The Poor Man's Diet

[Jack Flak]

I pretty much lived on Proat meal for a while. Oal meal with Protean powder. It was sometimes pretty good, sometimes disgusting. It tended to cake up in the Microwave. I was trying to build muscle. It seemed like a fast easy way to get carbs and protean.

LOL was it called proteanmix?

 

[Wild horses]

YAY this stuff used to cake up as well!! That's what I loved about it... I even amde it for a friend when he came over for dinner hahaha!! (He knew I was crazy before he came so all was good) Yea i loved the texture... fabulous stuff!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Desperado44]

Its been mostly suggested, but I will tell you what I do:

Eggs
Whey Protein
Fruit (bananas, strawberries)
Frozen veggies
Tuna (cheap in can/water)
Chicken
100% whole wheat bagels

Multi-vitamin

 

[LostInNerSpace]

LOL was it called proteanmix?

What was some variant of a whey protean mix, but not actually called proteanmix.

 

[LostInNerSpace]

Its been mostly suggested, but I will tell you

Tuna (cheap in can/water)

Complete with mercury dioxide, more poisonous than mercury alone.

 

[uberrogo]

Grow a garden and make everything from scratch. Maybe then you wont have time to eat!

 

[Shadow]

I personally find the key to eating well on the cheap is to plan what you eat in advance, like just before you do your weekly shop. That way you don't waste food and you can make sure your meals are nutritious.

I consider myself to have a good balanced diet (I've always been slim) and I make sure I cook every evening.
My lunch - bowl of soup, yoghurt, piece of fruit, bread roll

For dinner you just need a staple, like potatoes/rice/pasta, a meat or fish (if you plan your meals you can share this between a couple of them), sauce (best made of a few fried bits of veg plus salt/pepper/spices and a stock, but just any old jar of sauce adds variety). The most expensive thing is the meat or fish, but I can't actually go a day without eating meat so I end up forking out. It's worth it for nutrition, in my opinion, but I suppose if you're veggie there must be alternatives.

This probably all sounds regimented, but honestly it's never been an issue for me and I never waste food or buy something I'll never touch. I also allow myself the odd snacks like cakes and crisps with dip, but that costs extra so I didn't include it above.

 

[Tiltyred]

Oatmeal
Bean dishes -- buy dried beans rather than canned and cook them yourself
brown rice
corn bread
eggs
grits
Chicken pieces and stew beef
bag oranges and apples -- eat one of each per day
fresh vegetables if you will eat them; if not, get frozen

Definitely plan your meals, and if you can, cook just once or twice a week, enough for the next few days, so you always have something nutritious on hand to eat. That way you're not tempted to spend money on junk.

Good luck!

 

[Blackmail!]

If you have an ethnic grociery store nearby you can buy spices a lot cheaper there than you can at a conventional grociery store- and spices are what makes a food interesting and delicious a lot of time

Well... I guess a "French" grocery in the US wouldn't be especially cheap... For instance, where would you find Duck and real cheese?

 

[matmos]

Well... I guess a "French" grocery in the US wouldn't be especially cheap... For instance, where would you find Duck and real cheese?

It's a constant amazement to me how casually brilliant the French are with food. Price/quality-wise it's considerably cheaper to eat out there. And it's a pleasure. In the UK the customer is treated as an unnecessary fixture.

If you were to create a diet/menu of HEALTHY, GOOD tasting food that doesn't cost an arm and a leg... what would it include?

Grouse over!

Tried the benefits of lentil soup? My quick lentil soup fits the bill - used to live off it when I was a student. But it kept getting eaten by my housechums. Little bastards. (To be fair I did get a free beer swapsy).

Method

Grate an onion and a carrot (and some celery, if it's lying around); fry in vegetable oil for three minutes.

Throw in a pint of water (add a veg stock cube if there's one lying around; if not don't worry) and bring to the boil.

Add 5 tablespoons worth of red lentils (the ones you only have to boil for 40 min); or alternatively yellow lentils (which only take about 20 minutes). Boil rapidly for 10 minutes and simmer for the remainder. Add paprika for a taste of Hungary, or chili for a bad cold.

Mangiare with a crusty baguette (5 minutes in the oven).

It's never lasted long enough to freeze but keeps in the fridge for 3 or 4 days. Maybe longer.

Cost-wise it I reckon under a dollar for a litre/two pints.

 

[Kangirl]

The Fat Kids thread made me think of this again, but isn't eating healthier cheaper than eating junk? Junk is expensive (especially delicious Pop Tarts)! Vegetables are cheap! And eggs and pb are good sources of cheap protein, as are certain cuts of beef/pork and chicken. My grocery bill always seems to be much smaller when I get a tons of veg than when I load up on ice cream and bacon.

 

[FDG]

I like simple food for the most part (whether cheap or not), and I've come up with a solution & bought the stuff, but I haven't tried it yet.

Flour tortillas + a dash of olive oil
sliced salami
romaine lettuce
sliced swiss cheese

layered flat and rolled up tightly. I hope it's tasty.

