PamH

I'm going to start a Whole30 after I get back from Ocean City on 7/21. Too hard to do while traveling with family and probably 4 different diets between us (1 vegan, 1 vegetarian, 1 gluten free and me who is dairy free/grain free). I have done the Whole30 5 or 6 times since about 2012. Each time I falter on Day 13-14, like clockwork, so I've never technically completed the Whole30 (29 of 30 days went well). My guess is I lack in the prep work department and relied on snacks, not meals. I'm 54 with scoliosis that has limited my activity for about 5 years. Dairy free since I figured out it was the root of my hot flashes (gone!). Mostly vegetarian and grain free. Can't say 100% anything. I'm looking for an energy reboot and sugar beast slaying, not weight loss, and I hope this Forum is as active and friendly as it was years ago. This time around the kids are all in college or out working so I don't have to cook for them as well. Thanks! ~Pam

Over $200/week for a family of 5 here in Wisconsin. My biggest piece of advice is to create a menu for the week and stick to it when you shop! If you are like the rest of the US, you waste a ton of food through impulse shopping or wishful thinking ("I'll make that for sure!"). Second piece is to buy local and seasonal. Organic food here is significantly more expensive than conventional. I do pay attention to the Environmental Working Group's Dirty Dozen and sometimes buy non-organic in the foods less pesticide ridden. Probably sticking to seasonal fruits and vegetables is a good budget reducer. Buy bulk when the berries are cheap and freeze them? I do that with blueberries and strawberries. They generally aren't good for more than cooking with or adding to things like yogurt or oatmeal but it works. Grass fed beef is insanely expensive here! It is what I use so I just suck it up and pay the price. Honestly, the health benefits so outweigh the price when it comes to the corn fed-grass fed decision so I just stick with grass fed. The meat I have access to here is both grass fed and organic (but not certified mostly due to cost). If the farmer is good enough to go grass free they are generally mindful of following organic guidelines as much as possible. I'm to the point that I'll forgo buying the meat if I can't buy grass fed. I'll stop here and admit I am blessed with a husband's good income so this is easy for me to do. I know that isn't the same for everyone. I buy a lot of cabbage, carrots, zucchini and make stir-fry. Mixed with ground beef it really goes a long way. There is a Pakistani Kima recipe floating around on the web (Paleo) that is so, so good! Cauliflower 'rice' when it is in season really stretches a meal. Bulk nuts instead of bagged. Same with rice when I eat it (if I go back to eating it). I buy things like ghee and coconut oil on line and in bulk to save $$. I cook everything and rarely buy prepared foods anymore. We don't eat out much at all but that is by choice and not to save $$. I bake all of my sweets for the kids. Tropical Traditions and Green Pastures are my go-to places. Find any friends who are willing to split the cost of a case and do it! CSAs are great if you are adventurous and willing to live with perhaps eating only beets or kohlrabi for a week at a time. Food is just expensive! I'm always amazed at the total on the register vs the number of bags I carry out. I just got a job at our food co-op which will apparently give me a 15% discount! That makes up for the near minimum wage pay check for us. Now, after over a decade, my unsolicited advice on healthy eating will actually earn me some cash! Good luck to you.