Hi Ladies,
I started LA Weight Loss a week ago (gift from my mom and uncle) and I'm really finding it expensive to buy all the food required. I'm only allowed chicken, fish, shrimp and eggs right now and the meat is really pricey. Also I'm having trouble with the dairy. I want to buy low fat cheese but it seems to be twice the price of the regular cheese (and I LOVE cheese!). I can't keep paying $3.00 for a tub of yogurt every 2 days! I'm starting to use 1 % milk more often, but then I don't feel as full. I'm really glad I found an inexpensive vegetable market close by because the grocery stores are outrageous. I don't know maybe it's because I thought we had this stuff in our house already, but I guess we didn't. Just finding it expensive. Do any of you ladies have ideas on how to lower costs? I'm not working right now and my 6 week severance package is going to be eaten up pretty quickly here if I don't find some cheaper alternatives! HELP!
Do you have a Sam's or Costco nearby? Buying in bulk, while seemingly more expensive up front, may be a longer term solution.
I guess my other question is what were you eating before you got on the plan. I find that my grocery bill balances out, more or less.. Because i'm not buying cookies, chips, packaged or frozen meals and beer, that money is free to buy the lean meats and veggies...
Try Lite and Fit yogurt smoothies and get yourself to drink skim milk.. It's going to be weird for a while, but your body will thank you.
Can't help you much with the cheese.. I love it too and basically have cut my intake by more than half. In fact, I've been eating slices of soy cheese in my omlets lately.. While, technically speaking, it's a processed food, it's very low in fat and calories.
You'll also find yourself saving money by not stopping by the drive thru window or the gas station for a snack.. The little things will add up and you'll soon see that difference, which will make the grocery store sticker shock easier to deal with.
You have to train your brain AND your body to realize that this isn't really a diet, it's a lifestyle change.. If you can make it for the first few months, your body will stop with its constant cravings for the crappy food. You will adjust to life without putting cheese on everything or eating processed pre-prepared foods. In fact, you'll find pretty quickly that if you backslide and indulge in some of this stuff, you'll end up making yourself sick because your body will reject all the salt and fat your suddenly trying to put into it.
But let me tell you... Two years after I started the program, I could never imagine going back to the way I was.. I take the small victories (like passing up on the quick burger and fries or the grocery ice cream aisle) and turn them into things to hold onto. If you can stick it out, your mental image about yourself will help you carry through the tough times when the cravings or emotional stress surrounding your life make you want to give in.
Believe me, it's very easy when you get stressed or depressed, to reach for a bag of chips, but while it may taste good and satisfying going down, it will only be a few minutes before you say to yourself: "Crap.. WHY DID I DO THAT??!!" And that will only make you feel worse.
Also, think about how the "new you" will aid in your search for a new job. You'll be healthier inside and out and your energy levels will keep you going during the long search process. My wife lost her job late last year, and I know the fact that we've been eating better really helped keep her outlook positive.
LOL no it didn't sound preachy at all. We have Costco up here, no Sams. We've been really starting to buy more food there. Although I still find their produce to be of poor quality so I go to a local veggie stand. I wasn't really stopping at fast food places at all (well ever since I quit McDonald's). The only 'fast food' I was getting was the occasional coffee from Tim Horton's and going over to a small cafe across the road from us, which I now know their portions were WAY too big. Yeah I guess it's definitely a lifestyle change. I really thought we were eating fairly well, boy was I wrong. We were eating way too much pasta and quick 'take out of the freezer and warm up' stuff.
You hit the nail right on the head.. It's those quick heat and eat meals that can kill our weight loss.. There's SO much stuff in those meals that is counter-productive for dieters.. All the preservatives, sodium and just the processing the food goes through is mind boggling..
Good for you for supporting your local veg producers.. It can be more expensive in some cases, but the food quality is SO much better.
Really watch your sodium intake (I'm not called the LAWL salt police for no reason) ... I've become a habitual label reader and have basically cut soup out of my diet unless I make it myself (which drives my wife nuts because she LOVES soups).
If you buy canned veggies at all, be sure to flush them out with fresh water and don't cook them in the salt laden water their packed in. We don't have a conveniently located farmer's market nearby, so most of ours are frozen.
Hello, and welcome. Are there no beans on the express? I thought that they allowed that. If not, express is only a few weeks and then you can add in things like that. Lentil soups are delicious, protein filled and cheap. I'm sure that there must be a at least a few meatless options on the express. Sure it may take a bit of time for your digestive system to adjust to this, but adding in a few times a week can cut the grocery bill. I also will eat veggie burgers, and there are some good ones at Costco. The costco we have here has excellent produce most of the time, better than the grocery stores, but maybe not better than a veggie market.
