02 June 2012

Healthy Challenge - Day #22 -- Grocery Shopping

Who here finds themselves with a cart full of impulse buys when they're grocery shopping? I know that I'm guilty of purchasing some pretty naughty snacks!

I'll even plan out my shopping trips with everything I need and before I go I'll say to myself, "I'm only getting this." But without fail I end up with a coke in my hand, a pack of Oreos, and the ingredients for an amazing cake that I HAVE to try!

So what can we do to help ourselves out and to shop healthier?


Here are 8 grocery shopping tips:

1- Don't go to the store HUNGRY! - when you are shopping hungry you are more likely to indulge in fatty food that will satisfy your hunger. Eat a small snack before you go like a piece of fruit, or a handful of almonds!

2- Look for short ingredient lists. Some experts say your should try to stay with 5 ingredients or less in the products you buy. This will keep out those sneaky ones from getting through and the ones you can't even pronounce.


3- Look out for the trick labels. One common offender is the "No Cholesterol" claim. Cholesterol only comes from animal products so when your cereal or oils say "No Cholesterol", it's usually because they're trying to distract your from the high fat content or high sugar content.

4- Beware of "Natural" products. Food companies want you to think that "natural" and "organic" mean the same but they really don't. The guidelines are very different and "natural" products are not inspected like "organics" are.

5- Understand Serving Sizes. That 100 calorie per serving candy bar looks so good and "hey, it's only 100 calories." However what your missing is that the candy bar contains 2 servings so you're getting 200 calories. Manufacturers do this to make you feel better about eating their foods.


6- Wheat and Grain products! Make sure you are spending your money on "Whole Wheat" or "Whole Grain". Many companies will slap the "wheat" label on items that are actually less nutritious that just plain old white bread!

7- Watery Foods - Again be ready to check labels. If water is the first ingredient then you can be pretty sure that they are going to have a bunch of additives further down the list to get that water to taste like Ravioli.


8- Kids at the Market - I know going to the store without kids is sometimes not an option but if you can try to do so. Kids will beg and beg for the sweet treats and if you don't want them eating that then you can't buy it. Make the best decisions for your family.

What are your healthy shopping tips and tricks?



2 comments:

  1. awesome stuff! More power to your blog!

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  2. Good tips! I also make sure I have my grocery list and stick to it. That helps me to not buy those treats even if they're on sale. It helps me avoid those isles or even looking for them if they aren't on the list. Taking my kids helps too because they want treats and I don't want them to have them so then I don't buy them for myself either!

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