Trimming the Fat and Stuffing My Wallet

In an earlier post, I discussed the fact that I gained a lot of weight recently. Now, I am working to shed the extra pounds. I'm a city girl, and by that I mean I don't really cook, I eat out regularly and I buy convenience foods. I am willing to sacrifice some of that, but I don't like to feel like I'm being tortured. Here are my goals by meal, and a few tips I learned along the way:

• Breakfast: Milking the free Dairy. I get free soy milk at work, so I eat cereal at work instead of using the office cafeteria. I buy cereal from the RiteAid and CVS drugstores (which actually costs less than my local grocery store). My total monthly savings is about $15-20.

• Lunch: Even as a kid, I hated bringing my lunch, so this is very hard. I usually buy my food from the company cafeteria which is subsidized by my employer. It usually costs me about $5 for very filling meal. (Yes, that's a cheap lunch in Manhattan.) I try to bring lunch about once or twice a week (that's a stretch). Otherwise, I eat some snacks that I've brought from home, so I eat less food for lunch.

• Snacks: I have stock up on apples, grapes and peanuts, all of which I like and are pretty good healthy snacks. Other times, I buy the $.25 bag of chips at my local deli. I try not to buy the larger bags because I never "save" them for later, as is always my intention. It doesn't work for me. I've tried.

• Dinner: I check out recipes online and try to experiment from time to time. I make it a point to try recipes for dishes that I already like, such as Pad Thai or Salmon Teryaki because I'm more inclined to actually cook them. Some of the more successful meals turn into lunch the next day.

Here are some general grocery shopping tips that have been helpful to me:

• Shop the Sales. I usually check the sales online before going to the store, so I know which grocery store to shop at that week. I don't think its a good idea running all over town trying to save a dollar here and a dollar there, and if I had a car and had to pay for gas or maintenance, I don't think it'd be worth it! If it works for you, go for it.

• Buy in bulk. I buy large quantities of products like ketchup or cereal that I use regularly on sale, especially those that have expiration dates far off in the future. I also save money by not waiting until I need it at whatever the going price is at that moment in time. This may not be the best idea for perishable foods, see the post below.

• Work that freezer. In my experience, I've learned some interesting things about freezing foods. Most importantly, sour cream doesn't freeze well. Well . . . it freezes just fine, but when it's thawed out, it's a disaster. (Don't laugh, but I just figured this out a few months ago.) Click here for tips on freezing food, so you don't have to learn the hard way, like I did.

• Use Coupons. I don't usually buy a print edition of the newspaper, but when I do, I look for coupons on products I already buy or am willing to try. Even if its a good deal, If I end up letting the product expire, it's a waste all around. There are also tons of online resources for printable coupons.

• Club Cards. I always use the club cards from each store. If you're reluctant to give your personal information, then don't. I personally don't want the stores tracking my buying habits, so I make up a name and a fake address, so it doesn't go to someone's real house.

Here are some grocery shopping (and weight reducing) tactics that usually backfire for me:

• Skipping meals, because then I get hungrier and buy more food later.

• Buying large quantities of junk food in an effort to save money. This usually fails because I just eat more junk sooner.

• Buying large quantities of things that I don't usually use just because they're on sale. Hey, if I don't like the taste of Boca Burger's chicken-like patties (which I don't), I'm not going to like them any more just because they're 15% off.

BankRate suggests other ways to save money on groceries. Please feel free to post your own ideas for saving money on your food bill.