I'm here to tell you that yes, it is possibly to eat healthy in a cost effective manner, even nowadays. Even in Canada. Even in Toronto, where I live, which is statistically one of the least affordable cities in North America (5).
The purpose of this article is to show you how to do this with less than $50 per week to spend on groceries. $50 per week is probably less than you are currently spending. The average Canadian spends almost $300 per month on groceries, and this is expected to go up significantly in 2022 (6).
Without any more fluffy bs, let's get into it.
The Goods
For this shopping trip, I went to No Frills (1). You can shop elsewhere, but I've found that No Frills usually has some of the lowest prices and best deals for most of the foods I'm looking for. Anyway, here's the list:
900g of cheap pasta - 2 x $1 = $2
1 can of No Name black beans = $0.99
1 can of No Name chickpeas = $0.99
18.kg of frozen ground turkey = $10
1 bunch of green kale = $1.49
4 lb of Macintosh apples - $4.99
410 of cheese slices - $1.99
310g of turkey breast - $6.00
1 loaf of old Mill Bread - $1.77
1 dozen large eggs - $3.27
2 bags of frozen vegetables - 2 x $2 = $4
2 cans of garlic pasta sauce - 2 x $1.49 = 2.98
750g of Italian rice - $2.49
10 No Name wheat tortillas - $2
2 cartons of 1% Chocolate milk - 2 x $0.88 = 1.76
2 cans of No Name tuna - 2 x $1.19 = $2.38
Total = $49.10
In truth, this is more than 1 week worth of food. It is 21,703 calories, 1,169 grams of protein, 306 grams of fiber, and 42 servings of fruits & vegetables. You can break this up into anywhere between 7-10 days of food, depending on your bodyweight, goals, and preference:
10 days = 2170 cals, 117g of protein, 30.6g of fibre, and 4.2 servings of fruits & vegetables daily
9 days = 2411 cals, 130g protein, 34g of fibre, and 4.66 servings of fruits / vegetables daily
8 days = 2713 cals, 146g of protein, 38.25g of fibre, and 5.2 servings of fruits / vegetables daily
7 days = 3100 cals, 167g of protein, 43.71g of fibre, and 6 servings of fruits / vegetables daily
Why This List Is Great
This gets you to the recommended daily amount of fruits and vegetables, which is 4-5 (2). It also puts you well above the RDA for protein, which is 0.36 grams per pound of bodyweight (3). And it even gets you within striking distance of the 0.7-1.0g per pound of body weight daily requirement to maximize lean mass retention and muscle gains (4).
The optimal range of protein intake for lean mass retention is highly debated, but on the high and low end, it's anywhere between 0.6-1.0 g/lb of bodyweight daily (7). That means that this food list can can be used by anyone between 117-280 pounds. For an accurate calculation of your caloric needs, use the NIH body weight planner (8).
Jonny's Top 10 Tips For Optimal Penny Pinching, And Other Stuff:
1.) Condiments, spices, cooking spray, olive oil, etc, are are not included on this list. But that doesn't mean you can't or shouldn't be thrifty with them. I recommend buying them in bulk, or at the dollar store. It works out to about $10 monthly for me, if I'm being frugal.
2.) Your primary source of liquid can be water. This is the most cost efficient way to hydrate yourself, however you can also splurge every once in awhile and spend a couple bucks on beverage flavour enhancers or zero calorie drinks. But remember, this will add to your overall grocery bill.
3.) Buy frozen. Frozen is often cheaper and also lasts longer. I don't mind the taste.
4.) Buy in bulk. If you see a good deal on something that can last a while, like canned goods, or frozen stuff, buy an ass load of it.
5.) Look at your weekly deals flyer. Sometimes there are deals on things that you wouldn't even expect. I wasn't expecting to buy chocolate milk and kale this week, but here we are.
6.) Have a plan. Even if you're not going to write out a detailed shopping list in advance, get an idea of some of the bargains you are going to pick up before you go to the store. It's much easier to avoid impulsively buying $20 extra dollars of candy when you have a game plan going in.
7.) Challenge yourself to spend as little as possible. That's what I did and that's how I came up with writing this article. You're surely much smarter than me, so who knows where it could take you?
8.) Buy things that you can use for more than one purpose, especially when it comes to sauces, spices, and condiments. For example, I put sriracha sauce on just about everything including dressings, stir frys, rice, burgers, sandwiches, etc. So it's definitely a value play.
9.) You can do better than I did. I only went to one store, I didn't research much in advance, and I only spent one shopping trip making this list. If you do more research, deal hunting, and bulk buying, I'm certain you can get your grocery bill even lower than this while still maintaining a high protein and reasonable calorie intake.
10.) Sign up for my email list to get a free cheap recipes book that only uses foods from this shopping list.
Final word:
I love stretching my money, and also helping people be more fit. So putting the two together was a no-brainer right? Let me know what you think about the article. If you have any questions, please direct them to jonnyreps@gmail.com.
K thanks, bye!
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