Could you survive on $35 for your entire food budget for one week?
That’s what Anytime Fitness has asked of me and 9 fellow bloggers!
Being a part of the FitFluential network of ambassadors has been an amazing experience. I have been able to network with many people in the health and wellness field, go to Fitness and Health Bloggers Conference last month, and now I have been chosen for the Survive on 35 Challenge.
Anytime Fitness has asked us to do what many do on our government assistance programs: eat for $35 a week per person. Chuck Runyon and Dave Mortensen, founders of Anytime Fitness, found themselves on this exact budget when they were on the show “Secret Millionaire”
Not only were the founders determined to make the money work, the were also determined to eat HEALTHY on $35
So, for this challenge, I’ll be striving to make the $35 budget work to make healthy and delicious meals. I am already used to being on a budget, so I’m hoping that my dollar stretching skills will help 
My first step was to search the cupboards…what do I already have? I usually don’t buy everything for one week in a trip. I use a lot of what is already in my pantry and supplement with fresh. This week will not be any different.
Raisins, beans, canned tomato products, oats, and peanut butter are usually staples in my pantry. The prices will be included in the final count, but I didn’t have to shop for them this week. Score.
I didn’t want to sacrifice some of my healthy favorites, so I bought just 3 items to add to the food arsenal for the week to hopefully make chicken salad, green smoothies, and a beautiful steak dinner for less.
Just $6 up front for now.
Tonight, I sat down with my budget conscious dinner and did the math.
How much did my days worth of food really cost?
I recreated the meatball sub. Let’s face it, if you like meat, the meat ball sub at Subway stares you in the face. But, it is definitely not the healthiest option. Using my Mom’s meatballs, my Mom’s sauce, and whole wheat pita pockets, I broiled this bad boy into a delicious and nutritious meal. Oh, and of course, don’t forget the greens.
So instead of pay $5 for a foot long sub, how much did the sandwich and side salad equate to?
- $0.40 for 1 meatball
- $0.75 for the pita pocket
- $0.15 for the sauce
total of $1.30
for the salad?
- $0.60 for the romaine
- $0.21 for the dressing
- $0.22 for the croutons
total of $1.03
Dinner totals was: $2.11 which totally beats McDonalds.
If anyone uses the excuse that eating at McDonalds is cheaper than eating healthy, I might have to kick their butt!
Here’s how breakfast and lunch went:
Breakfast was overnight oats:
- $0.28 for the almond milk
- $0.09 for the oats (SUPER CHEAP!)
- $0.15 for peanut butter
- $0.20 for a banana
$0.92 for breakfast
Lunch was a grilled chicken sandwich:
- $0.54 for the chicken (chicken thighs)
- $0.10 for the mustard
- $0.21 for the bread
- $0.30 for a side of cantaloupe (it’s in season)
$1.15 for lunch
Total for the day: $4.20
Not too bad! I’ll keep you up to date on the how the challenge goes. Check out the FitFluential blog for the other bloggers who are trying to Survive on 35 as well.
If you would like more information on this, follow along on Twitter (@irunlikeagurl) with the hashtag #surviveon35 and on Instagram @eatontherun.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
It sounds like you got some good stuff in there with the tight budget. It’ll be interesting to see how the rest of your week goes.
I think being a single girl we all know how to survive on a budget, but this is a pretty extreme budget. Usually I budget myself for $50 – $60 per week max.
Looking at what you’ve got, one way I save money is I buy dried beans. You can either cook what you need or cook the entire bag and freeze for later.
You are doing great so far!
I have dried beans and for some reason every time I go to make them I realize how long it takes to get them ready…it’s no excuse, but I do “eat on the run”
thanks for the idea. I really should put it to use during this challenge!
This project is awesome in so many ways. I want to try and do something like this on my own just to see if I could do it. My hubby is always sneaking in fast food and it drives me nuts to see him wasting the $$$ and eating unhealthy. I would like to keep him around for a while.