How I did it: basically, i just sat down for an afternoon, and thought about foods that i liked to eat. then i made a 4 week long menu plan of breakfasts, lunches, dinners, and snacks. once i had my food plan thought out, i tried to find as much crossover as possible so that i would know what kinds of things to stock up on/ buy in bulk. i thought that the key to saving on food was at the sam's club.
well, i was wrong. the sam's club is for families of 5 who love red meat and processed snack food. not so much for single vegetarians who love organic. there is nothing for me there but allergy meds, toilet paper, and paper towels. which is great- but not exactly going to help me sustain life for a month.
anyway, after the lousy sam's club week (and an 80 dollar grocery bill), i realized that i had both been unrealistic about how much food i needed for a week (i eat out more than i think i do), and that i also have a serious issue with impulse buying (don't ever go to the store when you're hungry!). for the next few weeks, i started clipping coupons, and also trying to find the best deals at various stops around town (super wal*mart yo). i got a little bit better every week. in fact, i feel strongly that i am still perfecting my craft. more to come.
Read how I did it… 4 years ago
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so i think i planned too many meals per week, and i found myself with a lot of surplus food this week. as a result, i made some cuts from my dinner line-up and ended up spending only $37… which is much more manageable. i’m liking the convenience of only making one grocery list a month… but i’m still spending way too much. when i had this master plan, i thought that i would be buying all sorts of shit on big bulky deep discounts at the sam’s club. as it turns out, sam hates vegetarians. he only loves fat american snack-food addicted pigs with broods of sticky children. anyhow, target seems much more into my shit, and i’m having a lot of luck buying things when they have specials and i have coupons. the key for next month is going to be to plan weekly based on what is on sale. this has been educational, but so far not totally worth the effort. 4 years ago
so far, my attempts to maximize my food budget have not worked out so well. somehow i ended up buying $80 worth of groceries this week, instead of just the $50 or $60 that i’m used to. it would have been $90 if not for the coupons… but still! who do i think i am? i planned my meals so carefully, clipped coupons, went to super wal*mart for the lowest prices… it’s possible that i’ve just planned too much food for one person for one week and i’ll have residuals that can be carried over to next week… it’s also possible that because i’m planning on eating more meals at home and less meals out, i’ve absorbed more cost. it may take me a minute to get my sea legs on the grocery front. perhaps this just isn’t the month where i stay inside the confines of my budget. :( hey, at least february is a short month. 4 years ago
i’m OCD and i tend to get wrapped up in things sometimes… right now i’m on a coupon frenzy where i’m trying to see how much money i can reasonably save on food with coupons… stupid economy, but at least i’m taking the edge of my internet shopping. anyhow, something that ties into this whole situation is trying to buy things in bulk and at deep discounts. (lookout sam’s club here i come). but i have a theory that in order to do this effectively, you really need to focus in and try to be prudent about what you buy and how long things last. i think maybe this month (or maybe february if i can’t sort it out in time) i’m going to try to plan out a whole month of food in advance and see how much money i can save (i generally end up spending $40-$80 on food a week! and that’s pretty much for just my sorry single ass). my credit card debt needs to go, and my savings account needs to come. must make frugality into a game. 4 years ago
