I kid you not, last night I dreamt that Obama came out with an inspirational songs CD and serenaded me personally. And then I showed him how to use formulas in Excel. 🙂
HAPPY ELECTION DAY! I’m scheduled to do 45 minutes of cross training tonight, but I may go for a run instead. I want to get home ASAP because I plan to be glued to the TV all night long.
I work up slightly sore (in a good way) from yesterday’s gym session. I have the resistance levels on the elliptical and bike to thank for that! But luckily, I’m not experiencing any of the stiff joint sensations that were nagging me a few weeks ago. A break from running was definitely in order.
For breakfast, I had a nice bowl of oatmeal and a coffee.
My oatmeal contained:
- 1/2 cup oatmeal
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 small sliced banana
- Toppings: sprinkle of Grape Nuts and 1/4 plum (saved the other portion for later)
Something about the tartness of the plum and the tanginess of the Grape Nuts worked really well together!
And, I rarely add fresh fruit to my oatmeal (because the banana for a base), so this was a nice crunchy change.
Eating Healthy in the Lower and Middle Class – How Much of a Stretch is it?
I’m sure most of you read Kath’s blog and have heard about her Thanksgiving challenge to only spend $126 in groceries for the month of November. She admits to spending upwards of $500 a month in groceries and eating out normally. When I first saw that figure, I was a little shocked…. but then I thought about our spending and realized we probably spend $300 – $400 a month, too (we hardly ever eat out).
We choose to give up other things (like eating out or going to the bars or going shopping) in order to have a gym membership and eat the way we do. This is a conscious decision that Future Husband and I made when we moved in together.
Now, as you all have probably noticed, we’re not exactly loaded. We live on 1.25 incomes (my full-time job and Future Husband’s part-time job at his parent’s clinic). But, because we have relatively few expenses (no car payments, low rent, no children, no student loans to pay back…. yet), we can afford to choose to do this. Many lower or middle class people, especially those with children, cannot choose this alternative.
A study recently compared the prices of 370 foods sold at supermarkets in the Seattle area. The study showed that “energy dense” junk foods, which pack the most calories and fewest nutrients per gram, were far less expensive than nutrient-rich, lower-calorie foods like fruits and vegetables. The prices of the most healthful foods surged 19.5 percent over the two-year study period, while the junk food prices dropped 1.8 percent.
Most Americans eat off of $7 a day. The average food stamp program gives you around $3 a day for food.
Bottom line: as the economy continues to tank and the dollar steadily weakens, our pants AND our wallets will get tighter and tighter.
One of our primary methods for keeping the grocery bill down is to buy lots of vegetable protein, like tofu and beans, which is significantly cheaper than meat. When we do buy meat, we usually get it from Costco and buy it in bulk to get a reduced price. Lastly, we hardly ever buy fruit or veggies that are out of season and not on sale.
Are you finding that eating healthy is breaking your bank? How do you keep the grocery bill down?
PS – If you’re an educated voter, I encourage you to get out and vote today!
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That is interesting what you said about how most americans eat off of $7 while the average food stamp program gives you $3 a day. Wow.
I would much rather eat in, cook myself a good meal, than spend $20 on dinner out that probably isn’t the best for me. I just need to get back into cooking better.