I don't think it's a fair comparison to compare high-carb processed food/eating out to homecooked low-carb.

Homecooked is cheaper, period. And frankly, there is *nothing* as cheap for food as bread you make yourself from wheat berries you grind yourself. I could make freshly-ground, whole grain bread for pennies a loaf - way better than anything one can buy in the store.

Low-carb does cost more. I have a freezer and buy meat in bulk. I garden and raise most of my veggies, canning, freezing and dehydrating for off-season use. I used to raise chickens for meat and eggs, but life doesn't allow that right now. I have a huge pantry and buy almost everything only when it's on sale in case lots. Still, meat and cheese cost more than rice and beans - sales or not. Rice and beans are dead cheap food.

There is no low-carb meal I can make that as cheaply as pancakes made from freshly-ground wheat berries. Even with real maple syrup, I could feed 10 folks for under a couple bucks until they were stuffed.

There's few foods as cheap as a big pot of dried beans with a skillet of cornbread, or a pot of beans served over brown rice.

And there's *nothing* as cheap as a ten pound bag of potatoes for feeding people when you're broke - you can get a ten pound bag for less than a large order of fries at McD's.

I am currently spending around $500-600/month for 2 people, having switched us to all organic products and pasture-raised meat and dairy. Prior to that switch, I could do it for $300-400. But if potatoes, wheat berries, brown rice and beans were staples, I could easily feed us for $100-200/month - no problem.

Course, the downside is we'd be eating $100-200 worth of nutrition per month - and the health costs of that can be astronomical. Price a heart bypass sometime... or monthly costs of insulin, syringes and testing strips. Even the most expensive food is darned cheap compared to the cost of poor nutrition.

I would have to agree with you that starting out you do spend more money. I found that it was because in the first couple months you are buying and trying new things. I work for a Grocery Outlet and that has helped me so much. You should see if there is one near you; look on www.groceryoutlet.com. I really can afford different cheeses and meats. Good Luck!

There are some ways to save money eating LC that don't require huge effort. Here in the northern hemisphere, it's late winter. That's a perfect time to start seeds in your house that you can later transplant outdoors (or move to pots in a sunny window). Seeds are cheaper than small plants and exponentially cheaper than fresh veggies, though you'll spend money on potting soil.

We have a small city yard that is "in progress" -- we have a lot of landscaping to do and a full garden is not in our plans, ever. But, we'll grow tomatoes hanging upside down on our front porch instead of baskets of flowers. Pots of herb plants fill shelves in my dining room window year-round. We're replacing some ugly old shrubs with blueberry and raspberry bushes. A small plot next to the garage will supply green beans, zucchini, and I'm hoping for cauliflower and salad greens as well.

I feed a family of 3, including a ravenous teenaged boy, for under $100/week. I'm no domestic goddess: I buy meat in bulk when it's on sale and stash it in our basement chest freezer (best investment ever). Every Sunday I clip and sort coupons from the paper -- mostly for paper goods and drugstore stuff, since coupons tend to be for packaged/prepared foods -- check what's on sale, create a menu plan for the week, make out my shopping list, and I'm done. That might take an hour. LC cookbooks from Dana Carpender have been lifesavers (the slow cooker and 15 minute meal ones are great) when I don't have the brain power to come up with a creative meal plan on my own.

Another advantage to that routine is that I never enter the kitchen in the afternoon and yank my hair out in frustration, trying to come up with an idea for dinner. My menu for the week is done. I can be sure that I'm varying protein sources, buy only as many carby foods as my family will eat, and all it takes is a glance at the list the night before to know what to pull out of the freezer to defrost.

Other little money savers: my husband and I eat no more than one restaurant meal each week (and we usually use a coupon or the Entertainment Book), I pack my kid a lunch for school every day, we drink a lot of water, and the only "new" products I've started buying since eating LC are coconut oil, stevia, and those insanely delicious Chocoperfection bars.

I don't know how on-topic this is, but does anybody know any desktop/web/pocket-pc sites or applications that help with grocery tracking?

Things like what foods you bought, how much they cost, where you got them, etc? Giving you breakdowns on where your grocery money is going, etc?

I mean, this could be useful in seeing where your grocery money is going, where usually gives you the cheapest products, etc.

It costs much the same for me. I've never bought much packet stuff so I'm just exchanging one perceived health food for another. It's great to have your own vege garden though, even if you spend the same amount at the end of the day on composts and mulch and all that, the convenience is hard to beat plus fresh garden veges are so superior. I'd have chooks, too, if it weren't for the snakes: we do get through and awful lot of eggs low-carbing.

In my area I've noticed a lot of price hikes in packaged foods, "junk" and processed stuff seems really high now. But meat, eggs, and cheese prices seem stable and there are often sales. So maybe low-carb really is a more economical option now. I also eat much smaller meals than I used to. It took a while to find my preferred foods and get organized, but now my grocery bills are about 50% less than I used to spend before LC.

Bump! Very interesting thread.

For me, low-carbing is still VERY expensive, almost double what I used to spend on groceries. I've been at it only a month, though, so I'm glad to see long-timers say that it settles down.

