My Shopping Cart: Whole Foods Edition

May 13, 2015May 13, 2015 / ktbuchs87

This is the last part in my 3 part series of where and how I grocery shop. If you haven’t seen them yet, read the Jewel and the Aldi post. Today it’s all about Whole Foods which I am here to prove doesn’t have to be Whole Paycheck as long as you shop smart.

Full disclosure: I obviously do not do all of my grocery shopping at Whole Foods. That isn’t to say it isn’t possible to shop only at Whole Foods, I just find it works best for me and my budget to go to a few different places. You have to decide what is best for you, your budget, and your family.

I go to Whole Foods mostly for their bulk section. They have a huge bulk foods section and buying in bulk is a great way to save money on food that you eat and use often. It’s also great if you want to try something new but don’t want to buy a whole box or package. That way you can see if you like the ingredient and won’t waste money or food if you don’t.

Here is what I usually buy from the bulk section at Whole Foods:

whole wheat flour
almond flour
coconut flour
oatmeal (rolled oats, oat bran, steel cut)
buckwheat groats
cornmeal
brown rice
hazelnuts
almonds
cashews
pistachios
goji berries
prunes
chia seeds
hemp seeds
flax seeds
popcorn

Now, I don’t buy all of this every single time I go to the store, I just refill as needed. But you can see that I do purchase a lot of things in bulk. For me, buying these things in bulk is cheaper. Do your research though because sometimes (not often) it isn’t cheaper to buy things in bulk.

Whole Foods also has a bulk spice section that is awesome! I no longer have to buy a whole bottle of some spice that I am going to only use once and then forget I have. This saves so much money and your spices and herbs won’t go bad (yes spices can go bad) because you aren’t using them. I usually get:

basil
oregano
thyme
rosemary
turmeric
cumin

Because I’m obsessed with spices, I also get a lot of my spices and spice blends at The Spice House in Old Town. They have so many amazing blends and I have a hard time choosing! If you’re in the area you should check them out. Plus it’s Alton Brown recommended so you can’t go wrong!

Other than bulk food, I also get a few other things:

organic sweet potatoes (my one organic splurge because to me they taste much better than conventional)
365 brand peanut butter (the 2 lb jar is only $5.99)
grind your own almond butter
specialty ingredients like coconut cream, Asian/Indian food section things, tahini
bulk coffee (I also sometimes get coffee from Trader Joes)

Again, I don’t get these things every single trip just when I need them.

It is totally possible to shop at Whole Foods and not spend a small fortune. If you do your homework, you can grocery shop here on a budget. If you look for coupons, buy things that are on sale, shop the bulk food section, and purchase the 365 brand products you can save a lot of money. And soon you might be able to shop at a less expensive version of Whole Foods.

This is the last post in this series and I hope it helped show you how to grocery shop as well as how it’s easy to eat healthy on a budget and at a variety of different stores. I would love to write more posts about what I do to stay healthy, so let me know what other roadblocks you face when trying to eat better. What other things would other glimpses into my life would you like to see? Let me know in the comment section!

My Shopping Cart: Aldi and Wal-mart Edition

May 6, 2015May 6, 2015 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

Today is part two in my grocery shopping series. Last week I shared with you what I get when I shop at Jewel and today I’m highlighting what I get when I go to Aldi and Wal-mart.

These two stores get looked down on a lot. They are associated with cheap/unhealthy food, lower class, and just an overall unpleasant experience. When I first started grocery shopping on my own I did most of it at Wal-mart because it was cheap and near campus. There was an Aldi in town, but I avoided it because I had the same misconceptions most people do about it. I remember shopping there as a kid with my mom. You had to pay for grocery carts, they didn’t have shopping bags, there were weird tubes of meat and it was kind of dirty. As an adult I kind of turned my nose up at Aldi and thought I was better than that.

Then I realized how much money one could spend on groceries and I knew I needed to find a way to eat healthy food but on a fairly tight budget. I swallowed my weird sense of “food pride” and went to Aldi. I was pleasantly surprised. You still have to pay for a grocery cart (you get the quarter back once you return the cart) and there aren’t any shopping bags (if you’re like me and have 5 million reusable bags this isn’t too much of a hassle) but the food selection had definitely changed for the better.

Aldi has been shedding their old brand and showing they are just as good as other grocery stores. They offer a gluten-free line, an organic line, fresh seasonal produce, and a really great frozen foods section. It is entirely possible to eat healthy nutritious food and shop at Aldi. Plus you will save money because their prices tend to be lower than their competitors.