Personally I've found a few canned organic beans that have virtually no soduim and I use them in soups and stir fried with veggies as part of my protein allowance. I also will make split pea or lentil soup. This time of year is generally the worst for getting good produce at a reasonable price anyway, it will get cheaper in the summer months when more is available and at a better price.
Thanks for posting this question anakerose perhaps more people will chime in with their $$$ saving tips. I too find it costs more but Dan is right you sometimes forget the costs that are small at the time but add up and contribute to your expenses, even $3 every morning at Timmy's is $65 a month just for work days. I find thier coffee isn't the same without the cream and sugar anyway
it worries me that you're starting now... when a lot of North American franchises are shut down - their written reason (on the door with all the windows boarded off without any notice) was that the LA company was shutting down and no more LA products would be produced or available. Watch for massive sales (especially if it's 'while supplies last') - the counsellors don't even know when they'll be shutting down, and obviously are told not to tell the customer so that they can get as much money from you as possible. good luck with the program!!
Not all areas are closed. We still have a COD open here. I think it depends on the state and whether or not it is a franchise or locally owned. Stay positive! Great advice out there! It is a wonderful program!
I do buy cheese sticks at costco, the string cheese sticks are on plan and come preportioned (those delicious jack cheese ones are not on plan though), and that is most of the cheese that I allow myself to have. They give you a ton of them for 10$ I also buy little packages of carrots there, but I have to really try to eat them fast or they will go slimy on me. I get 24 bags for about 5$ when at the regular grocery store they sell 4 bags for 2$.
I also buy frozen veggies and fruits at costco. blend up some frozen berry mix with some milk or yogurt for a very nice breakfast. Plus in the winter some of the fresh fruit in the stores starts looking sad and monotonous... I mean bananas and apples and oranges again! So I break it up with some frozen berries.... I also like their stir fry veggies and some edame. I also buy chicken there. They sell it here in a package with individual packages with 2 breasts each in them, so I can just cut apart the packages and put all but one or two of them in the freezer for later. Since otherwise buying in bulk you end up repackaging it and freezing it to save money.
The thing is that as you get used to eating more healthily, you'll likely find places to get deals on the healthier food. I eat out less, this saves more money than the extra groceries costs. Truly before I would buy healthy food, store it in the fridge, go out to eat, and then throw out the food, so my costs went way down when I actually started eating the healthy food instead of just performing biology experiments on it.
lightnfit .com This is the yogurt that I eat as a snack when I get home from school. It tastes awesome and sometimes they have coupons on the inside of the foil cover. I usually eat the vanilla and strawberry.
As for the cheese and milk, I think you have to really weigh your options. Sometimes if I'm out of a lighter cheese, I'll still put regular cheese on my salad in a small amount. I drink skim milk although it's nowhere near as good as even 2%. It's probably better just to not drink milk much. You need to drink so much water daily that it would be kind of silly to rely on milk to make you feel full. Plus, water is less expensive.
Also, try making something large that can be eaten as left overs! Something like a big stew or casserole works well because you can make it last a good while and it doesn't take many ingredients.
I don't know if this helps. But, I chop up fruit salad a lot. Whatever is cheap or I have on hand. I breaks up the monotany of the same old fruit. Also, put fruit in sugar free jello is a change.
Carolita.. You're very welcome... I have to admit that I have to use my own words to keep myself going.. It's like my own personal kick in the butt!
When it comes to fruit, you've got to expand your options.. Obviously, 4 bucks a pop is a lot for blackberries or strawberries, but if you do a little experimenting, you'll find stuff that you like more than others.. I've become addicted to "Pink Lady" apples and Asian pears... I've NEVER been a big apple fan.. Just never really liked them, but the tart/sweetness of them is amazing.. I've also gotten the habit of buying D'ajou (sp?) pears.. The seem to last a lot longer than barletts...
I am guessing groceries just like everything else varies from each geographic location. I shop at Wal-Mart, Sam's or Food City and I can not really tell a difference in price. I am on a budget and have a family I still have to feed so I am super careful what I buy. When I initially first bought the light everything and seasonsings it was more but when you find what you like buy in bulk. Buy the lean packs of chicken, freeze a few and cook the rest so you always have something to eat. But the cheap yogurt and add fruit. You can buy the frozen fruit and add it to the yogurt the night before and it is great the next day. Also watch for sales and try to stock up that is what I have always done when shopping for a large family. As it gets warmer fruit should be cheaper.
Paying a higher grocery bill has been a huge part of my weight loss. Fresh foods are definitely more expensive than anything that is prepackaged, but it will all be worth it in the end. Even though my husband and I spent more on groceries, we saved literally hundreds of dollars on going out to eat. It's a lifestyle change that balances out in the end.
Lower cost options
... I've become a habitual label reader and have basically cut soup out of my diet unless I make it myself (which drives my wife nuts because she LOVES soups). 
