I like to think of myself of the master of budgeting. In fact I was trying to school my dad and Brad on grocery budgeting last weekend when we were shopping for the cottage. I happen to know exactly how many grams of meat you need for a sandwich … and I’m a vegetarian for pete’s sake!
At our house we don’t exactly have a choice about budgeting for groceries, we just have to budget everything. That’s what being a student is about … or that’s what being a one income family is about. It ain’t easy but we make it work.
This week ten Fitfluential Ambassadors are truly testing their grocery budgets. Anytime Fitness is challenging them to Survive on 35 … dollars that is. They are going to feed themselves for $35 for an entire week.
I am very much looking forward to checking out their challenge. If you’d like to follow along you can check out the hashtag #surviveon35 on either Twitter or Instagram.
Just to put this in perspective it averages out to $1.66 per meal.
I’m going to follow along with some VALUE PRICED meals of my own. (Notice I did not say cheap!)
Here’s a couple things that help my grocery budget:
- make your own snacks
- lentils are your best friend (so are potatoes and carrots)
- always pack your own lunch, even if it means peanut butter sandwiches
- when you’re busy, cook in bulk so you have healthy quick food to heat up after a long day
Edited to add: PLEASE go check out MamaDweeb’s post on why she’s doing this challenge. It will touch your heart.
How closely do you monitor your grocery budget? What IS your grocery budget?
The #surviveon35 challenge is very interesting! I think it can be done but it would be a very drastic cut for my family right now. In college, no problem!
We spend about $100/week on groceries for family of 2 adults and 2 toddlers. I try to buy the dirty dozen organic as much as possible. I also buy organic milk for the kids (which comes to almost $20/week!!!!) We eat mostly vegetarian so I can’t imagine what people who are big meat eaters spend a week!
the first time I was a student I spent my last month eating spaghetti and ragu sauce for breakfast, lunch and dinner – it’s amazing what your body can take when your’e 19 hahaha
I agree with Angela. I’m really going to enjoy keeping up with everyone’s #surviveon35 challenge. I normally keep a strict grocery budget, but allow a little wiggle room to get some of the healthy options that tend to be pricey. However, this puts into perspective what others are limited to who have no wiggle room.
yes exactly – no wiggle room for special things that we like, for example – sometimes I put chocolate chips and peanut butter on my apple slices for an afternoon snack, and today I realized that on THAT strict of a budget there definitely wouldn’t be chocolate chips
This challenge fascinates me because $35 a week just doesn’t seem like it would go very far, but with planning and smart shopping it can be surprising
at first it didn’t seem too bad but when you break it down to the per meal cost, THAT’s when you realize just how little it is
wow I cant imagine a $35 food budget! Our budget is $100 a week but lately that has been difficult to stick to.
we used to spend that much and more, but we just can’t anymore cause, well … we don’t have the money
Starting next month, some (good!) changes in my life will mean I’ll be budgeting big-time. Spending as little as possible, saving as much as possible. I’m really excited to see how these FitFluentials do on $35/week; hoping I can follow their lead and benefit from their findings and tips !
Meredith you need THE JARS!!!! let me know if you want some budgeting help and I’ll turn you on to my system
What are the jars?
Look forward to reading about this challenge. In September I will be going to a grad student and embracing the student life! I will definitely have to pay closer attention to my food-budget… So long Whole Foods salad bar. Hello many homemade lunches and dinners!
well (almost) welcome back to student life … when I went back as a mature student it was a shocker the first couple months
Thanks! I can imagine the shock… I am eagerly anticipating the freedom of schedule and a new challenge! But it will definitely be a change from full-time 9-5 job… In more ways than one! Haha.
I’m one of the bloggers doing this challenge and it’s definitely harder than I thought it would be! Took me lots of planning time before actually hitting the grocery store. PB sandwiches are definitely a great budget-friendly meal and something I’ll probably be eating a couple of
we tend to have PB sandwiches on Fridays because even with good planning we tend to run out of lunch stuff by the end of the month … I’ll be sure to check out what your’e doing this week too!
