Hi

Don’t Shop Hungry

You’ve heard this a million times before, and it’s just common sense, right? Even so, people still do it. Maybe it is because the only time you have available to get your grocery shopping is at six in the evening after work, but it really does make you spend more. If you have to do your shopping at a time when you’re likely to be hungry, try to
have a snack or something before going. It doesn’t have to be much, but just taking the edge off can help keep your impulse buying under control once inside the store.

Plan Your Meals Ahead of Time

One of the worst things you can do is head into the store without any sort of game plan. You will walk aimlessly up and down the aisles trying to put meals together in your head and grab whatever you come across that could work.
This usually results in buying items you don’t need, or buying too much of something that ends up going to waste.
Take a few minutes the night before heading to the store and plan out what you’ll need for the week. If you go into the shopping trip knowing what you’ll be making, it will help keep you from making the extra purchases that aren’t needed. When you make your list, you then have to stick to it.

Scout Deals Before Hitting the Store

Most grocery chains will include their weekly ad in the newspaper, and some are featuring their ads right online. If you take a few minutes to find the good sales before reaching the store, you can use this information to help you create your shopping list and keep costs down.

Try Different Cuts of Meat

Keep in mind that the more refined and convenient the cut of meat or poultry, typically the more it costs. For example, take the common chicken. When you’re at the store, compare the price of boneless and skinless breasts and thighs with the pieces on the bone and with skin. You may be shocked to see that buying boneless may easily cost
double or more per pound. Buy with the bone, and spend 5 minutes removing it yourself at home, or better yet, try some new recipes with the bone-in varieties. Using cheaper cuts of meat can still create a tasty and healthy meal.

Don’t be Afraid of Store Brands

A lot of people are hesitant to swap out their favorite name brand item for a store brand, but a lot of store brand products are just as good, and cost less. I’ll be the first to admit there are some things I wouldn’t swap, but for a lot of staples, you won’t even notice a difference.

Thanks