EatHarmony

By: Ty Stelting

They always say two heads are better than one... Well... I believe two stomachs are better than one. When you have another person on your side going through the tough battle of healthy and cheap eating, it is a smoother transition. My wife and I are together in this journey and she has already made it where I feel our meals are better than a pre-made fried processed salty french bread pizza-thingy you get for $2.99 at the corner store. We live in a world full of temptation and it is so easy to be able fall off the wagon and go get a box meal and not spend the extra time and effort on making something from scratch or fresh items.

Well trust me, when you make your own food and use the materials that are cheaper, it becomes a complete transformation in the way you  think about and approach every meal.

Kelsie and I have completely stopped buying small quantities of things we use on a regular basis. We began making things cheaper by buying things fresh. We don't buy things down the freezer aisle (other than the occasional pint of ice cream for indulgent purposes).

Life is so much easier with two because it can be such a daunting task to actually food prep and prepare meals, and you might be thinking those are synonymous but they definitely are not.

We buy tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, potatoes, fruits, and lettuce, all at one time and cut it up and store it for later use. We can add the vegetables to any dish, make fries, eat a salad, and still spend less than what you would spend on one big bag of frozen fries and a bag of salad. Food prep is the hardest because it would be nice to just set a whole pepper in a meal but it is very hard to do that so you must chop it up.

Now that you food is actually chopped up and stored in reusable tupper-ware, you can draw from it any time a meal you want calls for it. Say you want chicken breasts and corn-on-the cob, you can add sauteed onions and tomatoes to the top, or enjoy a nice salad. It is much healthier and cheaper than buying a lean cuisine or a Stauffer's frozen chicken dinner. After a week those fresh ingredients will taste better and make you feel better.

Another advantage of having a partner is that you guys can plan for the future and actually not run into this moment where you have no clue what you are going to have to eat and just go down to that corner store. You will always want to make the other person feel as if they shouldn't be disappointed in you so it holds you accountable. And if the meal is not something that you both don't normally enjoy but it was on sale, than you can suffer together or vice versa. Really enjoying a meal together can be powerful in making a better you, and you can instantly feel that. Tip: Set days in advance where you (and your partner) can indulge and enjoy a meal out, setting those days together will help you not cheat as much. Don't ever stop yourself from enjoying things you used to enjoy, just use in moderation; this can help stop you from having a binge.

The last and final thing is working out together. If you are lucky enough to be able to do the same workout as this person, you can actually coordinate meals and figure out if the plans will work or not. The pressure of finishing all the food you prepped can keep up the intake during exercise and make your taste buds accept it as better than that expensive pre-made stuff.

This other person can push you, help make change, help you feel good about what your doing, and make it a lot easier to become that healthier you. You will also do the same for them. My wife and I are figuring out that it can be easy to have an expensive healthy life style, but if you make all the right choices, wise buys, and stick to it, things can be cheap, easy, and better than anything you did before in a much healthier way.