Morgan, I wish you luck! I know how expensive grocery shopping is in Toronto & am SO interested to see what you put together for meals!
My boyfriend & I are constantly struggle to stay within budget for food. Problem is that I like to eat really healthy & like lots of fresh berries. Berries are our down fall, for sure. We make it our goal to spend $100 or less a week, but usually spend closer to $120. EEEEK.
I’m not officially doing the challenge but I’ll be working on some inexpensive meals and pricing out food as well, just so I can get a peak at what that daily and per meal price actually looks like
I don’t have a “budget” exactly, but the hubs and I are both health- and dollar-conscious in the grocery store. I think we spend about $85ish per week for the two of us, and I think we eat pretty well. Oh, and we also have one meal out on the weekends that is obv not included in the $85.
going out for dinner is one of the things I miss most about our current budget … I used to love it!
Only $35 per week?! That sounds really low. Budgeting is also a very important topic for me. Usually, I try to spend less than $60 per week on groceries, for 1.5 persons (my husband is only home Friday to Sunday). That still seems a little too much. I guess I often splurge on fruit (cherries!), sweets, and treats. Oops! I need to work on that!
Looking forward to reading more about that challenge!
it’s such a shame that even fruits and veggies can be expensive eh?!?
The #surviveon35 challenge totally intrigues me because I can’t imagine! We don’t really stick to a strict food budget so it would be interesting to see how much we actually spend and what we actually need versus “nice to haves” like Trader Joe’s Cookie Butter…But seriously, great tips. For me, packing lunch and snacks is a huge one. When I worked outside of the home, I could spend so much money each day on both of those!
oh if you have to buy lunches and snacks then you could easily use up $35 in a day or two … when I used to travel for work my food budget was $50 and that was hard to stick to when buying food at restaurants or cafes
PB sandwiches are my jam! (see what I did there?
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saw it … and LOVE it
Fact: I spend an unacceptable amount of money on groceries for just one person. I average $90 a week. I don’t know how I do it, and I try SO HARD not to, but it always happens.
dude you also drive to another COUNTRY to go to the grocery store sometimes sooooo…. but you’ve also taught me so much like stealing food from your parents when you visit
We don’t have a budget. It will be interesting to see how they all survive on $35.
Those lentils, potatoes and carrots look good!
$35 is REALLY low!!!! Not impossible but I think you would be left eating a lot of oatmeal and eggs.
The Husband and I actually spent a lot on groceries. More than I would like to if I’m being perfectly honest. But I’ve noticed the price of food has gone up in the last while. And buying groceries in the West Coast is nowhere near as cheap as in Toronto.
It probably doesn’t help that I live in an area comparable to Avenue and Bloor. Groceries can only go so cheap when you’re local store is at the base of the Shangri-la.
I’m totally interested to see how people do it though!
Just for the record, my food costs are about $190/week for two people. I buy pretty well everything organic and seriously load up on the fruit and veggies.
Wow, I have to say I’m actually surprised at how no one on here already lives on the much per week…..I live on much less.
My husband, myself and my toddler all eat on $50 a week. Sure, it took a lot of practice to get there and yeah, I am extremely good at making bread, granola, and stretching ingredients but it’s not THAT hard. I forget to meal plan all the time.
Granted, I live in the midwest but I do think that food pricing is much more even across the country now that we all share most of the same grocery stores (Trader Joe’s, etc).
On my budget of $100 for two weeks worth of groceries I still get organic peanut butter, coconut oil for cooking AND bathing, and toilet paper/toothpaste/laundry detergent/household cleaners are all included in my budget. I’m able to avoid buying GM foods like canola oil and use olive oil instead and I even buy local honey.
I will say that I rarely buy meat, maybe a package of pepperoni or ground beef per grocery period (two weeks) but we’re largely vegetarian.
Anyway, this comment is getting out of control but with a few tips on making things yourself can save HUGE amounts of money. I now wish we WERE on food stamps so I could get $10 more per person!