7 Tips for Finding Balance Through Life’s Curve Balls
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Now is the time to put a plan in place to continue with your healthy lifestyle on the cheap. With the economy spiraling downward, we need to take a look at our journey and see where we can be frugal without sacrificing time. After all, isn’t this our constant ying/yang of life?!
I have found myself laid off many times over the past decade. My day J.O.B. in corporate America is not the most reliable especially, during economic downturns. I have had to re-invent myself many times. The experiences at different stages of my life taught me several lessons about living a healthy lifestyle on the cheap. I have found that for me, a balanced budget creates a calm deep inside!
It is from this point, that I came up with my list of tips to avoid waste, save some money and still continue to build my journey of living a healthy lifestyle. Below are my tips for finding balance when life throws us a curveball.
1. Healthy, Clean Eating
A healthy lifestyle starts with nutrition, and we can certainly do this on the cheap. If you do not choose the right foods, you will not feel satisfied and fueled up.
I have two tips for you: Dollar Store and Walmart. Don’t discount the food in these big boxes! At the Dollar Store, I pick up frozen fruit. The trick is to figure out the delivery dates so you have a wide selection. I use frozen fruit for smoothies, to top yogurt or cottage cheese. Dollar Store carries several types for, you got it, $1! Walmart is where I buy all my spices, oils and chia/flax seeds. Their selection of organic products is, hands down, the best value for your dollar. Eating healthy on the cheap does not mean all organic. Just make sure your ingredient list is not more than five items.
2. Get it Delivered
When life throws you a curveball, get it delivered! As busy humans, life can spin out of control in seconds. If you do not get on top of that, your stress levels will go through the roof! So jump off that ride, take a breath, and have your groceries delivered! Instacart is a great way to get healthy food items delivered or ready for pick up. The best part of this program is their transparency. In-app you can see the stores in your area and the Instacart pricing. There is a delivery fee, however, I think it is quite fair for having someone shop and deliver for you. Try it out by clicking here.
3. Buying in Bulk
There is something to say about economies of scale! Being numbers oriented, this idea speaks directly to my DNA! Buying bulk items, not only saves you money on the spot but it will also save you trips to the store!
Warehouse stores like BJs and Costco are carrying more and more everyday items like eggs, milk, fruit and toilet paper! I shop here for most of my groceries. This keeps my cost down and pantry stocked (no Zombie Apocalypse for us!). Remember to use your freezer space for anything you won’t be using right away. Lastly, the best thing about the warehouse stores is they are on Instacart for the win!
4. Take a Time-out
Even us adults need a time-out to recharge. For all the moms/dads out there, listen up! You cannot be the “superperson” you are without taking care of yourself. Living a healthy lifestyle means prioritizing yourself.
Find some quiet time to snuggle with the family and relax. By turning your lights low and taking a few deep breaths, you will calm your system down and create peaceful energy. Try this relaxing Spotify playlist. Remember, our families look to us as adults for guidance. You’re the leader, and leaders need time-outs, and that’s not a bad thing!
5. Stop Buying Water
I know, I know, it’s easy to grab a bottle and go! In more challenging times, however, it is more cost effective to use your tap! In my opinion, both Pur and Brita have sink filters that work great. Both these brands have pitchers as well. I’ll be honest, I find that too time consuming. We use this Pur System.
Since the pitchers are easily accessible and low cost, I would recommend starting here. Here we go with the numbers again! According to a comparison done by howstuffworks.com, you will spend $3,114.67 for bottled water versus $236.10 for a filtered pitcher. The following assumes a family of 4 drinking the recommended eight glasses (64 oz.) per day:
Filtered Pitcher: $119 (filters) + $96 (new water bottles) + $20 (pitcher) + $1.10 (water from the tap) = $236.10
12 oz bottles: $0.40 per 12 oz bottle x 5.3 bottles per person = $2.13 x 4 people = $8.53 x 365 (days in a year) = $3,114.67
Potential Savings: $3,114.67- $236.10 = $2,878.57
Drinking water is a significant part of living a healthy lifestyle and this is a great way to do it on the cheap! Should you choose to consider new water bottles to go with your new system, read my post about water bottles here.
6. Stop Buying Name Brands
When I say this, people just stare at me! Trying all the store brand products definitely helped me stick to my healthy lifestyle on the cheap.
We use Stop & Shop store brand for as many items as we can. I recommend all things store brand over the name brands, with 2 exceptions. They are storage bags and aluminum foil. Recently, I found that my name brand storage bags were not as good as the Target brand, so we have switched to them.
My favorite items from Stop & Shop are the Nature’s Promise nut butters, specifically almond butter. They also have a powdered peanut butter that I’m addicted to in my oatmeal! To keep things consistent, here’s a great article from How Stuff Works that discusses this topic. (For the sake of transparency, the article does recommend store brand foil.)
Lastly, name brands are generally cheaper so you are not compromising your healthy lifestyle!
7. Movement, aka Exercise
The point I want to drive home here is this: if you do not schedule your movement, it will not happen. There are many tricks that add steps to your day, including parking away from the crowd (social distancing!) and setting alarms to get up and move.
Here’s a trick for you to try, even at your 9-5. It’s my 90:5 Ratio (there’s that numbers thing again!). For every 90 minutes of being sedentary, stand up and move for 5 minutes. As an accountant, I sit and stare at a computer for 8+ hours a day. I set an alarm at 90 minute intervals. When it goes off, I stand up and stretch at my desk, or, if I can, I walk through my office and even climb a flight of stairs or 2. Find what works for you and schedule it in.
Sometimes having a cool toolbox of fitness toys helps to motivate you. Check out my fitness toys here.
FAQs
I thought eating healthy was expensive. False! Nutrient dense foods will satisfy you far longer than processed foods. If you are not hungry for an apple or carrot, you are not hungry. Buying INGREDIENTS keeps the foods closest to their natural state. In most cases, this assures you that the foods you choose come with more nutrition and less chemicals and hormones, etc. (I call these “puffers” because they make food look bigger, and bigger is not always better!)
I don’t have time to meal prep. This is like movement, if you don’t schedule meal prep, you won’t do it. Next time you prepare dinner, make double. This will be dinner for your family and lunch for the next day. Have your family help with downsizing the giant bag of pretzels into several smaller, grab and go bags. If you don’t schedule it, it won’t happen.
I’m busy running around with the kids. Use your crockpot! Did you know you can make a roasted chicken in the crockpot? Most importantly, you can use the bones and make stock! For the roasted chicken in a crockpot, I use this recipe from 100daysofrealfood.com, and this is the stock recipe from the same site.
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