...Cross that out!
Being at university myself, I know exactly how hard it can be to live a healthy lifestyle... but is it really?
The answer is no.
I live on about £250-£300 a month and honestly, I'm coping quite well.
It is an absolute myth that healthy food is more expensive than junk food or pre-made food.
Let's compare it:
If you order Pizza, you are very likely to pay £10-£15 pounds for a large one, maybe you're sharing, so it is around £6 per person for ONE meal.
Fast Food companies can be cheaper, £3.99 for one meal, £1 for a single burger or a small bag of chips that will hardly fill you up. The local chip shop will probably charge you £1,20 - £1,50.
The pre-made food at your local supermarket is about £1 - £3,50 a meal and let's be honest, when do those small portion ever satisfy you? Never. After about two hours, you're binging on dessert, chocolate any biscuits you can get your hands on or you're ready to make a second dinner - and after that.. you feel guilty for eating so much crap. So why do you do it? There's no need for feeling guilty when binging on fruit and vegetables because it does NOT harm your body in any way. It's quite the opposite really, it'll make you feel good and healthy.
Let's have a look at my shopping list from the other day:
Cantaloupe Melon - £0.69
6x Bananas - £0.80
1.5kg Flour - £1.39
500 Apples - £1.00
1kg Rice - £1.29
500g Pasta - £0.20
350g Tomatoes - £0.90
1.5kg Potatoes - £1.75
500g Pears - £0.79
400g Strawberries - £1.45
4 Oranges - £0.96
300g Broccoli - £1.25
1 Cabbage - £0.90
1Kg Carrots - £0.53
500g Courgettes - £1.50
200g Mushrooms - £1.00
1 Cucumber -£0.49
And yes, especially Berries, Melons and exotic fruit can be more expensive but even there are alternatives! Look at little markets or buy frozen fruit! It will never be as good as fresh fruit, obviously, but I always buy my berries frozen as I like them best in my smoothies and that doesn't make a big difference then anyway.
They were:
350g Raspberries -£2.00
500g Mango -£2.00
450g Fruit Salad -£0.90
And this whole lot will probably last me for a week! I'm not saying that is all you can buy, this is just a little insight of how cheap healthy living can be. I am aware that you'll probably consume more fruit and you totally should as well! It's not about how much you eat but what you eat, but it's still not expensive. Meats are about £3-£6 and that won't last you much longer than 3x6 bananas, won't it?
Just think about it, have a look around your store and find out how EASY and CHEAP it can be, if you just make a little bit of effort. But it isn't really effort... and meanwhile, you're doing something good for your body, the animals and the economy! Your mental and physical health will give you so much back when you start treating it nicely and nice things aren't always expensive. ;)
xx
Being at university myself, I know exactly how hard it can be to live a healthy lifestyle... but is it really?
The answer is no.
I live on about £250-£300 a month and honestly, I'm coping quite well.
It is an absolute myth that healthy food is more expensive than junk food or pre-made food.
Let's compare it:
If you order Pizza, you are very likely to pay £10-£15 pounds for a large one, maybe you're sharing, so it is around £6 per person for ONE meal.
Fast Food companies can be cheaper, £3.99 for one meal, £1 for a single burger or a small bag of chips that will hardly fill you up. The local chip shop will probably charge you £1,20 - £1,50.
The pre-made food at your local supermarket is about £1 - £3,50 a meal and let's be honest, when do those small portion ever satisfy you? Never. After about two hours, you're binging on dessert, chocolate any biscuits you can get your hands on or you're ready to make a second dinner - and after that.. you feel guilty for eating so much crap. So why do you do it? There's no need for feeling guilty when binging on fruit and vegetables because it does NOT harm your body in any way. It's quite the opposite really, it'll make you feel good and healthy.
Let's have a look at my shopping list from the other day:
Cantaloupe Melon - £0.69
6x Bananas - £0.80
1.5kg Flour - £1.39
500 Apples - £1.00
1kg Rice - £1.29
500g Pasta - £0.20
350g Tomatoes - £0.90
1.5kg Potatoes - £1.75
500g Pears - £0.79
400g Strawberries - £1.45
4 Oranges - £0.96
300g Broccoli - £1.25
1 Cabbage - £0.90
1Kg Carrots - £0.53
500g Courgettes - £1.50
200g Mushrooms - £1.00
1 Cucumber -£0.49
And yes, especially Berries, Melons and exotic fruit can be more expensive but even there are alternatives! Look at little markets or buy frozen fruit! It will never be as good as fresh fruit, obviously, but I always buy my berries frozen as I like them best in my smoothies and that doesn't make a big difference then anyway.
They were:
350g Raspberries -£2.00
500g Mango -£2.00
450g Fruit Salad -£0.90
And this whole lot will probably last me for a week! I'm not saying that is all you can buy, this is just a little insight of how cheap healthy living can be. I am aware that you'll probably consume more fruit and you totally should as well! It's not about how much you eat but what you eat, but it's still not expensive. Meats are about £3-£6 and that won't last you much longer than 3x6 bananas, won't it?
Just think about it, have a look around your store and find out how EASY and CHEAP it can be, if you just make a little bit of effort. But it isn't really effort... and meanwhile, you're doing something good for your body, the animals and the economy! Your mental and physical health will give you so much back when you start treating it nicely and nice things aren't always expensive. ;)
xx