Dieting On A Budget?

Changing eating habits and discarding the junk food in the kitchen often strains a food budget. When following set menus on a new diet program, dieters might purchase a substantial amount of new or more expensive foods than they normally keep in their refrigerators and pantries.
Diane Zalewski,manager of Curves of Cape May County, says that local residents trying to alter eating habits by incorporating healthier foods into their everyday diet often results in higher grocery bills. However, Zalewski said there are tricks to keeping the budget in check while improving the foods that make up their nutritional regime.
Zalewski says to keep the following things in mind to work healthier foods into a diet.
Convenience items, like prepackaged pasta dinners or frozen all-in-one meals, are quick and easy, but they are usually laden with unhealthy ingredients to increase their shelf life. In addition to paying more for the packaging and easy preparation, these meals tend to be higher in fat and sodium which are unhealthy for your heart when eaten in excess. Try preparing a similar meal from fresh ingredients, where you can control how much extra fat or sodium you add.
Purchasing seasonal produce makes good budgeting sense due to a more abundant supply which leads to lower prices. As a general rule, summer produce includes:  beans, berries, corn, cucumbers, lettuce, melons, peaches, peppers, plums and tomatoes; while apples, pears, pumpkins, and squash are predominantly grown in the fall.  For unseasonal fruits and vegetables, frozen produce is often an economical way to keep them on hand without worrying about spoilage.
The budget-conscious shopper will buy a whole chicken rather than prepackaged chicken breasts. Whole chickens are delicious when roasted and leftovers may be shredded for soups, tacos or salads. In addition, dark meat is cheaper than white, so consider making recipes where thigh meat can be substituted for breasts.
Buy foods in bulk and freeze or store what you aren’t going to use right away. Consider preparing several meals at one time and freezing them for use at another time. This will be a real timesaver and allow you to eat healthier, homemade foods rather than convenience items. You may also prepare a few meals at once, and then freeze them until you’re ready to eat them.
If you are following the Curves Complete program, you might be concerned with the cost of the protein foods, particularly if you are on the higher protein version. Curves of Cape May County can provide a list of cost effective protein options.
For more information on Curves of Cape May County, or dieting while on a budget, please contact Diane, or visit the club at 1 W. Shellbay Ave.
About Curves
Curves works every major muscle group with strength training, cardio and stretching in every 30 minute workout. And now there’s CurvesComplete.com: an online subscription diet and fitness solution based on founder Gary Heavin’s New York Times bestselling book Curves, Permanent Results Without Permanent Dieting and the results of an ongoing university study. Heavin and his wife Diane are considered the innovators of the express fitness phenomenon that has made exercise available to more than four million women worldwide. With more than 10,000 locations in dozens of countries, Curves is the world’s largest fitness franchise. For more information, please visit: www.curves.com or www.curvescomplete.com.