eat clean on a tight budget?

Hey I am looking to change up my diet for awhile. I want to cut out processed food, switch to organic grass fed meats, and some organic vegetables and fruits. I currently need to eat 3500 calories to bulk. The only way I have been able to hit my macros on my budget is to make a large shake consisting of 4 cups milk, 3 scoops whey protein. two bananas and 3 table spoons natty peanut butter. This reassures that i hit my calories. I read about 100 stickies so If your going to direct me to that department please be specific. Im trying to influence my household to follow along , I just dont think I can afford it.. any help or direction would be greatly appreciated.

not hard man here is a solid article, Bodybuilding.com - World-Class Mass On $10 A Day 10$ a day,

You can probably get all the protein your body needs for around $6/day

inexpensive bananas could run you around another $1.50/day for two pounds.

this still means you have another 1,200 cals/day to go.

you will have to find inexpensive ways at the grocery store to fill that 1,200 calorie hole.

You can go to Costco and get large apples for $0.69/pound.

Carrots are very inexpensive, and have a surprising amount of carbs.

If I had only $10/day, I could do it and still eat whole foods and hit my macros.

You will lack dietary diversity, so therefore, don't forget your multi~!

Rice and potatoes are always an easy go to for cheap carbs.

if you are going grassfed then ya your expenses will be higher. But if you want good quality, then costco breast in bulk is good. But i use cheaper version breasts, we have stores (loblaws, iga) when breast goes on sale it becomes 8.80$/kg. That's the cheapest breast. Anyway eggs are always cheap if you find them on sale. So is cottage cheese. Also I recently calculated and saw powder milk is cheaper too but it has lots sugar. extra lean Ground pork and ground beef are always cheap and cheaper on sale..

Cheapest carbs/calories I found were spaghetti, then rice... stay away from bread, too expensive for lil calories. and for fruit read above post ^

he didn't say "eat cheap"

he said "eat clean on tight budget"

there is nothing clean about cheap spaghetti

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Originally Posted by EquilibriumZ

if you are going grassfed then ya your expenses will be higher. But if you want good quality, then costco breast in bulk is good. But i use cheaper version breasts, we have stores (loblaws, iga) when breast goes on sale it becomes 8.80$/kg. That's the cheapest breast. Anyway eggs are always cheap if you find them on sale. So is cottage cheese. Also I recently calculated and saw powder milk is cheaper too but it has lots sugar. extra lean Ground pork and ground beef are always cheap and cheaper on sale..

Cheapest carbs/calories I found were spaghetti, then rice... stay away from bread, too expensive for lil calories. and for fruit read above post ^

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Look for tuna on sale, like 2$ a can, roughly 35-40 grams of protein right there,

tuna in a can is significantly more expensive than canned chicken at Costco. I can get a can of chicken with 50grams of protein for a little over $1.50/can

on a gram per gram comparison, Tuna is more expensive than chicken

You can cook chicken breasts and freeze them, they become the same consistency as the canned chicken if cooked low and slow, and much better than coming from a can.

Big bags of chicken breast from Costco
Big Bags of Oatmeal
Big Bags of Rice
Whole Eggs
=
Protein
Carbs
Fats

yeah canned chicken isnt exactly under most bodybuilders diets. Tuna has been a staple for decades and it is not that expensive, Cheaper isnt always better,

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Originally Posted by Hard_Body

yeah canned chicken isnt exactly under most bodybuilders diets. Tuna has been a staple for decades and it is not that expensive, Cheaper isnt always better,

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in this particular case, more isn't better.

the chicken is a clean source of protein, with almost zero fat. the quality of the chicken is good.

you should try it before you dismiss it

lmfao op might not even have a costco membership i don't, bodybuilders just dont eat canned chicken is what im saying

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Originally Posted by Hard_Body

lmfao op might not even have a costco membership i don't, bodybuilders just dont eat canned chicken is what im saying

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that's a fair statement.

but why do you suppose that is?

.......it certainly is not because the tuna represent a better quality protein.

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Originally Posted by Hard_Body

lmfao op might not even have a costco membership i don't, bodybuilders just dont eat canned chicken is what im saying

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You know that I'm talking about frozen chicken breasts right? If you don't have a Costco membership, take your ass to Smiths or Walmart and buy it fresh, then put it in the freezer.

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Originally Posted by AllKindsOGains

You know that I'm talking about frozen chicken breasts right? If you don't have a Costco membership, take your ass to Smiths or Walmart and buy it fresh, then put it in the freezer.

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I know im talking about romans post and we got into a discussion about canned chicken here, Bodybuilders just cook chicken breast, canned has more preservatives i suppose.

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Originally Posted by AllKindsOGains

You know that I'm talking about frozen chicken breasts right? If you don't have a Costco membership, take your ass to Smiths or Walmart and buy it fresh, then put it in the freezer.

