Keep It Simple Stupid: Healthy On A Budget

There is an extremely common misconception that being healthy has to mean buying purely organic superfoods and naturally sourced ingredients that have travelled across the Alps and Mediterranean Sea just to make it onto your plate. The health food trend has been around for about four or five years now, and ironically has emerged during junk foods glo up- we're talking cronuts, every flavour of ice cream imaginable, chocolate varieties falling out of the sky, and the king; sweet potato fries. So while it might be trendy, eating healthy in this day and age is quite tricky, especially with the sweets and snacks aisles expanding by the year, and the dessert section of menus increasingly resembling love poems over a list of choices.

But take it from me, who did it for three years on a strict student budget that at the end of the month still allowed me to buy a new dress or an extra cocktail- purely because I did it smart, it is not hard to keep your health in check and your budget balanced. Granted I will admit, fruits and vegetables are extremely reasonably priced in my country. We hardly have to import anything because we are a largely farm based country and actually produce enough to export and source our own stores. On top of that; I am plant based, meaning that the more expensive grocery items like meat and dairy products don’t make it into my shopping cart. But I lived with an avid meat eater for a year and saw how he budgeted it into the same allowance I received and I’ll share that too.

I spent my first two years of uni completely avoiding buying anything from the more processed food aisles, and because of that I would come out with a lot of extra money at the end of the month. Frankly when you can buy three tins of chickpeas for the same price as a packet of crisps and a bar of choccy, it’s kind of a no brainer. By my third year I had relaxed my excessively healthy diet a bit, and moved in with my brother, which meant a lot more treat days and nights spent eating hot cross buns with peanut butter (is it obvious that we bond through food?).

But I’ll share my tips that I used in the beginning, and that frankly I’m going back to- I need a health restart, and I’m going to revert back to my whole food days- so this is as much of a tips for you post as it is a reminder to me.

I make mostly tomato veggie based meals, which means that every week I bought tomatoes, onions, red peppers and zucchini. I knew those were cheap and I knew that every week they would be part of the shopping list and therefore a permanent part of the budget. Tomatoes and red peppers don’t go off quickly so could be kept in the fridge for almost two weeks if I bought bulk on a special. Figure out what your core ingredients are to most meals and make sure those are included in the grocery budget, so you know how much you have left for the rest it.

My brother and I got really good with that, we always knew that after 6pm our closest grocery store would put soon to be expired items on really good specials. Frankly, most food can last an extra two days after the sell by date marked, and if they looked particularly ready to go, we would cook them that night to avoid wasting the money and having to throw them out the next morning. Most places have daily deals- another one of our local grocers had little newsletters they would give you during the week which informed you of the deal each day- 2 for 1 Jungle Oats deals at the beginning of winter were the true MVP’s. But be warned: don’t buy things just because they are on special- you won’t end up using them and you’ll have only wasted your money.

When you’re really short on cash, can you really justify buying that variety pack of chocolate over a bag of sweet potatoes- that truthfully will last you at least four meals as opposed to the twenty minutes of bliss and then few hours of a tummy ache. I’m going to start posting some of my budget meals on here, some meal plans and recipes, just so you can get the idea of how easy it is to cook healthy on a budget, as well as how easy it is to meal prep and cook bulk meals to store for later.

Essentially- if you just don’t buy the junk and the ‘treats’, you will have more money for the nutritious foods that your body will be more grateful for and satiated by.

Here comes the meat free agenda- but in all seriousness, in most countries meat and dairy are the most expensive ingredients and including them in all of your meals is going to make a dent on the bank balance. Try meat free Mondays- or just try not to have meat in every meal. For the meat lovers that might be a huge sacrifice, but it will cut down the food expenses and truthfully contribute to your overall health. If you need the bulk- supplement your meat items with some legumes. Instead of buying two packs of mince for your bolognese, rather just buy one and bulk it up with red kidney beans?

