Eating a healthy diet is one of the best things that you can do for your health and wellbeing. A healthy diet shouldn’t be restrictive or depressing; it should offer you the flavours and foods that you enjoy, as well as the occasional treat while meeting your nutrition and calorific needs. It should be flexible, allowing you to refuel when you need to and to cut back when you don’t. But, even with treats and the occasional high-fat meal, your diet should be filled with healthy foods, protein and foods with high nutritional value, instead of empty calories. This kind of diet boosts your immune system, helps you to maintain a healthy weight and reduces the risk of you developing many long-term health conditions. But it can be costly.
Supermarkets And Restaurants Aren’t Helping The Matter
You’ve probably noticed that supermarkets tend to discount high sugar or high fat products over healthier options, and that brands offer the biggest deals on the sweetest treats. Even when it comes to eating out, junk food is much cheaper than more nutritious options, and in your favourite restaurants, pies, burgers and fish and chips are far more likely to be on the specials menu than salads.
When asked what stops us from eating a healthier diet, cost is often the most significant issue. But, while it’s certainly true that eating healthily on a budget can take a little more thought, it’s not impossible. Here are some tips to help.
Shop Around
When looking for cheaper meals and ingredients, your local supermarket might not be the best option. Look for cheap food online too and compare prices between stores. Low Price Foods can be a fantastic option. They offer fantastic prices on a massive range of foods because many items are near to, or just beyond their best before dates. All of these items are perfectly safe, as best before is an indication of quality, not safety. This means that they stock a range of groceries under half the price you would expect to save in a major supermarket. While some long-life products which are available from the cheapest online supermarket are unhealthy, tinned fish, grains, cereals and other options can be an essential part of a healthy diet. Shopping at fresh food markets and paying attention to deals and offers can also help.
Plan Your Meals
Meal planning is perhaps one of the best ways to improve your diet while saving money. Plan your meals for the week, making sure they offer a healthy balance. Then, only buy the ingredients that you need.
Cook From Scratch
Cooking from scratch, instead of using sauces and heating ready meals gives you far greater control over what you eat. It’s a great way to make healthy swaps, and also means that you can save money by buying cheaper, fresh ingredients, instead of more expensive, branded foods.
Cook In Bulk
Cooking meals from scratch also means that you can cook in bulk. Instead of preparing meals as and when you need them, cook a large portion and freeze the leftovers for another day. This means that there’s always a nutritious meal ready for you and is often much more affordable than cooking in smaller portions.
Often the key to both healthy eating and eating on a budget is planning. If you are prepared to put a little more effort in, neither has to be a battle.
