Hello, Eating healthy is imprtant, but eating healthy is often very expensive. There are lots of inexpensive crap laden, over processed food that is wasy enough to find. I am curious if anyone has found some inexpensive healthy alternatves out there. Is a banana and a palmful of nuts a good meal replacement if you are widdling down to one full meal a day? Curious about budget savers but still staying with healthier choices.
Hi, I feel you. I try to eat healthy and get plenty of exercise. I'm no expert, but a banana and a palmful of nuts doesn't seem healthy to me. You need a variety of food and though that's a great snack, it's not going to be enough energy to replace an entire meal. I'd say go with veggies and hummus as well or a salad with no or little dressing (what I do with dressing is take half a serving and mix it with water so it spreads the taste over the lettuce). If you're exercising as well, then you definitely need to eat more. Don't starve yourself! You'll be unhappy and depressed if your body isn't getting enough food. Good luck!
The reason I point to bananas as they are a staple of primates. In the past too there were children with food allergies who lived on a banana diet (banana babies) alone as they supply many of the requirements. The one full meal is meant to supply variety in foods.
What are you trying to accomplish when you say eating "healthy"? Because typically, 1-meal-a-day (no matter how many calories and nutrients it provides) isn't considered "healthy".
Hi, I am talking about getting through economic difficulty and still trying to eat healthy, yet on a limited tight budget.
Can you clarify what you mean by this? Is your banana+nuts example going to be a replacement for one of the other meals, while your "full meal" is something else? Canned beans and legumes are very cheap and an excellent food source; I regularly have canned chickpeas and canned "chilli beans" (which are kidney beans in some sort of sauce). They are a filling, and a great protein, fibre, and energy source. You can also buy them dry in bulk for even less, but the cooking process is a bit annoying. I just did a quick search online and the first result here was 1kg for NZ $6, which would be enough for about 10 servings. You probably want to add something to them rather than eating them plain.
That wouldn't be a healthy alternative. A diet like this would encourage the body to lower the metabolism because of the reduced caloric intake. You would be better off doing a calorie-for-calorie replacement with healthy alternatives- like meal replacement shakes (which are relatively inexpensive), grain cereals (oatmeal, cream of wheat or dried flake cereals) or a pre-prepared frozen dinner like Lean Cuisine (which are also inexpensive and in the same cost range as fast food). If you're looking for inexpensive between-meal snacks, then nuts, nut butters (like peanut butter), string cheese, etc are good options.
Avoiding commercial over processed foods. As whole food as possible. That limits you to three isles; produce, meat and dairy.
You have to have a balanced, well rounded diet. However, there are some inexpensive alternatives. (Beans can be very cheap!) Cooking is also one of the best ways to get around this. If you want healthy and you want it cheap, then consider buying a lot at once and making the meals last. I know that a big pot of soup or some type of crockpot meal can go a distance and for a relatively low amount of money. You cut back on the trips to the store and what you are tempted to buy while dining out.