My Aldi shopping list varies depending on what I need that week. What I normally get there each week are:

organic honey
canned pumpkin (during the fall)
10 lb bag of russet potatoes
avocados
frozen mixed vegetables
big bags of frozen tilapia/swai (for Adam)
corn tortillas
2 lb bag of beans (pinto, black, northern)
brown rice spaghetti

I buy these things at Aldi because they are much less expensive than if I were to get them at Jewel or even Wal-mart. I also go to Aldi when I am recipe testing because I can get more ingredients for my money and test more recipes this way. Aldi does a pretty good job of offering fresh and seasonal produce for a really good price. I recently got asparagus there for less than $2 a lb and an 8 oz of mushrooms for $1.49.

I also pick up a few things at Wal-mart each week because the price there is better. I usually get:

half gallon of Silk Unsweetened Almond milk
Thai kitchen canned coconut milk
frozen vegetables
quart sized boxes of shelf stable almond milk and coconut milk (for baking)
big jug of extra virgin olive oil

The Wal-mart in my neighborhood does a pretty good job on their produce, but it’s a little bit smaller of a selection. I can find what I need for a good price at the other stores I frequent.

The most important thing I want you to take away from this post is that you can shop at stores like Aldi and Wal-mart and still have a healthy diet. You might have to search a little bit through the aisles to find the good stuff, but it’s there. Eating healthy isn’t about shopping at the high end grocery stores and buying the most expensive food there. If you are able to do that and that works for you, then great! But for the majority of us it is more feasible to shop at places like Aldi. Look for seasonal produce, read labels, and keep an open mind when you’re shopping at these stores. You’ll end up with delicious and nutritious meals and a few more dollars in your wallet! That’s a win-win in my book!

What are your misconceptions about stores like Aldi or Wal-mart?

A Culture Of Shame

May 4, 2015May 4, 2015 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

Body-shaming

Fat-shaming

Food-shaming

Kid-shaming

Shame-Shaming

We are living in a culture of all kinds of shame. If there is something out there, I bet there is some form of shame attached to it. I don’t want to start your Monday off on a downer, but I feel like this is something I want to address.

Social media is a great and terrible thing.

I love being able to share my life and thoughts with you through my blog, Instagram, and Facebook. It’s an amazing way to be able to connect with people I never would have been able to before. It let’s me help you with your healthy journey by sharing my own health experiences. I can also share the funny and goofy and adorable things that go on in my life, mostly involving Olaf my cat. It’s great.

But there is a dark side to social media. The thought that is always in the back of my mind before I post something. Is this good enough? Is this relevant? Is this offensive? Is this going to open me up to criticism? I see all this shaming going on and it affects what I decide to put up or not. Because of my past struggles with self-esteem and body image issues, I’m always slightly nervous when I put a piece of me out there. The minute I hit publish or send that image or thought or post is no longer mine, it’s the world. It’s terrifying.

I wish we could live in a culture of unwavering support instead of one of shame. So many amazing and strong people are constantly bashed for the way they look or the things we do. Someone posts a before and after picture of their weight loss transform and the comments start flowing in of how they’ve lost too much weight or they looked better before or they still have a long way to go to have the perfect body. Someone tweets the dessert they enjoyed on their birthday and suddenly they’re bombarded with comments from the health nazis.

I posted this video from Blogilates creator, Cassey. If you haven’t seen it, please watch it because I believe it really shows what it’s like to put yourself out there and try to help others but be brought crashing down by all the shaming and negativity out there.

I can’t fix this problem with one post. I can draw awareness to it though, and maybe cause you to think about what you are saying to people. Is the comment you’re about to post one of support or judgement? Are you encouraging the people around you who are doing their best and accomplishing amazing things? Or are you contributing to this culture of shame?

One positive comment can do a lot to help drown out the noise of negative comments. Today offer support instead of shame and help change the way we share with the world.

My Shopping Cart: Jewel Edition

April 29, 2015April 29, 2015 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

For the next three weeks I am going to share my grocery shopping with you. I think it’s important to know how to grocery shop because that’s where healthy eating starts. I also think that many people have misconceptions about how and where they have to grocery shop if they want to eat better. You don’t have to go to specialty stores and you don’t have to buy all organic all the time. If you have the ability and the means to do that, awesome! But you can have a healthy lifestyle without those things too.

I have four main places that I grocery shop for our household. Jewel, Whole Foods, Walmart, and Aldi. I go to these places at least once sometimes twice a week. I do one big shopping trip on Friday morning and then supplement throughout the week with a few other trips. This helps me save money and find the best deal on food.

