Affordable Health

More and more people are showing an interest in eating better and buying the best food that they can get! If you are like me, you love to grocery shop, cook/bake, and eat! I get a lot of enjoyment out of going to local natural/health food shops and seeing what is new on the health food scene, and supporting a local business. That being said, if you are like me, you also really can’t afford to go to the grocery store and spend loads of money! While I absolutely love knowing that I am getting great quality food and relatively healthy foods at specialty food stores, I also know that items there are usually at least two to three dollars more compared to items at big chain grocery stores. But, there is something to be said for shopping locally and supporting your community! 

I always have friends and family ask me how I can afford to shop where I do being a college student with an internship and a part-time job. Much to their surprise, I usually tell them that I can’t and that I have learned how to be a bargain shopper and know when the sales are! 

Eating well and eating good quality food does not have to be hard and overly expensive. 

Here are some of my tips for eating better while still saving money:

1. Go frequently and walk the isles: 
   1. If you have the time to go to the store once a week and just walk that is ideal!
   2. Walking up and down isles is one of the best ways to see what is on sale and new!
2. Buy in-season produce:
   1. This one is nothing new, but it is true and important when it comes to saving money.
   2. Another great way to save money on produce is to buy frozen, or stock up on fresh produce when it is in season and freeze it yourself.
3. Check out the EWG Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 lists: 
   1. A lot of people tend to think that fruits and vegetables should only be consumed if they are labeled “organic”. Well, the truth is organic is just that, a label. While I am 100% for shopping organic whenever possible, and I usually do, nothing is truly completely free of chemicals and pesticides due to all the pollution in our environment. 
   2. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) has lists of foods that they recommend be bought organic (things such as strawberries and other produce that you consume the skin from), and foods that they deem safer to buy non-organic (things such as avocados and fruits and veggies with a skin that you don’t eat). 
   3. Knowing where you can save money and what produce you can buy cheaper is a great way to get nutritious foods affordably. 
4. Get a Costco membership if possible:
   1. I Know that not everyone has access to a Costco or can afford to become a member, but if you can and are willing it is well worth your time!
   2. Costco has started carrying many organic options and brands that are usually more costly at health food stores!
   3. Costco is a great place to stock up on healthy cuts of meat and organic produce that you can freeze and enjoy for many months. 
5. Go in with a plan:
   1. This one is also nothing new, but it is true!
   2. Going to the store and winging it usually leads to a bigger total at check out and leaving with more unnecessary items. 
   3. I usually go with a list and meal plan to follow.
   4. Of course, it is almost always inevitable that I leave with extra items. As I walk the isles I usually always see something that I can’t pass up because of the sale price. I am all for stocking up when it is affordable. 
6. Get what works for you: Just because you see your favorite instagrammer eating/using something doesn’t mean that you have to! The bottom line is that you don’t have to get something just because you think you should.
7. Become a rewards member: 
   1. One of the best things that I ever did at my local health food shops is signing up for emails and becoming a rewards member. 
   2. By becoming a rewards member you can receive messages about upcoming sales and usually accumulate points that can later be cashed in and used towards your purchase. 

One of my all time favorite natural and health food stores is Natural Grocers! Their rewards program allows you to collect points and receive special deals and gifts throughout the year. On top of the rewards program, NG also has amazing prices!

For anyone who lives in the Missoula area, the Good Food Store is an amazing local and holistic grocery store. I have a hard time calling anything “healthy” these days because the term means something different to everyone, but I would definitely say that the GFS is a healthy place to shop. On top of being health-conscious, the GFS also gives back to the Missoula Community whenever possible.  

I would like to add that there is absolutely nothing wrong with shopping and places like Walmart, WinCo, Kroger, etc. Within the last few years stores like Walmart have become excellent sources of healthier choices! I will admit that I used to hate shopping at Walmart and avoided it. I used to always say, “ I would rather pay more and shop at the local health food stores”. These days I spend a lot of time and money at Walmart because they offer so many organic and “better” options at an unbeatable price. A lot of people think that to be healthy you have to shop at places like Natural Grocers or Whole Foods and that is simply not the case! 

Health should be fun and personal. Good and nutritious food does not have to take your entire paycheck and shopping for healthy foods should be fun! 

I always love to hear other people’s tips and tricks for shopping healthy, affordably, so if you have any tips share them! I am sure many others could benefit from your words as well!