Eating healthy costs too much!! Right?? That’s the most common excuse I hear about why people can’t stick to the nutrition plan. They just can’t afford to buy all that “healthy food”. After all, a bag of chips IS cheaper than a container of blueberries. There’s no denying that!
Well, I think there is a lot more to the story of eating healthy than just how much we spend on any one item. It’s a total picture. And I’ve found that the TRUE COST of healthy eating is actually less …. MUCH LESS, than the normal American fast-food culture.
Before I started eating right (before the X!), I ate out for fast food lunch 4-5 times per week. That usually cost me $6-$8. I also stopped at the Quick Trip at least once (if not twice) per day for a snack and pop, at about $3 a stop. Add to that the late night ice cream, the cookies for munching between meals, and of course our big family nights out at the restaurant, with meal and tip always racking up $50 or more. I was blowing a TON of money each month on my typical American diet.
Now?? I take my lunch. I make NO stops at the Quick Trip. We eat dinner at home, with healthy cooking. I don’t munch on cookies and candy between meals. And there’s no more late night ice cream. So yes, blueberries cost more. Shakeology costs more. Lean meat costs more per pound than ground beef. But overall, I am saving a lot of money if I look at the big picture. And the healthy foods I put in my body satisfy it, keep it feeling full and well-fueled, and stop the impulse eating and boredom eating that used to plague me (and my pocketbook).
And then, of course, there is a much bigger cost that I haven’t even touched on yet — the cost of being overweight and in bad health! Americans spend billions and billions per year on preventable diseases because we, as a culture, have let ourselves go. This is the real tragedy in all of this.
Even if I spent more on healthy food (which I don’t believe is the case), isn’t my health worth it? How much work do overweight, sick people miss? How much productivity is lost from preventable sicknesses? How much productivity is lost by simply being too overweight, out-of-shape, and tired to give a full day’s work? And how much do we spend on diabetes meds, high blood pressure meds, etc. etc.? The list goes on.
Think about the big picture the next time you hear the excuse, “I can’t afford to eat healthy.” Then respond, “How can you afford not to!?!?”
Need a coach?
My email: coachwayne@teamripped.com
IG: @wayne_wyatt
