Brown bag lunches

In a recent study the average person is reportedly packs a lunch for work 2-3 days a week and then goes out to eat the remaining days. If this person then eats out for dinner on an average of 3 days a week and once or twice during the weekend, on average, this person is spending $65 per week and $279.50 per month eating out! For many people an extra $279.50 a month can go a long way. Some estimate that it is very possible for some to spend upwards of half a million dollars over the course of their working life, just on eating out. Although it may require a little more time and effort, you can save hundreds of dollars by making your own meals at home. It is easy to pack a simple lunch for less than $2-4 dollars a day. It is much harder to find a healthy meal at a takeout restaurant for that much. Just be sure that you add these items to your grocery list to make sure that you are always stocked up on lunch foods that you would actually eat. It is easy to fall into the temptation of going out to eat for lunch if you are packing a lunch that you do not like or if you are constantly running out of what you need to make your lunch. Some people get over their inability to plan or make a special lunch the night before by simply making bigger meals and then taking the leftovers to work the next day. With only the prep of one meal, you can have the benefit of two home-cooked meals. If you still need more motivation for making your lunch at home and taking it to work, remember that going out to eat not only costs you what you have to pay for the meal, but you must also spend money on the gas that you will have to buy to drive around town and through drive-up windows.

Portion control and save on packaging

Convenience foods are tempting. Marketers are very much aware of the demand that exists for products that make life easier. Thus things like, calorie packs, individual serving cups (i.e. pudding and gelatin), and mini versions of a larger package have become very popular. However, one study showed that you could end up paying more than three-times the amount of money for the same amount of food when you buy the special packaging. A better idea is to make the snack packs yourself. Buy your foods in bulk and then use smaller bags to control portions.

Save money and your health

There is no denying that very few fast food restaurants have healthy menu choices outside of the occasional salad option. In addition to the money that you can save by not paying the price for convenience foods, you can save a lot of money in the end by maintaining good health. Years of poor eating can lead to weight gain, high cholesterol and a myriad of other related illnesses. If you can start making health changes with at least one meal a day (i.e. lunch) just think of all the money that you can save by avoiding all of the unpleasant physical problems that are associated with eating poorly.