Healthy eating requires healthy shopping, as you will eventually eat every food that is in your pantry.  Yes, some of us have excellent will power to resist the unhealthy food around us, but rest assured, if you own it, you will one day eat it.

So, one of the biggest factors in sticking to healthy diet is stocking your cupboards with only the foods you should eat.  If you don’t have any sticky buns available, then you won’t eat them at 11pm when you suddenly have a craving.  Sensible, right?

The thing with healthy foods is that they are sort of a double edged sword.  Per calorie, healthy food like veggies, fruits, fish, nuts, etc. are far and away more expensive than processed junk foods.  For example, a 10 oz box of macaroni and cheese costs about 79 cents, and provides around 1000 calories when prepared.  A whole pound of fresh broccoli costs 1.59 and provides maybe 200 calories.  Get the picture? Though the broccoli is the hands-down winner in health, it won’t keep your body going if your budget is tight.  This is, sadly, why poor families just simply can’t afford to be healthy.

Yet, per dollar, you can get A LOT of food when you choose healthy rather than processed and unhealthy, and healthy food keeps you full longer (bonus!).  You can buy a huge drum of “Old-fashioned” Oats for 3 dollars, whereas a box of 12 small flavored oatmeal packets costs 4 dollars.  Eat it plain, add fruit, or flavor it yourself, and you have a significant savings by buying bulk commodity oatmeal versus the prepackaged, less healthy version.  Though healthy food is almost always more pricey per calorie, in many instances the bulk version of it is vastly cheaper than the processed versions that are ready-made for us.  Plus, by buying commodities you avoid the sugar and salt that are added to prepackaged foods, such as that flavored oatmeal, which wreck otherwise healthy foods and diets.

The strategy that I take into the grocery store with me is one of getting the most healthy food for my dollar.  I don’t compromise on the food itself, but I make compromises on taste and how much prep time I have to put in.  When I say I compromise on taste I mean that I don’t worry about what it tastes like in the state I buy it, because I will prepare it so that it’s palatable to me back home.  I’ve got a pretty good system going, and I’ll share what works for me…

Tips for becoming a better shopper:

• Buy commodity Foods in bulk (oatmeal, rice, quinoa, etc.) instead of prepackaged versions
• Buy fresh fruits and veggies that are in-season, as they will be cheapest
• Buy all other fruits and veggies frozen, as they will be cheap anyway
• Go with generic brand whenever possible, unless you KNOW there is a difference
• Don’t pay for drinks, ever!  Imagine how much food you could buy for the 30+ dollars you probably spend on drinks each month.  They contribute calories without making you full, which is a dietary nightmare. Sugary drinks suck, tap water is free, and bottled water is overrated.
• Trade in the dressings, sauces and marinades for spices, which are tasty, cheaper and don’t contribute empty calories
• Try the 4 dollar rule: Buy only meat that costs 4 dollars or less per pound.  There is always some kind of lean meat that adheres to this on any given day at the grocery.  Unless it’s grass-fed, more expensive meat isn’t worth it on a day-day basis.
• Don’t buy things you LOVE.  You’ll just eat them all within two days.
• Don’t buy things you hope you’ll eat, but probably won’t.  I do this a lot, mostly with fresh green veggies, and I waste them about half the time.  If you really want to include something in your diet, buy in small quantities to start.

Try some of these tips out, and I know you’ll get more bang for your buck.  I see people buying huge bags of Tostitos for 4 bucks a pop, and I can’t help think what a waste it is.  I’d kill that whole bag in 15 minutes, still not be full, and be on the fast track to obesity and vitamin deficiency.  I’d trade that for some frozen cherries mixed with plain oatmeal any day!