Healthy, Cheap Eating (and an Upcoming February Exam)

image via Mel #123 on Flickr

So the month is almost over, and as some of you know I’ve been budgeting and tracking every dime of my (and my husband’s) spending.  I am happy to report mixed success so far—we’ve definitely overspent in some domains– to be realistic, I am going to have to bump up our budget amounts in a few areas–and under-spent in a few too.  Nevertheless, I consider my goals of keeping a budget this month a success because of one important fact:  I have NOT gone over my $300 budget for the month in eating out (or my goal for Healthy Living 102 of eating out only 3 times a week at maximum)! We’ve spent about $250 this month so far on restaurants, which is still a lot relative to some people but is Peanuts relative to our past spending.

I’ve talked a lot about how eating out at restaurants has been very self-destructive for me—affecting both my health and my finances—so this is a victory.  In contrast to my One Month of No Eating Out exam from last semester (which was still a very helpful exercise), this pattern of eating feels sustainable over the long haul.

Now that I’ve taken a step to remedy the outrageous amount of money we were spending eating out, I now have to address the overspending we’ve been doing on groceries!  Granted, this is a much better problem to have and affects the budget far less than overspending on restaurants, but I want to do even better.  I tried to do my best to cut down my spending on groceries this month, but it hasn’t noticeably reduced my spending that much.

One helpful thing I just started this past week will probably be a habit I will need to continue: I’ve been meal planning down to the last snack and breakfast for the week, writing it down, and posting it on the fridge.  It’s helping me ensure not only that I have a balanced diet  (I’ve been getting my 5-a-day of fruit and veggies every day this week), but also providing a visual cue to remind me how to use everything I’ve purchased.  I think it’s been helping me be less wasteful and use what I’ve bought.

Case in point: I bought a giant bunch of organic bananas for post-workout smoothies, but have also been using them on breakfast bagels (thanks, Michele!) and in oatmeal.  Before they go bad, I plan to peel them and throw them in the freezer for smoothies in upcoming weeks.  I also picked a recipe to cook this week with simpler ingredients and based on things I was already buying.  I made Mama Pea’s zucchini quinoa lasagna.  It turned out great and my husband really liked it too.

This issue of spending less on groceries is going to come to a head very soon, and here’s why:  My February exam is fast approaching! Here’s the description of this exam from my Financial Principles 101 syllabus:

“Coupon Crazy Month: During this month, the student will only purchase items (including groceries) at a discount, meaning either items on sale or by using coupons found on the internet, newspaper, and mail.  Student will calculate savings for reference purposes. (Exemption: Vacations or business trips)”

To clarify some details about this exam, money I spend on experiences is exempt from requiring discounts (e.g. trips to the movies or hair salon), but any physical objects are not exempt (e.g., new clothes, DVDs).  One slight rule change/addition: fruits and vegetables are totally exempt from requiring discounts, and I will continue purchasing organic when available and seasonal if possible.  This last minor rule tweak is very important, because I wouldn’t want this experiment to result in me cutting down on the very foods that I should be eating as much as I can.

I knew this exam was approaching, and have been preparing a little by reading about couponing on finance blogs and collecting coupons from the mail and newspaper.  I have also been signing up for online “deal” alerts like those sent daily to my email from Groupon, Wise Bread, and Coupon Mom.

Knowing what I now do about couponing, this exam does seem a little crazy.  Couponing takes a lot of work clipping and collecting coupons, and searching for deals.  People get downright obsessive about it, which should be clear to anyone who saw “Extreme Couponing” on TLC in December.

For those uninitiated into the Coupon Culture, the way people save an ungodly amount of money using coupons is by combining the weekly sales at different grocery stores with coupons, often stocking up on items they can get at really good discount. Here’s a blog with a clear explanation for those who want more deets.  One of the most helpful resources I’ve found is Coupon Mom, because you tell the search engine where you live and it combines store sales with local coupons for you!

How in the world am I going to do this?

Here’s my plan:

1) I plan to continue collecting coupons from the mail circulars, and from the Sunday paper (buying 3 each week).

2) I will continue my written weekly meal planning before buying groceries at least once a week.

3) Prior to making my weekly shopping list, I am going to look at the store discounts online for Giant Eagle, Whole Foods, my pharmacy, and the Food Co-op (where I am a member).  I will see which coupons I have for items that are also on store discount for the week (easily done on couponmom.com).   I will pick the week’s meals using only these discounted and/or couponed items, plus any produce I want.

4) My ace in the hole:  My co-op has a monthly Member Extra Discount Day in the middle of the month, in which I can buy anything because I get an extra 10% off my total purchase. I can also volunteer at the coop, and earn a 10% off discount that day.

5) Along the way, I also plan to tally the time it takes to clip coupons, make extra trips to the store, and search for and research “deals” (none of which I’ve ever done before).

6) At the end of the month, I will be able to compare my grocery spending with that from the past four months, and also be able to look at the savings versus the time spent acquiring those savings!

Next month’s exam is truly experimental.  I’ve never tried anything like this before.  How much will my spending actually be, given that I plan to purchase lots of organic produce at full price?  Will the extra work in terms of coupon-clipping and multiple store trips justify the savings?  What kinds of objects that I would normally buy without thinking will I have to either re-think buying or find at a discount?  Will I turn into a person that sifts through dumpsters looking for unused coupons and staying up ‘till the wee hours of the morning organizing a coupon binder named “My Precious,” a title which I’ve painstaking applied to the cover with Puff Paint and a heart over the “i”?

It should be interesting.

Anyone who wants to join me in this crazy endeavor and be my Exam Buddy, please let me know in the comments because I’d love to have the support—we can email about our experiences throughout the month.

For other readers: How do you save money on groceries and eat well? Do you Coupon? Do you have any other resources to suggest that might help me next month? Please share your advice, cautionary tales, questions, and suggestions!