Many people assume a healthy lifestyle means a big hole in the budget. Myths include: staying fit requires expensive gym memberships and eating well equals eating into your grocery bill. Wrong. If you want to take ownership of your health, you can easily do so without a huge expense. Here are my tips for living a budget conscious healthy life.
Make your beauty products
Costly beauty products are an unnecessary expense as you can make your own using ingredients from your pantry. Face masks can be made using honey, turmeric and lemon juice. Soaps can easily be made with shea butter and green tea, and mixing sugar and essential oils makes a body scrub.
Use a meal plan to manage a healthy lifestyle on a budget
It’s important to be prepared for your meals. Doing so ensures you don’t buckle and buy unhealthy and expensive take outs, splash out on unnecessary groceries or meander away from your healthy eating plan.
- Breakfasts: Every Sunday I prepare five make-ahead breakfasts, such as frittatas or bircher muesli, which I store in the fridge ready to go.
- Lunch/Dinner: One Sunday a month I batch bake four lunches such as a vegetarian Shephard’s pie with cauliflower mash, salmon coconut fish cakes or a veggie bake, and store them in the freezer. These can be served at a later date with a leafy green salad for a nutritious, satisfying meal.
- Snacks: A variation of humus such as turmeric and cauliflower, beetroot or carrot.
- Drinks: Matcha green tea smoothie, watercress soup or a green tea and fresh ginger quencher to sip on throughout the day. This keeps me hydrated, my immune system in check and my metabolism high.
Make the most of your ingredients
To save money, time and avoid waste, I encourage people to consider how they can maximise a single ingredient. Roast a chicken for one meal, save the leftovers and boil the carcass for a delicious homemade nourishing stock, both of which you can freeze. In the following days, use the leftovers to make a mushroom and chicken risotto, soup and chicken salad.
Plan a healthy lifestyle on a budget by scheduling your week
Use your Leaders in Heels Planners to schedule your time so that you stay on track and avoid overspending. I usually write out the plan from 6am-7pm daily, and it will look something like this:
6 am – 30 minute at home yoga or pilates.
6.30am – Hot shower using one of my homemade body scrubs.
7 am – Enjoy a make-ahead breakfast and then make a tea to sip on during the day.
8 am – Start work.
10 am – Hummus snack.
Noon – Lunchtime!
2 pm – A soup or smoothie to ensure my body is getting extra greens, is nourished and energised.
5 pm – Finish work and then go for a brisk 30-minute walk or swim – anything to get some cardio and refresh the body/soul.
6 pm – Enjoy dinner with a big green leafy salad.
7 pm – Relax with a homemade face mask. I switch off all devices at this time as well.
Exercise at home
30-60 minutes of daily exercise at home is a key component of having a healthy lifestyle on a budget. We must use our muscles consistently to ensure our bodies remain flexible as we age. Personally, yoga, pilates or a brisk walk or swim helps me release the busy day.
About the Faye James
Faye is a 43-year-old mother of two who believes in living a healthy structured lifestyle to enhance confidence and energy. Adding to her achievements, Faye has recently published a book, The Life Long Plan, which shares more of her advice and tips.