Top 10 Simple Strategies for Surviving the Supermarket
Stephanie Tuss, Nutrition Consultant
Stephanie Tuss, Nutrition Consultant
A wise man once said that you “either fail to plan or you plan to fail.” That’s’ the key to surviving a supermarket. You may feel like it’s more expensive to eat healthy, but if you go in with a plan, you will find yourself saving money and taking care of your health and the health of your family at the same time. Below is a list of strategies that will help you create a plan and stick to it!
1. Bring a list and follow it! Make a menu plan for the week and consult the store ads and coupon offers to see what is on sale that week so you can incorporate it into your plan. Especially watch for sales on meats, and if there’s
a good deal. Stock up.
2. NEVER go grocery shopping hungry.
3. Stick to the outer aisles of the store first and avoid the aisles that aren’t on your list.
4. Never-ever eat in the store or in the car on the way home…this goes back to strategy #2.
5. Beware of the sample ladies…just say no thank you!
6. Skip the specials. It’s not a deal if it’s not on the list.
7. Buy local to save money. The summer is the best time to stock up on inexpensive nutrient rich foods. Visit the
2. NEVER go grocery shopping hungry.
3. Stick to the outer aisles of the store first and avoid the aisles that aren’t on your list.
4. Never-ever eat in the store or in the car on the way home…this goes back to strategy #2.
5. Beware of the sample ladies…just say no thank you!
6. Skip the specials. It’s not a deal if it’s not on the list.
7. Buy local to save money. The summer is the best time to stock up on inexpensive nutrient rich foods. Visit the
farmer’s market on the weekend, but wait until closing time to purchase anything. Most farmers would rather give
you a deal than see their produce go to waste. Buy LARGE quantities and freeze it.
8. Buy bulk sizes of items that you use frequently and have a longer shelf life like brown rice, whole grains and dried
8. Buy bulk sizes of items that you use frequently and have a longer shelf life like brown rice, whole grains and dried
beans. Store them in Ziploc bags in a dark and dry place.
9. Marinate chicken breasts with your own healthy marinades rather than buying pre-marinated meat.
10. Make your own healthy salad dressings using equal parts olive oil and vinegar, mustard, and your choices of herbs. http://www.foods4wellness.com/
9. Marinate chicken breasts with your own healthy marinades rather than buying pre-marinated meat.
10. Make your own healthy salad dressings using equal parts olive oil and vinegar, mustard, and your choices of herbs. http://www.foods4wellness.com/
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More food for thought:
“Twenty-three percent of the nation’s lower income classes are obese, compared with 16 percent of the middle and upper classes … Large supermarket chains (the best bet for affordable, fresh and healthy foods) abandoned less affluent city neighborhoods, focusing instead on the suburbs … A 1997 USDA study found that food prices, including those for produce, are, on average, 10 percent higher in inner-city food markets than they are in the suburbs … There are three times as many supermarkets in wealthy neighborhoods as in poor ones, according to a 2002 study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine …” (Goodman 2003, pp. 137-158).
1 comment:
Very informative post!
A supermarket strategy is very important and you should never walk into the store without a plan. Grocery costs are up 33%! It is unfortunate to see that healthy food is so expensive. Organic products are even more ridiculously priced. BUT the more people that start to purchase these types of food (and it will start with those that can afford it), the CHEAPER these products will be as the demand will be higher.
The menu plan and grocery list is the best advice offered out there. Write items on your list according to where they are in the grocery store so you don't wander (aisle by aisle). If you notice yourself straying from the list, stop and remember why you made it in the first place.
With a daily menu in place, you won't have to scramble to get items together for dinner - you have a set meal according to how much time you have available that night and it's much quicker to prepare. Time is another matter in what people are eating as well. For healthy meals on a time crunch, there are several websites such as allrecipes.com and www.elise.com/recipes.
"Obesity is a result of excessive intakes of saturated fat and added sugars, coupled with low intakes of healthful foods such as fruit, vegetables, and whole grains." What do you think most of the packaged food we find consists of? It is not always junk food that contains these items - it can be other seemingly "healthy" items.
Wisconsin has a Food Share Program in place, but strategies need to be set where those using food stamps are offered bonuses, vouchers and rebates for purchasing fruits and vegetables, making it less about QUANTITY of of food and more about QUALITY of foods or STAPLES. Other states are working on this. Why can't we?
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