Losing Weight - going broke

[VeroP]

Hello!

As a new school teacher my budget is limited. My daughter and I have been raw for 8 weeks this Sunday and the weekly expense on nuts and raw fruits and veggies exceeds $100 and this doesn't include food for the other 4 members of the family who are vegan. Basically by pulling away and eating differently from the rest of the family we have doubled our food budget.

This week, for the first time in years, I have had NSF issues in my bank account (my bad budgeting, but definitely affect by our cash limitations).

Is there a cheaper solution that will keep us satisfied? What am I missing here?

Peanuts are cheap, but they are never mentioned in recipes - is there a reason for that? Are they not as healthy, harder to digest . . .?

I have Alissa's book and DVD. The foods we like most call for the nuts and avocados which are part of the large impact on our budget right now.

Please help! I don't want to eat cooked food, but I need to be able to afford this . . .

Thanks for any suggestions that you have!

VeroP

P.S. I know we are saving doctor's bills in the future, but my immediate concern is family budget and cash flow.

[RawVegan4Health]

Have you been focusing on getting organic? If so, then save a ton of money and get conventional produce. It's not as "ideal", but it's better than not being able to afford any raw at all and going back to SAD. Sunflower seeds are much cheaper than most other nuts/seeds, so you can go a long way on those. Do smoothies, they are always cheap and filling.

[Fancy Nancy]

Good morning,
I know there have been other posts about people on a tight budget, so I just did a quick search and found these:
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=27542&highlight=budget
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=26182&highlight=budget
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=27197&highlight=budget
http://www.rawfoodtalk.com/showthread.php?t=25912&highlight=budget
I hope the links work for you and that the info is helpful.
If not, click on the banana above and type budget in or something similar and see what you find. I'm certain you'll come up with the best solutions for your and your daughter. Best wishes.

[RawChicky]

Most peanuts are dry roasted. Raw peanuts are harder to find and harder to digest and don't taste very good, not as good as the roasted ones.

[Rawmney]

Any hope of "seconds" at your farmers market or maybe direct with with a local farm as we move into season here in VA? Seconds peaches and tomatoes tend to be a decent deal at the otherwise pricey farmers markets here in Arlington.

Do you have any time / space to garden? Will be awhile, but could be good for the fall. I focus on planting what's expensive like tomatoes, herbs, etc. Would love to get in raspberry bushes, although I hear you have to be careful because the spread very aggressively. We have serviceberry trees that are VA natives and provide lots of berries (if I can get them before the birds do). Have done pretty well with blueberries too and had strawberries for awhile - again, all big ticket items, although none providing immediate relief for you.

Good luck with the other threads, too.

Best,
Rawmney

[jeannieh99]

Hello!

As a new school teacher my budget is limited. My daughter and I have been raw for 8 weeks this Sunday and the weekly expense on nuts and raw fruits and veggies exceeds $100 and this doesn't include food for the other 4 members of the family who are vegan. Basically by pulling away and eating differently from the rest of the family we have doubled our food budget.

.

In the begining, I too was spending way more than I had. It is easy to do. I have been learning as I go. Now I have gotten to a point that I don't spend that much. I have really cut back on the nuts and seeds. I don't shop at whole foods so much any more. They are so expensive. I buy only one or two of an item instead of a bag full. I find that if I use greens, spinach cut up small as fillers, then I can use a half of a cucumber, half of a tomatoe, half of what ever else so that I stretch my produce to make more meals out of. This has really stretched my food dollar so much. In reading and learning, I am finding out that you don't need so many of the seeds and nuts. I have cut down the amount I use. As I go further and further into the raw lifestyle, I am finding that I am satisfied with less. I shop sales, I happened to see bananas that were marked down to 50 cents a bag because they were getting dark. I bought all they had. lol....I used them in smoothies, cut up for fruit bowl, eating for breakfast. A banana is a whole food. filling. Same goes for other fruits and veggies....often they are marked down to move because they may not be perfect looking. They work great.
Many things like that can go a long way to saving big bucks at the end.
Check to see if you have a co-op you can join. They are great.
Bottom line(for me) I don't need all the fancy recipes atm....maybe later when I can afford to make them or as a special treat.
The beauty of the Raw lifestyle is that it is as easy as you make it. Example: slicing up half a cabbage, add a little sliced, whatever veggies you like, squeeze some lemon, and eat...It doesn't have to get fancy.
Jeannie

[lavendarJ]

I understand what you are saying VeroP.... I can spend $40 on fruit easily... the fruit in the grocery stores is so expensive this year... and that $40 dollars is usually for about 3 day's worth (depending on the fruit, maybe 4)... I will be adjusting my budget for June and July because school is out now for the children (teaching) and I will not receive a paycheck for two months.

I think the thing that seems to work best for me when the finances are extremely sensitive is to eat simple.... I do a lot of simple eating throughout the week and sometimes - time permitting - get more creative on the weekends... For the next two months my focus is to:

- monitor the amount of fruits I am eating and limit it to 5-6 serving per day; usually I just eat what I want and do not focusing on measuring
- continue to eat every three hours; do more mono eating (except for things like salads)
- buy fruits and veggies in season vs. other types or my favorites
- check out the local markets (one will be starting up this weekend- only runs in summer for a few months)
- drink more smoothies (they are filling and require me to eat less fruit than I would if I were just slicing and eating the fruit
- buy one type of nut (lb at a time) and stay away from the mac's ($20 lb)

I hope this gives you some ideas.

[Gittel]

I found a 1.5 lb. bag of organic baby spinach at Sam's a few days ago for $3.88. I have also found the avocados at Sam's to be consistently good. They are 5 for $4.86, although not organic, unfortunately. Costco also has large bags of frozen organic fruits and vegetables. We often need to make compromises--fresh vs. frozen, organic vs. conventional, sustainable vs. non-sus., local vs. distant, etc. Just know that the choice that you make today doesn't mean that this is the choice that you will always make. Tomorrow is a new day, and perhaps a new choice.

[VeroP]

Thanks everyone for the advice, tips and links. I was able to read through quite a bit and I we will look to eat more simply and I will investigate some of the really good ideas that were offered here and in the other similar threads.

Vero

[snowdrop]

a cheaper alternative that substitute very well in recipes are sunflower seeds.

[tglasco4]

I have found this dilemma myself.......here is what I am doing......

I bought raw oat groats (which are pretty cheap), I soak them and use them in a smoothie.........(very filling).......

I eat 2 meals per day with the biggest meal coming at midday....usually prior to 2pm....but as close to 1pm as possible.

I bought some seeds (alfalfa, broccoli, mung beans) to sprout and have been sprouting like crazy and eating sprouts as part of one of the 2 meals. I season them and usually have them with a cut up apple or an avocado.

The oat-smoothie is the key.......I use about half a cup of soaked groats with 2 bananas and (if I can afford it) a pear. I put 2 spoons of organic sugar, a dash of sea salt and water for at least 40oz....seems to hold me well until the midday meal.

I am just getting used to (after about a week) not eating at night and not being hungry.

It saves the food money (family of 5 with $600 per month for food) and I am 100% raw.

Peace.


Todd

[jeannieh99]

I found a 1.5 lb. bag of organic baby spinach at Sam's a few days ago for $3.88. I have also found the avocados at Sam's to be consistently good. They are 5 for $4.86, although not organic, unfortunately.

I'm in Houston also. I haven't been as lucky with produce from Sam's. I guess I could try Costo. I have been lucky at Fiesta,but wow, prices have gone through the roof! I spent $30 just on fruits and veggies alone.:eek: Do you know if there are any co-ops here?
Jeannie