I’m starting with Jewel because that is where I do the bulk of my shopping. Not only are they on my block but they also have a good selection. Before I get into what I buy here are a few quick tips on making the most of any grocery shopping trip:

MAKE A LIST! A list will keep you from just wandering the aisles and throwing whatever catches your eye into your cart. Know exactly what you need for your meals and what you need to restock and stick to your list!
Shop early. I know not everyone can go to the store first thing in the morning, but if you can do it. There aren’t that many people there, the shelves are usually fully stocked, and it’s quicker to get done when there aren’t tons of people around. Nothing makes grocery shopping worse than doing it with 500 other people all trying to get the exact same bunch of kale.
Don’t be afraid to ask. In my experience people who work in grocery stores know A LOT about groceries. They know all the deals, the best time to shop produce, and a few have even given me some great tips on preparing the food I buy. If you have a question just ask!

Onto the shopping! I buy all of my fresh produce at Jewel because they have a good selection and they also tend to have really good seasonal offerings. No matter what the season though I usually always buy:

broccoli
carrots
bananas
cabbage
fresh herbs
onions
garlic
apples
oranges/pears/plums/whatever other fruit is on sale or in season

Then depending on season I sometimes have squash, summer squash, beets, parsnips, asparagus, leafy greens, or whatever else catches my eye.

I try to stay in season and choose produce that is on sale to get the most bang for my buck. I also don’t buy the organic versions of these. At this point in time I just don’t have the financial resources to buy all organic and that is totally fine! Regular broccoli is better than no broccoli at all. I do however make sure that I wash all of my produce well before I eat it.

Jewel is also where I get canned goods, eggs, and frozen vegetables. I always make sure to have canned tomatoes and tomato paste/sauce on hand and I get the Jewel brand of these. The ingredient list is short and simple which is always important and it’s the cheapest brand, also important! I buy a lot of eggs, at least 24 perhaps more a week, but again I can’t afford to buy organic or cage free at this time so I just get the best that I can afford.

Finally frozen vegetables. Jewel has a really big and inexpensive selection of frozen vegetables that I love. Frozen vegetables sometimes get a bad rap as not being as good as fresh but that is totally wrong. They are just as nutritious and are sometimes more convenient than fresh. I keep a good variety on hand to throw into stir frys, soups, stews, salads, or as a quick side. Some of my favorites right now are:

green beans
shelled edamame
sugar snap peas
3 pepper blend (red, green, and yellow peppers)
california blend (cauliflower, broccoli, carrots)
chopped spinach or kale

That’s my Jewel shopping trip. My Jewel also has a really good natural food market, a part of the store that has food you would normally find at say Whole Foods but for less money. I’ll sometimes get tea, gluten free pasta, and chickpea flour here.

Next Wednesday I will talk about what I get at Walmart and Aldi. Yes, you can find healthy food at Walmart and Aldi and save a lot of money. Have a great Wednesday everyone!

Where do you shop? What is the hardest part of grocery shopping for you?

What Makes You Light Up?

April 27, 2015April 27, 2015 / ktbuchs87

Before you get all sassy on me, don’t say fire or light bulbs (looking at you mom). Rather, what makes you the happiest? What makes you get all excited to get going in the morning? Are you making that your priority?

This is a question that I have been asking myself a lot lately. I spent a lot of my time in college, a place where you should be finding and doing what you love, doing things because I felt that I had to. I had to be a music major, I had to pass my music classes, I had to do well on auditions so that I could get into the ensemble that I had to be in, I had to do this or that or some other thing. Looking back, I wasted time. That’s been a hard concept for me to admit and accept and say out loud.

No one wants to say they made the wrong choice.

But those are the cold hard facts. Life isn’t about always getting it right. It’s about taking what you have and learning from it and making it better the next time. I spent a lot of time bemoaning my situation after college. Luckily I had Adam to help me from becoming a depressed shut in and I found a job I loved and allowed me to find other things that did light me up.

Food, health, and helping others.

I love those things. They make happy. They get me excited to get up in the morning. I’m trying to make those a priority career wise. I can honestly say that I light up when I work on my blog or offer advice to a reader or come up with a new recipe.

Finding your passion is all part of having a healthy and balanced life. Sure eating right and exercising are good things, but they aren’t the only things. You can’t neglect your passions for too long before you start to feel like something is missing and your health can begin to suffer.

That’s why I want to urge you to not only take care of your body but your mind and soul as well. Today, sit down and think about what you love. Things that make you smile or cheer you up when you’re down. Find ways to incorporate those things into your day. Whether that’s with your career, your hobbies, or a side project, make them happen. No excuses, fit something you love into your day no matter what.

Now, what makes you light up?