I don't buy any low-carb products like Atkins stuff, the substitutions... I'd rather get used to what's actually good for me now. I was vegetarian until this, so I still don't buy red meat or pork, but I do use fish and poultry now.

Know what's really expensive, though? Organic dairy. I may end up buying less dairy. Organic veggies too, and fresh veggies. I'm buying more veggies and more dairy now - used to eat lots of whole grains.

It's just about a complete restocking for me, and I've given away lots of food. Yes, it's worth it for my health. The food? The jury's still out, except for my new love, butter.

Meg

interesting topic all right!

heres my experience...
I felt really bad about buying frozen chicken pieces and chops that Im eating for lunch and DH isnt getting any (as hes at work), so i did a rough calculation last night.
Now that im not buying any of the gluten free bread, snacks, sauces, cereals and cookies (im a coeliac) that I used to, its still not as much as Im now spending on the extra meat, cheese and eggs.
And the food that the family likes; bread, chips, ice cream and processed meats like crumbed chicken is lasting MUCH longer now that im not eating them. So all in all, I dont think theres been much of a difference at all.
And I am very lucky in that DH works his parents farm so we occassionally get free lamb and beef, which of course helps enormously. I feel bad for those who are finding it expensive, because it can be. maybe the trick is to only buy whole foods and not bother with any of the LC substitutes?

It is often times more expensive to be thin when you add it all up.

Healthier food is more expensive.
Gym equipment and memberships are pricy.
You will probably spend more on clothes, hair, nails, shoes, vacations, new hobbies, dating etc.

Hopefully the cost is offset by some other expenses like fast food, medical bills, therapists for depression :) etc


I choose to pay more to be thin and enjoy life.
It always makes sense to make the food as cost effective as possible though....by shopping sales etc

Yes I agree with the above posters: it is more expensive to eat a meat-based diet than a grain and potato-based diet, but dont' fall into temptation to go back to your old ways onthe SAD: it has hidden expenses. Being overweight and ill will always be more expensive than being thin and healthy.

Another bonus; once you hit goal you can buy good maintenance clothes in your new size and wear them for years if you're careful. On my old SAD I was always gaining weight and had to constantly buy new clothes.

There are also myriad little ways I've saved money since going LC. Surprisingly one of those ways is that I spend less gas money because I go out to eat less. I only have to make 2 or 3 grocery trips per week for all our meals, but if you go out to eat every night, that's a lot more mileage on the vehicle. Another way is that I spend less time snacking between meals so I get more done. I am generally a much more efficient person, and we have all heard that time is money, no?

bottom line: the SAD is a false economy. Please dont' go back to it thinking that you'll save money, you won't.

I agree the dairy is the worst of it. Organic cream, organic half-and-half, raw cheeses, Greek yogurt, organic cottage cheese, imported butter made with raw cream, etc.

I need a cow. ;)

I just have to bypass organic. I am thinking that the fat will kill me faster than the pesticides. ;)

I don't see much of an increase at all in the budget. I am the only one that is doing lc in the family, but save a lot. I used to buy a coffee (more like flavored coffee syrup with a million grams of sugar and flavoring added) every morning, a muffin, etc. on the way to work. I no longer do that and save at least $15 a week. Then there were all the snacks and thing I would buy for my binges.

I know that you hear many things in readings and on news that if it usually people with a lower budget that has a more carb based diet. I rememer eating spag. several times a week or mac n cheese as a kid. As a college student it was ramen noodles.

I cook everything at home, don't buy convience foods so I can control what goes in it. I will buy a roast when it is on sale and cook it for a meal. Another day that week I will shred the leftovers and make a filling for taco salad..do the same with whole chickens. I usually buy two or three at a time when they are on sale and will make sure that I get them large enough so there will be left overs. I have an extremly low budget for food and look for whatever I can. I love chicken breast, only can get it when its on sale cheap and stock up when it is. I also buy things that are marked down, sell by date is a few days a way.
I also eat a great deal of tuna fish-canned. I usually dump it on a bed of salad. I can understand what it means not to have extra money for an increase in groceries. Up until I got married in Sept I often at tuna for days in a row..$50 worth of groceries to last a month for myself and my two kids.

I know organic dairy is expensive but I still think it's often worth it because chemicals and additives are more likely in nonorganic diary, and the effects may disrupt your system and affect weight loss in the long run. A lot of shredded cheese blends for example have potato starch added. If you can't afford organic dairy, try to find the local brands of cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, etc.; they're more likely to have fewer additives or chemicals. I usually buy organic butter and cream, local or small-dairy cheeses.

On my recent trip to the large supermarket I visit about once a month, I was in the natural foods aisle to buy stevia, mayo, and organic/SF tomato sauce. I noticed that prices on a lot of the packaged whole foods stuff I used to buy (crackers, pasta, etc.) are really high now.

The biggest cost for me is fresh veggies. In this area one red pepper is $3.49, often I just buy mushrooms and greens because they're the most reasonably priced. I save so much at the farmers market in season, it's really worth going every week and getting to know the farmers (if you don't have your own garden).