But that's not healthy olive oil + salami + swiss cheese

Anyway, I suggest the OP to come to Italy for a while to learn

 

[Uytuun]

Sure it is. It's a balanced and tasty meal.

Completely fat free does not equal healthy.

Or were you referring to the flavour combination?

 

[FDG]

Sure it is. It's a balanced and tasty meal.

Completely fat free does not equal healthy.

Or were you referring to the flavour combination?

It's not balanced, with salami and cheese. Different types of proteins, different types of fats (I am not against fats in general, anyway), quite hard to digest due to the combination of foods. The only balanced part regards the nutrient ratio, but that's only part of the picture.

I think that the flavor combo is quite good, actually.

 

[lane777]

Avoid dairy products. Not only are they expensive, but you're body with thank you for cutting them out (substitute: spinach, black beans, navy beans and almonds for sources of calcium). I don't touch dairy and I'm not deficient in calcium so no worries.

Buy Millet (you will find it only in health food stores); Many nutritionists believe it's the one grain that can actually sustain life. Brown rice is also very nutritious and has the added benefit in being high in protein.

Stick to eggs, poultry and fish.

Try to follow the Okinawa diet. These people live past 100 on average, without any healthy issues (still jogging, riding bikes, active sex life... yes even at 100 etc.). The average citizen of Okinawa consumes at least seven servings of vegetables daily, and an equal number of grains. Two to four servings of fruit, and fish (three times weekly). Vegetables, grains, and fruits make up 72% of the diet by weight. Soy and seaweed provide another 14%. Meat, poultry, and eggs account for just 3% of the diet, fish about 11%. The Okinawa people, like the Japanese, do not eat much dairy. So there is an emphasis on dark green vegetables which are rich in calcium. Only nix the soy, since most of our soy in North America is highly processed.

Hope that was helpful.

 

[mlittrell]

Avoid dairy products. Not only are they expensive, but you're body with thank you for cutting them out (substitute: spinach, black beans, navy beans and almonds for sources of calcium). I don't touch dairy and I'm not deficient in calcium so no worries.

Buy Millet (you will find it only in health food stores); Many nutritionists believe it's the one grain that can actually sustain life. Brown rice is also very nutritious and has the added benefit in being high in protein.

Stick to eggs, poultry and fish.

Try to follow the Okinawa diet. These people live past 100 on average, without any healthy issues (still jogging, riding bikes, active sex life... yes even at 100 etc.). The average citizen of Okinawa consumes at least seven servings of vegetables daily, and an equal number of grains. Two to four servings of fruit, and fish (three times weekly). Vegetables, grains, and fruits make up 72% of the diet by weight. Soy and seaweed provide another 14%. Meat, poultry, and eggs account for just 3% of the diet, fish about 11%. The Okinawa people, like the Japanese, do not eat much dairy. So there is an emphasis on dark green vegetables which are rich in calcium. Only nix the soy, since most of our soy in North America is highly processed.

Hope that was helpful.

well said... add quinoa to that list

 

[Tiltyred]

I really like quinoa in cold bean salads, instead of rice; for example:

1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1 1/3 cup water

1/2 mango chopped fine
3/4 cup canned black beans - rinsed and drained
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves (pinch leaves off stems)

Dressing
Mix together
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt and black pepper to taste
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Cook the quinoa and let it cool, add the rest of the ingredients, toss with dressing.

Also instead of bulgar wheat in tabbouleh:
* 1 cup quinoa
* 1 2/3 cups boiling water

* 1/3 cup olive oil
* 1/3 cup lemon juice

* 1 cup chopped green onions
* 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
* 3 tomatoes, chopped
* 1 cucumber - peeled, seeded and chopped
* 1 teaspoon salt
* ground black pepper to taste

 

[juggernaut]

Oatmeal has been my standard breakfast choice for about fifteen years...mmm mmm good.

Also lean cuts of beef are usually really reasonable:
-Eye of the round
-Loin cuts
-Flank steaks
If you find them tough, look for a healthy marinade.

Yams make a great side if you're not a rice fan (I'm not). Half of one is plenty.

Apples are great around in here too, but I'd look for whatever your local fruit is (it's usually cheaper and it's a great alternative to the sugary garbage that most folk waste money on)

When my weight starts to move in the wrong direction, the above foods will get me back to where I'm happy.

 

[lane777]

well said... add quinoa to that list

Yeah, that's another really nutritious. Quinoa is one of the few grains to be alkaline. I failed to mention it because the taste of it makes me gag lol kind of reminds me of playdo. Yes I know what playdo tastes like. I had it once when I was a kid, so don't judge.

 

[mlittrell]

Yeah, that's another really nutritious. Quinoa is one of the few grains to be alkaline. I failed to mention it because the taste of it makes me gag lol kind of reminds me of playdo. Yes I know what playdo tastes like. I had it once when I was a kid, so don't judge.

hey i lived on playdo and fig newtons when i was a kid so its cool

the secret to quinoa is you add it to rice, ya the flavor is ehh