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I know im talking about romans post and we got into a discussion about canned chicken here, Bodybuilders just cook chicken breast, canned has more preservatives i suppose. and more processed

I have always ate lots of canned chicken. Actually from Costco to. The cans are nice and big, the chicken is good white chunk chicken. Sodium a bit high, but it does come from a can so.......

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Originally Posted by Hard_Body

I know im talking about romans post and we got into a discussion about canned chicken here, Bodybuilders just cook chicken breast, canned has more preservatives i suppose.

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Bake it and put it in the fridge. Best way to save time.

I bake 10-12lbs at a time and freeze them individually then take out a couple a day to thaw in the fridge.

Thanks for all the replies. I just picked up some organic ground beef, chicken, tuna, sweet potato, pasta, white rice, oatmeal bananas and eggs. That with my whey protein and I think i should be good

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Originally Posted by Ryan624

Thanks for all the replies. I just picked up some organic ground beef, chicken, tuna, sweet potato, pasta, white rice, oatmeal bananas and eggs. That with my whey protein and I think i should be good

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Yeah that should be about everything you need, looks good, at you going to be eating vegetables? Frozen ones are most convenient.

You should throw in some veggies for sure.

ok yeah Im going to have to definatley add some veggies. Do frozen vegetables have the same or similar healthy vitamins and minerals as non frozen. There much more affordable thats for sure. Do you recommend any particular few?

For frozen veggies, I generally stock up on spinach, turnip greens, green beans, and sometimes broccoli.... although I usually buy the fresh broccoli crowns. The yellow frozen squash is tolerable, but not as good as fresh.

Isnt the salt in the can a nono? Or would it just be up to the individual and their salt history?

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Originally Posted by Ryan624

ok yeah Im going to have to definatley add some veggies. Do frozen vegetables have the same or similar healthy vitamins and minerals as non frozen. There much more affordable thats for sure. Do you recommend any particular few?

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I really just add the greens to keep the plumbing in check....

I am pretty certain someone will have their panties in a bunch - but, oh well

We been buying out food stamps around our hood, srsly it saves me hundreds per month & now we eat fairly well. The amount people receive here in az is uncalled for, 800 or so a month for a family of 4.

This & buying quite a bit of our food from a place by our house that sells close to expired groceries - Greek yogurts for a quarter.

I do what I gotta do to get by. For over a year I lived off nothing but chicken & shakes.

Do what you gotta do, those shitbags will find someone to sell those things to who will probably not put them to as good a use as you are.

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Originally Posted by zempey

Do what you gotta do, those shitbags will find someone to sell those things to who will probably not put them to as good a use as you are.

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I just don't like knowing where my cash goes after it leaves my hands - Since one time I was the one getting it too

If you eating chicken you are living good lol. Weekly i go to the market and just buy 10 kilo of chicken breasts. for about 40 bucks. I would not know what to do without my fine feathered friend haha.

Carbs are just veggies, fruits, and rice every other day. Here veggies and fruits are somewhat cheap.

Fats come from almonds I eat (cheap here)

I cannot say 10 bucks would make it here.

No shame in the foodstamp game. Gov just uses it as a tool to buy votes. No reason why you should not benefit from it if they are too dumb to use it.

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Originally Posted by < >

I am pretty certain someone will have their panties in a bunch - but, oh well

We been buying out food stamps around our hood, srsly it saves me hundreds per month & now we eat fairly well. The amount people receive here in az is uncalled for, 800 or so a month for a family of 4.

This & buying quite a bit of our food from a place by our house that sells close to expired groceries - Greek yogurts for a quarter.

I do what I gotta do to get by. For over a year I lived off nothing but chicken & shakes.

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Yeah, if it wasn't for chicken - I think I'd die.

There's no other lean protein that comes even close. Next up would be powder

Shit, I just had read meat for the first time in a few months the other day.


I can't even buy people's FS that much. It's already a huge scam here where most people with money are the ones who buy them out.

Canned chicken is a good one. Easy to lugs round as well. Rice is always cheap. Potatoes are cheap as well. As far as meat goes I've found ground turkey is often cheaper than a lot of meats and tastes great in my opinion.

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Originally Posted by Ryan624

ok yeah Im going to have to definatley add some veggies. Do frozen vegetables have the same or similar healthy vitamins and minerals as non frozen. There much more affordable thats for sure. Do you recommend any particular few?

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Yes frozen vegetables are just as good as far as vitamins and minerals. They are sprayed with some preservatives to keep them fresh but that's about the only difference.

I like to mix in the frozen tilapia fillets from whole foods throughout the week. Those are responsibly raised in an indoor facility and run 2.99 for two pieces (30g prot). I would guess they'd be much cheaper for generic ones at walmart/etc. Tough to beat the chicken, though, i know