The Grocery Store Challenge:
Doesn’t everyone love a challenge? A goal to set yourself, such as our 4-week challenge, which opens your mind to doing something differently. In this post, we dare YOU to challenge the dreaded grocery store trip. It is a necessity (a family’s got to eat!) but somehow you always come back a little defeated because much like ‘the house’ in Las Vegas, the grocery store always wins. Here’s an approach to taking back the game.
Phase 1: Do your regular shopping, buy everything you usually buy and take note of how much time you spend there. Save the receipt.
Phase 2: Following your shopping trip, fill in the following chart:
|
SECTION |
TOTAL AMOUNT SPENT (BEFORE TAX) |
|
Produce |
|
|
Bakery |
|
|
Meat Shop |
|
|
Dairy |
|
|
Boxed goods |
|
Once filled, take a look at your results. If the “boxed goods” amount is the highest, you are a part of the majority of shoppers who spend most of their money in the middle of the store. Don’t worry, you are not alone.
Phase 3: The reason why most people’s grocery bill adds up is because they are 
purchasing mostly from the middle of the store and not sticking to their “necessities list”. Who doesn’t get distracted by the bright labels of chemically-enhanced deliciousness? But that’s what’s diminishing our budget. For your health and your wallet, stick to the outside parameters of the grocery store; when you become conscious of this, you will realize you’re only buying the food that is good for you: fresh produce, proteins, dairy and wheat.
Create a new shopping list with this in mind. Buy only specific things from the middle of the store that fulfill a certain purpose, for example, a snack for your child’s week at school. More often than not, we buy too many packaged foods that sit in our pantries or freezers and are bad for us and our children.
Phase 4: Time to head back to the playing field with your new mentality. Being mindful of the results of your previous shopping trip, take a stab at your new list. Don’t forget to be aware of the time spent at the grocery store.
Fill in your chart once more. Notice a difference in your time and grand total? This approach to shopping will change your experience and ensure that you’re the boss in the grocery shop!
Will you be taking the grocery store challenge?
Images: ElizabethBackman.com, SmartFog.com, Sodahead.com