Life, for most people, is not getting easier in this part of the world. The combination of busy schedules and rising costs of living can impact negatively on one’s feeding. Thus, there may be an increased tendency to choose quantity over quality and opt for less healthy feeding solutions. In today’s post, we discuss meal prep tips for staying healthy on a budget. Let’s get to it!
Plan Your Meals Ahead of Time
Planning goes a long way in helping you achieve successful meal preparations. It easily helps you identify your needs and avoid unnecessary expenses. Planning would involve creating a weekly menu of balanced diet. Check home for what you already have so as to avoid duplicate purchases. Thereafter, create a shopping list of all the times you need and ensure to stick to this list while shopping. This helps avoid impulse buying and unnecessary expenditures
Shop Seasonal and Local
Certain foods like fruits and vegetables are cheaper and fresher when they are in season. You can visit local farmers to get seasonal food produce at reasonable prices. You can get these commodities (e.g tomatoes) in large quantities and freeze them for later use.
Buy in Bulk
Staple food items like rice, spaghetti, oats, and beans have a long shelf life and can be stored at home for a considerably long time. Buying these items in bulk can therefore help save money in the long run. In addition, you can buy perishables like chicken and fish in bulk quantities and freeze them in portions. This also helps to save cost.
Try Meatless Meals
Many people consider meat as an indispensable component of any meal such that they would not eat any food without meat. While this is good, be aware that eggs and plant based proteins like beans, lentils and Tofu are good protein sources that can serve as replacements for meat. These protein sources are also cheaper and contain other nutrients.
Limit Processed Foods
Prepackaged foods are expensive and unhealthy. It is advisable to cook at home and focus more on whole, unprocessed foods. This does not only save you some money, it also helps you gain control over your foods, including the nature of the ingredients as well as portion sizes.
Choose Water
Sugary drinks like soda, energy drinks and fruit juices are often expensive and unhealthy, especially when purchased regularly. In contrast, water is free or inexpensive. It is healthy and hydrates your body better than other fluids. So, in your quest to achieve healthy nutrition on a budget, try cutting down on sugary drinks and embrace water with every meal and in-between meals.
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