6 Tips to Manage Your Weight Loss on a Budget

A common misconception we hear all the time is that weight loss or healthy eating is an expensive and/or time-consuming endeavour. Many people claim that one of the reasons that they turn to fast food is for its affordability due to healthy food often being beyond their budgets.

Although healthy eating can sometimes be costly, there are ways to save costs if you shop smarter, not harder. Check out our six top tips to manage your healthy weight loss program on a budget.

Shop Smarter, Not Harder

Buy fruit and veggies in season

Buying fruit and veggies which are in season is a great cost-effective way to pack your grocery cart full of fibre, protein, minerals and nutrients and other health benefits. Many fruits and veggies aren’t year-round, and have a seasonal sweet spot where they’re more affordable and easily accessible.

Some of our favourite fruits and veggies in each season are:

Spring: Bananas, Artichokes, Brussel sprouts, Peas, Cauliflower, Leeks. Summer: Bananas, Grapes, Berries – blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, cherries and blueberries, Capsicums, Carrot, Zucchini, Tomatoes. Autumn: Apples, Bananas, Grapes, Carrots, Zucchini, Tomatoes Winter: Bananas, Mandarins, Carrots, Potatoes, Spinach, Cauliflower.

Buy canned & frozen veggies

Buying canned and frozen veggies is grocery shopping’s biggest secret, and we’re going to share it with you. Buying fresh legumes such as beans, lentils and peas are often one of the most expensive items on a supermarket shelf, especially if they’re not in season.

However, in the tinned food isle, you can pick up 400 gram tins of chickpeas, black beans, peas and lentils for under $2 a can. If you’re including these ingredients in recipes such as Bolognese, curries, stews or other saucy recipes, tinned legumes are a fool-proof way to boost your protein and fibre, whilst saving a few dollars every shop!

Frozen veggies are also a great shopping life hack, where you can buy frozen veggies in bulk from 500 grams to 5kgs for less than a cup of coffee. Often these bags have multiple varieties such as broccoli, cauliflower, beans, peas, carrots, sweet corn and potatoes. Simply defrost, steam and serve!

Online food shopping

Doing your food shop online is a great way to avoid temptation, have clear visibility of your total cost as you go and have your groceries delivered straight to your doorstep.

Online grocery shopping allows you to avoid wandering around the supermarket looking at temptations in the bakery and confectionery isles as well as reduces the likelihood of purchasing unnecessary food items you may not need.

Be Prepared

Meal prep your food in bulk, and freeze meals

Meal prepping is an old-age trick of the trade to have your meals always ready-to-go, with no hassle or fuss of thinking about what to eat, or having to dedicate extra time to cooking.

We love bulk-making our favourite Lady Shake recipes on the weekend, and portioning out serves for ready-made meals to grab and go on the run! We recommend purchasing reusable Tupperware that is freezer friendly, and on a Sunday, afternoon whipping up your favourite meals in the kitchen to enjoy throughout the week or freeze for later.

TIP: If you’re taking your frozen meal-prepped meal to work, we recommend taking it out of the freezer the night before and popping it in the fridge to make sure it’s fully de-frosted and ready to eat by the following lunch time!

Pack a lunch box to take to work to avoid purchasing snacks

Packing lunch for your kids just became cool in a whole new way. You might think that packing school lunches was a day of the past, or a dreaded evening task that you wish away.

However, packing a lunch box for yourself is an easy way to save your pennies and have an exciting day of eating to look forward to! We love to pack our lunch boxes full of delicious protein-dense snacks to munch on during the day, here are our favourites:

1 x Lady Bar

1 x small handful of unsalted nuts (walnuts, cashews, macadamias, almonds etc.)
13-gram bag of popcorn
Celery/carrot sticks with hummus
A piece of fruit

Save your daily coffee costs by making your morning coffee at home (TIP: add a shot of coffee to your morning shake!)

In 2019 the average price for a cup of coffee was $3.95, however as of May 2023, the average price is $5 (depending on size, milk and add-ons). By making your morning brew at home, you will be saving approximately $5 a day, if not more if you love more than one cup a day.

A great way to level-up your morning Lady Shake is to add a coffee shot, giving your favourite flavours a caffeinated buzz. Our personal favourite is a Banana Lady Shake with added a coffee shot.