Healthy Meals On a Budget For Shared Living

Looking to cut back on how much you spend on food without compromising health? Find our hacks for eating healthy on a budget and great meals to share.

How To Make Healthy Meals On a Budget

Most of us are trying to cut back on how much we are spending on food, whether you're a young professional or student, eating healthy doesn’t have to break the bank if you're careful.

With some small changes to your lifestyle and keeping to a budget, it’s possible to make healthy meals on a budget, even if you're co-living.

We’ll break down exactly how to eat healthier, some shared meal ideas, how to take your healthy lifestyle out of the kitchen, and how co-living can support you below.

Is It Possible To Eat Healthy Meals On a Budget?

Many people associate healthy food with a high cost, while UPFs like chocolate bars and crisps are often convenient and tend to be more expensive. There are healthier foods that you can switch to that don’t break the bank, like canned tuna and frozen veggies.

If you're living with roommates, you can take advantage by splitting the grocery cost and cooking healthier meals together, taking turns cooking dinner, or helping each other with meal prep on a Sunday, turning healthy eating into a fun activity.

Easy Hacks For Eating Healthy On a Budget

To eat healthy meals on a budget, we recommend trying to follow these hacks:

Make a Food Budget

After your rent, you’ll often find groceries are your biggest expense. Creating a food budget per week will help you stay on track and stop you from overspending. If you are co-living, you can all contribute to this budget.

Meal Prep

Cooking in batches can keep you on track and organised for when you are short on time, to avoid ordering takeaways. Block off a day in your calendar for meal prepping, and you can enjoy healthy meals on a budget.

Make Healthy Food Swaps

You can make easy swaps to your groceries to help you eat healthier. For example, you can get whole wheat bread instead of white bread, skim milk instead of whole milk, and no-sugar drinks instead of added-sugar drinks.

Use Frozen Veggies & Stick To Seasonal Produce

Frozen veggies have the same nutrients as fresh ones and a longer shelf life, making them more budget-friendly and great for cheap, healthy meals.

Go for seasonal fresh produce since this is also fresher and cheaper.

Buy In Bulk

Buying your carbohydrates in bulk often means fewer trips to the supermarket and better value. They store well, too, meaning they last for a long time without spoiling.

These could be carbs like rice, pasta, lentils, and beans.

Budget-Friendly Meals For Shared Living

If you're stuck on some ideas for cheap, healthy meals, then these meals below work great for people on a budget and for sharing with roommates:

• Stir-fry veggie rice

• Oven pan-baked chicken and rice

• Pasta with veggies and pesto

• Lentil stew

• Tacos.

Living a Healthy Lifestyle

Being healthy on a budget doesn’t just stop in the kitchen; it also means healthy habits in your lifestyle. Some things you can focus on are:

• Getting enough sleep

• Exercising

• Spending time with people who support you

• Drinking enough water

• Limiting screen time can help you take up other hobbies and create a calmer evening routine.

Tips For Saving Money When Grocery Shopping

• Don’t go shopping hungry - Going shopping on an empty stomach can cause you to buy more food.

• Don’t be scared of reduced prices - Reduced food often isn’t going bad and can save you money.

• Eat more veggies - Veggie meals like beans and lentils cost less than meat, and not only that, they are very healthy.

• Don’t buy brands - Branded and non-branded food is often the same; it’s just the brand and packaging that add to the price.

Find The Right Community For Healthy Co-Living

The environment you live in makes all the difference when it comes to a healthy lifestyle.

At Alcove, we support healthy co-living, giving our tenants independence balanced with a community of roommates that match their style of living. Even shared kitchens encourage joint roommate cooking.

Find the right roommates for a healthier lifestyle on Alcove today and allow shared living to support your goals.