Eating good on $30 a week!

With the economy slowing down and gas prices going up, that mean things are going to get more expensive. Everyone needs to eat, and you can eat good for $30 a week. Most people spend $30 a week at restaurants or at the bar. Plan well and eating healthy is not as expensive as you think.

I usually shop at several different stores during the week depending on what I need and what is on sale. If you do your homework and budget well, you will be able to accomplish this and not feel as pinched when you leave the store. Here are a couple of things to help you make this work.

Plan your attack. Look at the sale papers and make your list.

Go to a farmers market. You will get fresher produce for a lower price because it is local (less travel = less gas) and you are supporting your local economy.


Get creative. You will be limited on what you can buy on $30 a week but with some creativity in the kitchen, you can come up with some different recipes.


This list is assuming you have some spices and other items but these will cover all if not the majority or your daily calories.



This list is for the month.




Item - # needed - cost/per - store where purchased


frozen vegetables - 20 bags - $1 each - local chain grocer

apples - 2 bags - $8 each - Sams Club (10# each)

quick oats - 1 can - $1.50 - Aldi

Whey Protein - 1 bag - $31 - Sams Club (6# bag)

Boneless/skinless Chicken breast - 10 lb - $1.99/LB - Local chain grocer

Eggs - 4 dz - $1.50/dz - Sams Club

Peanuts - 2 cans - $2.50/each - Local grocer

Pasta - 1 box - $1.00 - Local grocer

Pasta sauce - 2 cans - $1.00/each - Local grocer

Potatoes - 1 bag - $2.50 - Local grocer

Jif peanut butter - 1 jar - $3.00 - Local grocer

Cheese - 1 block - $1.79 - Aldi

Ground beef 90% lean - 3 # - #2.25/lb - Sams Club

Rice - 1 pound - $.50-$.75 per pound - local grocer

Now before you email me to tell me what is not in there and what should be taken out. My point is that eating better is not as expensive as you think. People make excuses all the time about how eating healthy is expensive. That is because what they are buying is not healthy. Yes a good steak is expensive but so is shelling out $2.50 a box for crackers that is going to do nothing but make you fatter.


As you can see this is a very simple list and some items could be interchanged. My point of this was to prove that you do not have to spend an arm and a leg to eat good food. Now for the final breakdown. The total cost was $117.97 so you have $2.03 for what ever you want.


These are the daily averages.


Calories 1756


Protein 149 g (33%)


Carbs 153 g (28.5 g fiber) (34%)


Fat 63 g (32%)

It is that simple. Save some money and eat good.