Thirteen Ways to Eat Cheap and Healthy

Posted on 28 May 2009 by Summer

Debi Silber asked:




Is it possible to eat healthfully on a budget? Not only is it possible, but your wallet…and body will thank you for it. Here are a few tips:

1-Buy “family size” packages of chicken. It’s inexpensive, healthy and a little bit goes a long way. At one time on a few baking trays, coat some with seasoning, others with BBQ sauce, some with dressing and some with spices. Once cooked use as needed in soups, salads, stir frys and sandwiches for a low fat, healthy option.

2-It’s cheaper (but more tempting) to buy big bags of low fat pretzels, tortilla chips, popcorn. Invest in a few boxes of snack size baggies. When you’re NOT hungry, portion out servings according to the package and then grab 1 baggie when you’re ready to snack. You’ll eat less and save more.

3-Eating breakfast at home is almost always less expensive and healthier than eating out. For example, at home you can scoop out a bagel and fill with low fat cheese, cottage cheese, peanut butter, cream cheese, etc. You’re cutting calories by scooping and eating far less topping than when you’re eating breakfast out. A portion size of cereal with low fat milk and fruit is also a healthy and inexpensive option. Breakfast at home can also be a great place to get in your “good carbs” such as high fiber breads, cereals, whole wheat waffles or pancakes as compared to a regular bagel or “mammoth sized” muffin you may grab “on the go.”

4-Try serving your meals on smaller sized plates. You’ll eat much less and save money. Eating dinner out can be expensive and the portions can be enough for at least 2 meals.

5- When you cook, you control the amount of fat used in preparation. Substitute broth, water and seasoning instead of all of the oil and butter used when you order some of your favorite meals.

6-For dessert, a single serving fudge pop or icicle has far fewer calories and is much less expensive than going out for an ice cream cone. You can also have a single serving pudding or pudding pop for less than 100 calories and just a few cents.

7-You can try cooking with whole grain or enriched pasta. A box is inexpensive, much healthier than regular pasta and you’ll eat much less than the portions served when out.

8-Bring a healthy snack to work. For just a little bit of money, what you bring (yogurt, fruit, string cheese, trail mix) will be healthier and less expensive than what you’d buy when out or from the vending machine at work.

9-Make flavored coffee at home. Think about how much you spend on that fancy coffee concoction each day. It can be hundreds of calories and the price adds up over the course of a week.

10-Share an entree or order an appetizer portion. You’ll eat less and save money.

11-Preplan-Bring healthy snacks and water bottles from home if you know you’ll be out for the day. What you’ll bring is almost always healthier and less expensive than anything from outside.

12- Experiment with beans. Beans provide protein, fiber and other important nutrients. They can be used in a multitude of ways and they come in many varieties. A can or bag of beans is also much less expensive than a cut of meat.

13-Value and economy meals don’t save any money if it causes you to overeat and gain weight. You’ll need to buy larger clothes and have higher medical bills as a result of all that “value!”

Caffeinated Content

Eating Healthy While Eating Out

Posted on 07 May 2009 by Summer

Glen D. Williams asked:




Probably the most difficult time to eat healthy is when we’re going out to eat. Restaurants earn their money by serving the most tempting, tasty, decadent food you ever tasted. Unfortunately for us, that’s because they’re generous with salts, fats, sugars, creams and butters we should not be eating in large amounts. The good news is, as long as we exercise good choices, we can eat out and still eat healthy.

The Right Restaurant: The fist healthy choice to make is the right restaurant. Sometimes you’ll have no choice about this, but when you do, it’s important to make the right choice. It’s best to choose restaurants that take orders and serve you at the table. Fast food is notoriously unhealthy, you have few good choices and no control over how the food is prepared or served. Buffets offer a wide variety of foods, but you’re usually allowed to eat all you want. With good self-control, you may still be able to choose foods for health at a buffet.

Healthy Menu Selection: Even at a buffet, we can choose the vegetable salads, the light dressings, the low fat entrées and avoid the fatty, creamy, fried stuff. This is the same thing we do when reading a menu in a traditional restaurant. We’ll want to skip all the beef, pork, cheese, and fried options. Grilled, baked or stir-fried poultry or fish are the most healthy options. Read all the ingredients, though, because some of these dishes are baked in a butter or cream sauce, or are breaded and “oven-fried.” Of course, green are a far better choice than those creamy, oily, salty salads (like potato or macaroni). The same with soups…always choose broth over cream.

Ordering For Health: Once we’ve made our menu selection, the next step is ordering. Ask, “How is that prepared?” and avoid things fried, baked or soaked in oils, butters or creams. Always order salad dressings and sauces “on the side,” so you can dip the food into it and enjoy the flavor but still be in control of the amount you’re eating. Vinegar and oil are the most healthy salad dressings, but you can choose any kind as long as it’s on the side. Water is probably the best thing to drink with your meal, diet soda is probably next best. Milk and juice are high fat or high sugar options. Alcohol should never be consumed while eating because it increases our appetite and capacity for food. Dessert is something best done at home, where you can control the portions and ingredients.

Portion Control: Now, you’ve got your food…dig in, right? Wrong! Restaurants almost always serve you too much to eat, but we were taught by our Mommies to clean up our plates. So, the first thing to do is figure out a serving size, cut that amount off (usually half) and move the rest to the other side of the plate. Do the same thing with potatoes, rice, noodles, etc. Now we can eat all of the salad, all of the vegetables and a serving each of the meat and starch. Then we have a great meal to take home for later. Even if you don’t eat leftovers, it’s better those extra portions go to waste than to waist.

Now you know how to enjoy eating out and still be eating healthy. If you eat out as rarely as we do (once a month, or less) you can follow another, simpler rule. The rule is, enjoy yourself by eating the rare treat and make up for it at home. After all, life isn’t all about rule-keeping. Either way, I hope to meet you in some nice restaurant in an exotic location. If I do, I promise not to tell if you don’t. We can always do more exercise when we get home.

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Posted on 05 May 2009 by Summer

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