Staying healthy does not always mean that you have to spend a fortune on healthy and nutritional foods items. By careful planning and consideration you can gain good health even on a slim budget. Here are 20 tips to remain healthy and fit in a budget-friendly way.
1. Flank steak and mashed potatoes
You can buy steak for inexpensive price. Lean meat is rich in iron and flank is delicious and simple to cook. Use rosemary and thyme as the flavoring agents and you will be spending only less than $15. The green beans and the mashed potatoes can provide you with the required amount of vitamin k for strong bones.
2. Use coupons
Using coupons is one of the best ways to fill your stomach on a budget. Try to get the coupons from your family members or friends. You can also check out some of the online websites that provide food coupons for free or discounted rates.
3. Organically grown foods
Instead of going for certified foods, choose organically grown local foods. They can be bought for inexpensive prices from your local farmer’s market. They are healthy and fresh too. Choose from various kinds of fresh fruits and vegetables.
4. More soup
Soups provide you a lot of energy without burning a hole on your wallet. Consume a lot of soups and stews in huge volumes. They are low calorie and healthy foods for inexpensive price. You can also consider potatoes and veggies for a low sodium broth.
5. Shopping on full stomach
When you go shopping never go hungry. You will end up buying those expensive energy bars and other convenience foods that do not provide nutrition but come with an expensive price tag. To avoid this, shop on full stomach. You will not have cravings for such items.
6. Pasta with peas and shrimps
Lemon pasta with peas and shrimps is more than enough to fill a whole family of four people for about $14. The shrimps and peas are economical and packed with essential nutrients too. A serving provides 50 percent of your protein needs and peas are a rich source of fiber and vitamin c.
7. Bargain
Many health clubs are ready to provide you free passes for trying their services. Some of them even offer a seven day trial period. When you become familiar with the people around, try to bargain and cut the costs. Train with one of your friends and this can be easily possible. Register for 30-minutes sessions instead of the longer time. Short and intense workouts are more effective.
8. Buy frozen foods
Frozen foods such as veggies can form the bulk of your foods especially dinner. It can cut your supermarket bill greatly. The frozen veggies can be added to your pasta for reducing the calories and increasing the satisfaction.
9. Prescription savings program
Most of the pharmacies have interesting programs that help you to have medicines for small annual cost. You may need to enroll in this program for $10. This is also possible in stores like Wal-Mart where you may have to pay very less for getting generic medicines.
10. Join local library
For workout DVDs, you can join your local library. Most of the libraries have a huge selection of DVDs. It can also bring about a change from the same routine exercises.
11. Self-help group
If something is bothering, you can always seek the help of a self-help group. You can browse the internet and find out a number of such groups that deal with people in all kinds of distress. They will be able to help you to deal with your problem in an easy manner.
12. Cornbread salad with chicken
Instead of choosing a box of croutons, use the leftover pieces of cornbread in a salad. Use a homemade dressing with extra virgin olive oil that is healthy and contains only half the amount of saturated fat when compared to other dressings.
13. Pork with noodles and vegetables
Pork can be bought for inexpensive price and it has low amount of saturated fat. It can make a perfect and economical food with bell peppers and noodles. Peppers are rich in fiber, vitamin B6 and folic acid that are beneficial for the heart.
14. Urgent care facility
For most of your medical needs, you can as well use the urgent care facility if there is no life-threatening situation. Most of these facilities offer service for extended hours and the doctors there can treat most of the common ailments, take x-ray, do lab work and even dispense prescriptions.
15. Stop wastage
Take a look at the amount of food you are wasting daily. If you add up all, it can cost up to hundreds of dollars every year. Use the correct amount of ingredients for cooking your foods and eat them without wastage.
16. Choose a pose
Try some yoga pose for free. If you have access to the internet, you will be able to view the free one hour streaming of yoga class. The downloads of the class may cost you at least $4. Following the class can give you a lot of health benefits.
17. Brown bag it
The best way to stretch your budget for foods is to eat in often. A take out pack of lunch can cost you about $10 or even more. But if you pack a sandwich from home or a salad it will cost you only about $2. It is safe and healthy too.
18. Cheese bacon tart
This special recipe can cost only less than ten dollars. The low fat cheese can form a creamy base. The recipe provides you more than required amount of proteins and calcium. Since it lacks veggies, try to include a green salad also.
19. Eat more eggs
Eggs are good for your health and easy on your wallet. Two eggs can provide you 150 calories. Combine it with low fat cheese and veggies for a healthy meal anytime.
20. Buy in bulk
Visit wholesale markets and buy items in bulk to beat the price rise. Take your health-conscious friends along so that you can share the price and the items too. You can get various items for cheaper price.