Inflation-Proof Your Diet In 2023 –
How to Eat Healthy Despite Rising Prices

The Challenge of Eating Healthy on a Budget in 2023

Inflation has caused the prices of natural and organic food items at grocery stores to jump significantly. The Bureau of Labor Statistics claims that at the end of August 2022 “prices for food at home increased 13.5 percent, the largest 12-month percentage increase since the period ending March 1979.” It’s easier and cheaper to buy unhealthy, processed foods that undermine your goals, so most people do.

This post provides tips and creative ideas for eating healthy on a budget in 2023, so you don’t have to sacrifice your fitness goals. It acknowledges the significant increase in natural and organic food prices and suggests tips to shop smart and cook efficiently to save money and eat healthily. The tips include meal planning, shopping for sales, buying in bulk, using coupons and loyalty programs, cooking in batches, comparing prices, and buying generic or store-brand items. Finally, after applying these tips, the article shows an example of what a meal plan might look like for a week.

In This Article:

1. 10 Tips For Meal Planning And Grocery Shopping On A Budget

2. Creating A Plan For Eating Healthy On A Tight Budget

3. Prioritizing Your Health And Budget In 2023

10 Tips For Meal Planning And Grocery Shopping On A Budget

To eat healthy on a budget, you must be strategic about what specific items you buy. Here are several tips to help you save money and eat better while planning your meals and shopping on a budget.

Tip 1: Don’t Shop When You’re Hungry

Most people have some experience with this. You’re at the grocery store and you see potato chips or a chocolate bar. You start to crave it, you hear your stomach growling, and inevitably, it ends up in your shopping cart. Shopping while you’re hungry can take the strategy out of the equation leading to you purchasing unhealthy or expensive foods.

Tip 2: Plan Your Meals Ahead Of Time

Planning your meals in advance can be an effective way to eat healthy on a budget. Before heading to the store, make a list of the ingredients you need for your meals and stick to it. This approach can help you avoid impulse purchases of items that are not only costly but also unhealthy. Additionally, it can prevent you from buying more than you need, reducing food waste and saving you money in the long run.

Tip 3: Plan Meals Around Sales

Buying items on sale will save you lots of money. Sales may offer more food for the same price or the same amount of food for a lower price. Either way, sales are a powerful tool for eating healthy on a budget. Use the internet or weekly store mailings to figure out what stores near you have on sale. If you can plan your meals around what’s on sale, staying within your budget will be significantly easier.

Tip 4: Stick To Simple Recipes

Recipes with fewer ingredients will typically cost less. If possible, try to have a couple of simple recipes with natural, nutrient-dense ingredients that you can cycle through every week or so. For example, you can have rice and ground turkey for dinner every night, but switch up what vegetables and sauces you use to keep it from getting boring. You will save a significant amount of time by making the same meal every few days instead of coming up with new recipes every week.

Tip 5: Make Use Of Leftovers

To save time and money, you can plan meals that use leftover ingredients from previous meals. This reduces waste and gives you more bang for your buck on the ingredients that you reuse. For example, rice from dinner the night before, in an omelet the next morning, or leftover vegetables from last night’s dinner in a stir-fry tonight.

Tip 6: Buy In Bulk

Buying ingredients in bulk is nearly the same as buying ingredients on sale. When you buy in bulk, you can get more food at a lower price per unit (pounds, grams, etc). Shopping at wholesale stores, such as Costco, BJs, or Sam’s Club can add to the savings from bulk buying. In addition, FoodToLive provides bulk discount savings on nuts, grains, beans, and spices. These are perfect food items to buy in bulk due to their frequent use in a variety of meals and long shelf life if stored properly.

Tip 7: Use Coupons And Loyalty Programs

Coupons can be found in newspapers, weekly store mailings, or online, making food items more affordable. Loyalty programs are designed to attract and retain customers. They do this by offering exclusive rewards and discounts to members of the program. So, if you use one to two stores for most of your grocery shopping, you may want to research if they have a loyalty program.

Tip 8: Cook In Batches

Instead of cooking small meals every day, you can prepare larger batches of your favorite meals and store them in the fridge or freezer. If you combine this tip with tips four and five, you can cook a large batch of rice that you use in one meal every day.

Tip 9: Buy Generic Or Store-Brand Items

Generic or store-brand items are typically cheaper than brand-name items and are often just as good in terms of taste and quality. More often than not, they are produced by the same manufacturer but labeled differently. It is still important to check the ingredients list and nutritional information to ensure that you’re getting a healthy and nutritious option.

Tip 10: Compare prices:

Different stores price items differently and have different promotions or sales. Use the internet to find what stores near you have the best prices on the items you’re looking for and don’t be afraid to shop around.

Creating A Plan For Eating Healthy On A Tight Budget

The internet is full of recipes for anything you can imagine. Here is a sample meal plan that you can copy or customize to stay within your budget and stay healthy in 2023.

Monday:
Breakfast: Oatmeal with sliced banana and a drizzle of honey
Lunch: Black bean and vegetable stir-fry (reused ingredients: black beans)
Dinner: Vegetarian chili with brown rice (reused ingredients: brown rice). Check out our Turkey Chili recipe (replace the ground turkey with extra beans to make this a vegetarian dish) 

Tuesday:
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with stir-fried vegetables and beans (reused ingredients: vegetable stir-fry and black beans)
Lunch: Quinoa and black bean salad with roasted vegetables (reused ingredients: black beans)
Dinner: Bean and rice burrito bowl (reused ingredients: black beans and brown rice)

Wednesday:
Breakfast: Greek yogurt with sliced almonds and mixed berries
Lunch: Lentil soup with whole grain bread
Dinner: Vegetarian stuffed peppers with quinoa and black beans (reused ingredients: black beans and quinoa)

Thursday:
Breakfast: Whole grain toast with avocado and a fried egg (reused ingredients: eggs and whole grain toast)
Lunch: Bean and cheese quesadilla with salsa and sliced avocado (reused ingredients: avocado and black beans)
Dinner: Chickpea and vegetable curry with brown rice (reused ingredients: brown rice)

Friday:
Breakfast: Breakfast burrito with scrambled eggs, black beans, salsa, and cheese (reused ingredients: tortillas, eggs, black beans, salsa, and cheese)
Lunch: Leftover chickpea and vegetable curry with brown rice
Dinner: Homemade pizza with whole wheat crust, tomato sauce, roasted vegetables, and cheese (reused ingredients: cheese)

Saturday:
Breakfast: Whole grain waffles with mixed berries and a drizzle of honey (reused ingredients: mixed berries and honey)
Lunch: Leftover vegetarian stuffed peppers with quinoa and black beans
Dinner: Leftover vegetarian chili with brown rice

Sunday:
Breakfast: Whole grain waffles with mixed berries and a drizzle of honey (reused ingredients: mixed berries and honey)
Lunch: Leftover bean and cheese quesadilla with salsa and sliced avocado
Dinner: Roasted vegetable and chickpea pasta with whole grain pasta ((reused ingredients: roasted vegetables)

Prioritizing Your Health And Budget In 2023

Ultimately, eating healthy on a budget isn’t impossible. You just have to be creative and strategic. By following these tips you can create a meal plan to keep yourself and your wallet happy and healthy. Just be sure to focus on nutrient-dense foods such as whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats.