Evolution Trail - Eating well for less

"Eating Healthy is so expensive".

I think we have all heard that saying and, on the surface, it would appear to be true. Health food products have soared in popularity, and price, over the past few years, making it feel like there is a somewhat two-tiered eating system.

When someone comes up with a "cheap-eating" challenge it is often very easy to simply default to the cheap and easy food such as ready meals and the like where expedience and cost take precedence over nutrition and balance

When, as above, a meal is costing less than £2 and is labelled as "healthy option" this is often where the discerning eye begins leaning in search of saving that little money, without realising that these meals, even the healthy options, are often loaded with salt, the most common preservative in pre-made food, associated commonly with risk of high blood pressure, and sugar, something the Western world already consumes far too much of as it is.

This is without taking into account other such options such as ready-made pizzas with enough fat in them to make anyone's arterial walls harden or everyone's favourite frozen breaded beige treats.

But here is the secret. These short-cuts are not actually THAT cheap compared to the real thing and they are certainly not as nutritious and varied. At £1.79 a meal, if I am going to keep my budget to £25 a week, I want to be spending that much on a great meal, not something in plastic.

So, while joining the £25 a week challenge for me was a no-brainer, it had to be with the intention of trying to make the food as healthy as possible. I am currently recovering from a serious injury suffered in mid-2020 which has led to me gaining some weight which I had shed years ago when first tackling my diabetes. This is a perfect opportunity to be back in the game eating the right things. There will be some repetition, that is to be expected. There will be batch cooking, prepping, planning. All things which the discerning supermarkets want you NOT to do.

The consumer experience is wholly designed to make you act on instinct, not through forethought. The sale is on NOW!! You can pay with but a single tap of your credit card! How can you turn down THESE prices? Well, let's see what happens with a little forethought, some research and a pressure cooker…because time's also a resource.

I'm pretty excited by this challenge overall and I can't wait to share what we come up with. Look out for coming posts!