How To Live A Healthier Lifestyle On A Budget 

Increases in living expenses have made the process of budgeting much harder than it should be. This means that we often find our finances categorised in an incorrect order, making it even more difficult to control our outgoings effectively. In regards to an increase in the cost of living, it’s clear that the prices of healthy options have increased, with unhealthier items staying at a lower cost. In many cases, this leads to customers opting for unhealthier options. However, there are still many ways in which you can live a clean and healthy lifestyle without having to splash the cash and overspend. The balance is possible, you just need to find the correct ways in which you can make the changes whilst sticking to your budget. So, here are a few examples of improvements to make in regard to living a healthier food-related lifestyle at the lowest cost.

Keeping The Costs Low On Food

It’s perfectly normal to suggest that the prices of fresh and packaged produce in supermarkets and restaurants are definitely on the incline. As shoppers or frequent buyers of certain products, noticing even the smallest price increase can be a make or break for some people. One common example that many people have noticed is the increase in the price of a Freddo bar. These famous chocolate bars are known nationally for their astonishing price increases over the years.

In fact, Freddo’s have increased by almost 40p in some stores over the past 20 years. This is much higher than what the cost of inflation would cause the chocolate bar to be. These increases can be seen in many popular items over previous years. Despite food prices standing at a much higher rate than they used to be, it’s still possible to eat healthily on a budget, you just need to have a clear understanding of the following aspects. These include: where to shop, planning your purchases, and perhaps even information regarding growing your own.

Where To Shop

Where you complete your shopping trips can massively influence the amount you spend. It is proven that you can purchase the same amount of produce from two different shops and spend nearly £20 more or less depending on where you shop. ‘Which.co.uk’ carries out monthly supermarket comparisons, helping those shopping on a budget to keep their spending as low as possible. As of September 2022, the cheapest supermarket is currently Aldi with a monthly shop costing an average of £75.61. On the opposite end of the scale is Waitrose with an average of £99.40. If you shop smartly, you could be saving yourself the difference of over £23.

Planning Your Purchases

Planning ahead allows you to cut down and restrict yourself on what you buy as you know exactly what you need to pick up once you are there. Not only this, but it offers a much faster shopping experience as you do not need to debate any items or worry about overspending if you are picking up random, unnecessary items. Last but not least, you are also able to confidently shop on a planned occurrence, whether this be once a week, or even once a month, as you know that the chances of you forgetting an item and having to make another trip to the local shop are unlikely.

Growing Your Own

Buying healthier, fresh fruit and vegetables can be expensive, especially if you have to keep repurchasing them due to their short expiry dates. Before you know it, your products will be no good. So, in order to prevent losing money every week, why don’t you try growing your own? Not everybody has green fingers, but it’s something we can attempt and see how the outcome may appear. After all, this will definitely save you some cash in the future that could be directed towards other elements within your budget, like an emergency fund or savings accounts.

When you have a small and strict budget, the term “every penny counts” is something which heavily applies. One wrong move or incorrect payment can quickly take a turn for the worse, placing many households in debt. However, this doesn’t take away the other payments that we need to complete. In this case, people would quickly turn to payday loans for a quick fix. For more information regarding budgeting, click here.