive way of crating an organizer that stays at home. You can also use index cards to separate the coupons in to the categories that work for you. You want to make it easy to find the coupons as you need them.

To make your coupon search user-friendly for you, create a categorizing system that makes sense to you. Arrange them alphabetically, by food group, or even by brand but make sure that it is a system that you, yourself, understand. You want to be able to find the coupons quickly.

Remember to go through your coupons on a weekly basis to weed out the ones that have expired. Check the expiration date again before you go shopping just in case you missed something.

Upon making out your shopping list, pull the coupons out of your large organizer that you will need for your grocery trip. Then, place those coupons in a portable organizer so that they can be transported to the store with you.

You can purchase small coupon organizers that even hold calculators and pens or you can simply use a folded up envelope. It’s a good idea to have something small, however that can easily fit into your purse or pocket.

If you don’t want to spend the money on a special coupon organizer, you can also use an envelope, which works just as well. If you put a rubber band around the envelope, it will keep the coupons from falling out without having to seal the envelope itself.

When you get to the store, you might also want to check the aisles for “pull out coupons” near the items that you are buying, just in case the store is offering a better deal that day than the one that your coupon is good for.

If you managed to stay organized when it comes to your coupons, not only will your shopping trip go easier, but you’ll also save money. And that’s the reason we use coupons in the first place.