(Recommended by @procrastinationkiddo)
Hello, fellow busy, broke, suddenly-living-on-your-own students. I’m sure you’ve all been told about the importance of eating well, but when you have a tiny grocery budget and six papers to write, it can be pretty hard to take the time to eat well. Convenience takes priority over health, and then suddenly you feel like crap, the papers haven’t been written, and you’re out of money. I’ve been there. Hopefully some of the tips that have helped me will also help you!
Stay hydrated. I know you’ve heard this one before (a lot), but on top of being good for you in tons of ways, drinking water also fills you up and keeps cravings at bay.
Get your fruits and veggies in. When I first lived alone, I neglected fruits and vegetables in my diet because I wasn’t going through them fast enough and they kept going bad, so I didn’t buy them. Friend, invest in freezer bags. Chop up fruits and vegetables and stick them in the freezer so you can pull them out and make something with them (or just snack on them) at a moment’s notice.
Big bags of chopped frozen vegetables. You need them in your life. My store has them for $2.
Just skip the junk food. Seriously, don’t even go down that aisle at the store.
On that note, drinking pop (or any processed sugary drinks, ex energy drinks and sports drinks) on an everyday basis is a no-no. That amount of sugar does you no favours health-wise. If you really want to drink something sweet, 100% pure fruit juice (store brands usually have it), or homemade lemonade made with lemon juice and honey are WAY better options.
Pre-making meals on the weekend or a less busy day (if you know you’ve got several busy days ahead) will save you tears. Pretty much any meal you want can be stuffed into plastic bags and frozen, then reheated when you need it.
Eating healthy IS NOT expensive. Bust that myth. Stock up on eggs, bananas, onions, plain pasta, rice, canned beans (or dried! Even cheaper, but a bit more work), canned tomatoes, etc. When you break it down, they really are way cheaper (and more filling, so you don’t need to eat as often) than grabbing MacDonald’s, eating ramen, or getting frozen TV dinners.
Invest in a small blender and make smoothies. Smoothies are an AMAZING way to get fruit into your diet. I like to supercharge my smoothies with protein powder and spinach as well as fruit and milk, which make them pretty much a full-blown breakfast. (blenders are also awesome for loads of other recipes, but smoothies are what I get the most use out of them for)
Chilli is my favourite no-fail healthy dinner. I toss some chopped onions, some ground beef, a can of beans (black beans are my personal favourite), a can of crushed tomatoes, a bunch of frozen veggies, and a ton of chilli and cayenne pepper into a pot, cook until the meat is done, then bam! Meals for a week. Recommend eating with rice.
Onion soup for the sick/cold/etc: chop up onions and throw them into a pot with some meat and oil, let them cook just a bit, then fill up the pot with water. Add veggies, whatever spices you like, and boil until the meat is done (I like to let it boil for a long time so at this point I go off and do something and just let it simmer). Onions are rich in vitamin C, and this soup beats canned chicken noodle every. single. time.
Eggs are miracle food. Fry them, toss them on rice or toast, hard-boil them for a protein-rich on-the-go snack, try making French toast or an omelette if you need something different. Really. Miracle food.
When in doubt, stick spinach into it. You can hardly taste it in most things, and you get your greens in.
Don’t beat yourself up over your diet. Be conscious of eating healthy, but please don’t obsess over every calorie or refuse to allow yourselves any treats, ever. Your body can take the occasional cookie or bag of chips, so long as it’s not all the time.
Foods that are said to improve memory or brain function (not a scientist so I can’t 100% vouch for these but they are generally nutrient-rich and good for you!)
Berries, especially blueberries and other dark berries
Dark chocolate (75% cocoa type)
Avocado (awesome in smoothies!)
Whole grains and seeds (definitely go for whole grain bread over white whenever possible)
I hope this was helpful! Have a great week :)
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