Hey guys! Lately our budget has been tighter than ever and well, since we can't negotiate our bills, we can cut back on the food shopping... which is VERY difficult when you're into strength training and eat 2000+ calories! Our dinners generally consist of a protein (99% of the time it's chicken), a potato, and mixed veggies. Lately, we're forgoing the potato for some awesome bean salads!
I know this is a struggle among many of us so I decided to share some of what we have been doing... plus don't forget to check out my page on meals on a budget!
Unfortunately, I tend to be pretty brand loyal when it comes to certain food items such as meat, eggs, cottage cheese, and Greek yogurt. However, I've had to give that up for a smaller grocery bill. I was/am a HUGE fan of the Simple Truth brand from Kroger/Payless but it's not always on sale so sadly, I had to pass that up for now. Lately, we've been doing our main shop at Aldi and I have to say they definitely impress me! Especially their Fit&Active and SimplyNature brands! Here is a little taste of the items we purchased. If you have an Aldi, definitely check them out! Here is their website --> Aldi.us
I know this is a struggle among many of us so I decided to share some of what we have been doing... plus don't forget to check out my page on meals on a budget!
Unfortunately, I tend to be pretty brand loyal when it comes to certain food items such as meat, eggs, cottage cheese, and Greek yogurt. However, I've had to give that up for a smaller grocery bill. I was/am a HUGE fan of the Simple Truth brand from Kroger/Payless but it's not always on sale so sadly, I had to pass that up for now. Lately, we've been doing our main shop at Aldi and I have to say they definitely impress me! Especially their Fit&Active and SimplyNature brands! Here is a little taste of the items we purchased. If you have an Aldi, definitely check them out! Here is their website --> Aldi.us
Mangoes! These babies were only $0.39 each! I've never bought them before but since we're doing the 30-day green smoothie challenge, I figured they'd be awesome to throw in along with some other frozen fruit! Sometimes their produce is hit or miss for us... when that's the case we wind up having to go to Kroger to purchase a few items.
Ok I have a healthy/unhealthy obsession with avocados... lol. I'm so happy it's summertime because then they're on sale more often!! These guys were $0.89 each.. I should have bought 100 lol. The possibilities are endless with these... guacamole, add to tuna salad, homemade salsa... but honestly, I just LOVE to slice some up and have it with my eggs and bacon for my weekend breakfasts!
When I have a sweet tooth, I love the Stretch Island Fruit Co. fruit strips, however Aldi make their own version and they're awesome! The larger box has 21 strips and was $4.99. The smaller box has 8 strips for $1.99.
Lately we've been having lots of bean salads because I love them! We ran out of olive oil and they had this awesome selection for $2.99!
When my cut phase ended, I was ALL OVER this! lol. I unfortunately don't have the receipt for when we bought this but i'm sure it was cheap! I didn't realize it was quick-cook when I purchased them because I originally got them for this AWESOME slow-cooker apple cinnamon oatmeal recipe. However, I placed everything in my slow cooker and just cooked it on low for 2 hours and it was awesome. =)
I don't know a fitness girl who doesn't love her nut butters!!! This is another area where I was super brand loyal to Krema but these are pretty awesome options! Honestly, it took me a little bit to get used to the almond butter because I never tried it before but if you pair it with something sweet like an apple, then it's tasty! I also throw a tbsp. into my cottage cheese with the strawberry preserves and it balances nicely. I don't have the receipt for these guys so I'll have to edit this when I re-purchase them.. which probably won't be too far in the future lol.
We rarely eat pasta but I always love to have a jar of sauce on hand for those days when we need a quick meal and ran out of our usual. This organic pasta sauce is awesome!
This is beyond delicious!!! They have a couple of different marinades but only had cracked pepper this time so we're giving it a try. Each package has 2 tenderloins in it so we get 2 dinners out of it! $5.99 for the package!
Cottage cheese is pretty much a staple in my diet. I eat it savory mixed with some tuna or usually sweeten it with a tbsp. of strawberry preserves. I usually love Prairie Farms low sodium, low fat cottage cheese but this will do! This 24 oz tub is $2.29.
I love our weekend breakfasts because they're delicious and always include breakfast sausage! Aldi has an awesome option! Organic and super simple ingredients.
I do love my whole eggs but I usually get the 36-pack at Sam's club. I was also purchasing egg whites there but Aldi has this awesome carton of egg whites! I like to throw about 6 tbsp. into my morning green smoothie.
Beans are usually the only canned goods I'll purchase (I know it's more cost-effective to buy dried beans but sometimes convenience wins). Like I said lately we've been doing bean salads and the canned ones are super convenient! Luckily they're pretty cheap anywhere you go. I usually buy the organic ones from Kroger when they're 10/$10. These guys were $0.59 for the kidney and black beans, the chick peas were $0.65 for some reason and the corn was $0.49 each. The diced tomatoes and green chilis is something I got hooked on when I found the Rotel ones. I love to mix it into my rice & beans for some extra kick! The Aldi version is $0.59 each.
In general, our food shopping there ends up being under $100. We also purchased chicken breasts and thin sliced pork chops were on sale so we have dinners for quite awhile! I'll try to keep this a thing and update it with more items that we try out!
Hope this was helpful!
<3 Crystal
Hope this was helpful!
<3 Crystal