Tell me if you can relate to this scenario:
You have made the decision to start making better food choices and want to eat healthier. After searching online, you come up with a grocery list of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, THE WORKS! You feel confident that you will be successful on your nutritional journey. Once you are at the grocery store, you start to check off items from your list, and grab a few other things from the “health food” aisle. Again, at the checkout line you are still feeling great about your healthy food choices that you selected and BOOM!!! You are hit with the “your total is $$$$$$$”! Yikes, now you are starting to dread this decision.
If you have EVER felt this way, or experienced this, SAVE THIS FOR YOUR NEXT GROCERY TRIP!
It's no lie that a bag of chips can be as cheap as 99 cents while a bag of apples is $4, but eating healthy doesn't have to actually be more expensive. Let me break it down for you with my 10 QUICK and EASY tips to get the MOST out of your healthy grocery shopping.
Frozen and Canned VEGETABLES are your friend! They are picked at the peak of freshness, in season and have the best nutrient quality when the veggie or fruit you want isn't in season yet!
Instead of buying the prepared fruits and vegetables, like the cut up watermelon or julienned veggies, buy them whole and do it yourself! Cut and prepared foods like that cost most as you have to pay for the labor that prepared them for you to eat
Shop first thing in the morning for meats, and preferably on week days! Grocery store KNOW that most people do their shopping on Sundays, so they make sure the case is stocked on those days with fresh meat that will cost more! If you shop on a less popular day, the store has to reduce the price of the fresh meat for quick sale meaning, you get meat at half the price!
Get the value packs! Especially on bread items, Wegmans has a bag of 2 loaves of bread for the price of 1.5. A usual loaf is $2.00, you can get a double pack for $3!
Reducing your food waste can help with keeping your bill cheaper, if a recipe calls for 1/2 can of beans, how can you utilize the other half? What about a bean salad?!
Go to cheaper stores! Aldi and price chopper are ALWAYS cheaper than Wegmans because you're buying the Wegmans name! Aldi is bare bones store that still has a complete selection with produce and meats at a fraction of the cost! Price chopper has an incredible ADVANTAGE program that features weekly specials while sing the card at a fraction of the cost while also giving you money back on your bill!
Go in with a list and a plan, and stick to it! When you know what you're looking for, it makes it easier to shop and save!
ALWAYS check the ad before you go to see what's on sale!
Don't be afraid to be a couponer (but only on things you actually need)
Plan out your meals ahead of time and know what you already have to avoid double buying!
Taking on these new tips may feel overwhelming at first. Don’t feel like you need to make the change all at once. Schedule time in your week, let’s just start with 10 minutes, and start putting your grocery store shopping tips into action.
These are small tips I share with the Nourished with Emily clients and social media communities. Try these 10 Healthy Grocery Store Shopping Tips this week, and let me know about your experience!