The one that literally everyone tells you- don’t shop hungry and go in with a plan of action. That way you won’t wander down aisles and just drop things in your basket as you go. I usually go an get the things I need first and then once that’s all ticked off, I tip toe into the chocolate aisle and try figure out if I have the extra moola for it.

Okay so I’m a huge Anti-No-Carbs advocate. Granted, being on a plant based diet it’s a little harder to also cut out the carbs of your diet- because that would leave me with cauliflower and nuts let’s be honest. I definitely believe there are better carbs than others. Buy brown rice over white, buy wholewheat pasta, probably head for the buckwheat over the couscous. These are both more nutritionally beneficial, as well as more satiating and therefore help with portion control.

I usually buy grains like brown rice, oats, buckwheat etc in large quantities at the beginning of the month, and it can usually last me at least a month and a half at a time. As long as you keep these in cool and dry storage, you shouldn’t have a problem buying them in bulk- and it is 99% of the time cheaper to do so.

Not always, but sometimes, the frozen veggies are cheaper than the fresh. There is no nutritional difference, and it’s really just more convenient. You don’t have to worry about a whole kilogram of broccoli going mouldy in the fridge. Instead just buy the frozen bags and take out and cook what you need in the moment! This also applies to fruit- frozen berries can be expensive but are cheaper for the quantities you get them in when buying the bag from the freezer.

I went a good three years not buying mayonnaise or tomato sauce, or anything in a bottle or jar that had been preprepared. Okay mayonnaise may be harder to replicate, but recreating a healthier ketchup is easier than it seems. I would buy tomato puree and tomato paste, and make small quantities of my own tomato sauce by mixing the two with sweetener, salt, pepper, and different herds and spices. It’s just a healthier option than the chemical shit storm in the store bought versions- and you get more bang for your buck when you make it yourself than buying off the shelf. Jars of pasta sauce are often pretty pricey, and although they are convenient they often contain more than just the tomato and seasoning of a good old home made one. Just make your own sauces people- they taste so much better. I’ll share some homemade sauces and condiments in an upcoming post- just to get an idea.

Premade meals are often also really expensive for their size, purely because the convenience allows the price to be increased. Sure it’s a hassle- but you could probably make a full sized mac and cheese at home for just a little over the price of a single microwave portion from Woolies.

You don’t need Wheatgrass, Matcha powder, Ashwaganda, Macca, none of it. A whole foods based diet rich in vegetables and clean foods is enough. I hardly ever buy the superfoods that social media has tricked us into believing we need. And if I do, I do it at the end of the month when/if I have a little treat money left over. Those are just over priced, over glorified ingredients. Sure, a ginger shot every now and then is great- but you will do just as well throwing some spinach into your morning smoothie as opposed to the array of greens powders that cost you your first born child. Just follow the old classic ideas of a healthy diet that our parents learnt. Eat your veggies, keep your saturated fat consumption low, wholegrain carbs are bae, and get enough protein to keep you walking on two legs.

Because of the boost in health foods and fitness, information is so scattered and hard to understand. We hear conflicting messages daily- eat low fat, eat high fat, eat a normal amount of protein, eat only protein, eat no carbs, eat high carb. Just keep it simple folks.

Not only does eating out seriously dent the bank balance, you also don’t know what they’re putting in the meal. They often use more oil than you would to cook the mushrooms, or add more salt to the meal over all for flavour. Try to avoid eating meals out and rather cook your own so that you can control what is added. The portion sizes in restaurants are also a little bigger than you would normally eat when making your own food. Rule of thumb is that 90% of the time you would only eat 3/4’s of the meal served if you had made it yourself. But you’re more likely to finish it at a restaurant and therefore slightly overeat unintentionally. Eat out when you want to- as a treat. But try not to make it a super regular occurrence.

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I hope this is somewhat helpful for any of you that are struggling to keep the health up and the expense down- we all know how much easier it is to grab a MaccyD deal when you don't know how to do it right. So I really hope these tips are in any way helpful.

I'm also going to post more recipes and meal tips once I'm back home and in my kitchen- so look out for those for some ideas too!