PORTLAND, Maine — Forbes was one of many polls to come out at the start of the year showing that financial and physical health topped resolution lists in 2024. If you're among those hoping to make change, there is guidance out there – for free.
Dietitians from Hannaford are hosting webinars this month on the topic of healthy eating on a budget. But if you miss them, they're also available to meet in-store or online when you're ready to start making healthy food changes. It starts with knowing what your budget is, according to Brenda Pollock with Evergreen Credit Union.
"Budgeting, reassessing at the first of the year is the best thing you can do for yourself," Pollock said.
It's not a bad idea to reassess that budget every once in a while. To begin, she recommends tracking absolutely everything you're spending money on each month, which will start to show you where you might be able to cut expenses. She says after the pandemic, most people never reassessed their budget. Suddenly, going out to eat costs more, groceries cost more, life changed but spending habits didn't.
"American credit card bills, our debt has gone over $1 trillion, and that’s because most Americans use credit cards as their emergency fund," Pollock said.
She also said to start simple.
"A lot of people like to do the 50-20-30 budget. They commit 50% of their income to the necessities like rent, food, utilities. They’ll take 20% to pay off their financial obligations. And they’ll take 30% for their wants like shopping or travel or dining out," she explained.
That budget needs to include a savings plan, as Pollock said: Pay yourself first. It should also include the things that change regularly, like groceries. That brings us to the next resolution: eating healthier.
Hannaford dietitian April Byron said you can make weekly meal plans using the grocery store flyer. Shop the deals while shopping for your health.
"Set your goals on, 'OK, I wanna make sure I’m eating one more vegetable a day.' Put that in your meal plan, make your grocery list, and then stick to the grocery list," Byron said.
She recommends using the store’s Guiding Stars typically found near the price tags – one star for healthy, two for healthier, three for healthiest – and trying to have at least five-six stars per meal.
As for reading the nutrition facts, she said to look for sodium intake, added sugars, and saturated fats, try to keep those low.
"Look to add things that have protein, healthy fats like your mono and saturated fats or omega-3 fatty acids, and fiber. Fiber is something we tend to not think about, but that’s a healthy thing to add to our diet," she explained.
Byron encourages people to keep perishables front and center in the fridge or on the counter and, frankly, to keep it simple. She recommended buying the frozen vegetables or the pre-made salad mix if that makes you more likely to eat them. And search community pages for recipe ideas.
Here are a few locally run options:
"I can make some rice and reheat some leftover vegetables, cook some chicken or reheat some leftover meat from the night before, some beans maybe, and everybody gets to decide what they have in their food and I’m not spending a ton of time cooking," Byron said.