{"id":3445,"date":"2018-05-31T15:34:32","date_gmt":"2018-05-31T14:34:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/copyright.lboro.ac.uk\/students\/?p=3445"},"modified":"2018-07-31T16:34:17","modified_gmt":"2018-07-31T15:34:17","slug":"eat-healthy-stay-wealthy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/students\/engineering\/eat-healthy-stay-wealthy\/","title":{"rendered":"Eat healthy, stay wealthy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Eating in university is difficult. Okay, fine, cooking is difficult. Okay, maybe the part where you\u2019re an average broke student, who doesn\u2019t want<\/em> to cook nor know how to<\/em> is difficult. Or maybe you simply don\u2019t have time to go to Tesco where you can afford vegetables and end up spiralling down the dark path of baked beans on toast.<\/p>\n

Sounds familiar? Multiple yearly reports highlight this issue, with the Student Living Index by Natwest<\/a>\u00a0reporting an average spending of \u00a378.10 on supermarket groceries per month. That\u2019s a rather substantial amount… (the engineer inside me screams for optimization!).<\/p>\n

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In addition, Save The Student<\/a>\u00a0report that 65% students surveyed say that their diet suffers. I am critical of the method of these studies, but undoubtedly many of us relate well to the issues outlined.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, Loughborough is a relatively cheap place to live and has many opportunities to cut down your spending and eat healthier!<\/p>\n

1. Farmer\u2019s markets every Thursday and Saturday<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Loughborough markets<\/a> are a SAVIOR. Not only is shopping there 12830581034x cheaper (I\u2019m looking at you, 6 avocados for 1, thank you), but it\u2019s also largely fresher, tastier and healthier food than that in the supermarket.<\/p>\n

True story: I fed some market strawberries to a friend in a depressive revision mood and they, as by magic, were brought back to reality\u2026 and proceeded to jump up and down with happiness, proclaiming the eaten strawberry to be the best strawberry they had ever eaten in their life! The cherry tomatoes had the same effect on myself. Ahhh, so good.<\/p>\n

2. Fruit & veg stall on campus every Monday<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Of course, it\u2019s can be a trek to town, especially in the rain, and so Kerry\u2019s Fruit & Veg stall<\/a> on campus is here to help! Hidden away just behind The Hub in Village Park, the stall is present every Monday from 10am to about 6pm, although the specific times vary throughout the year. I was incredibly impressed when the lovely saleswoman was persevering through the freezing February weather.<\/p>\n

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Pleasantly, you can pay by card with no minimum charge, and collect points with every purchase that can help save money in the long run. Kerry\u2019s is not as cheap as the market in town due to limited competition, but the groceries are still much tastier and healthier than your aforementioned toast.<\/p>\n

3. Cheaper supermarkets<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Yes, Loughborough actually boasts its own Aldi not too far from the student triangle and a Morrisons in the residential area north of University.<\/p>\n

These may be easier to get to by car or bike if you don\u2019t live in the area, but definitely stock significantly cheaper groceries and other household items. There is also an ASDA in Shepshed (~15min drive), but I barely dare mention it in fear of provoking a fight over one\u2019s favourite supermarket.<\/p>\n

4. Oriental and international shops<\/strong><\/h4>\n

There are multiple oriental, eastern-European and generally \u2018international\u2019 stores around Loughborough, where you can often find selected cheaper foods (such as my recent buy of sausages for a BBQ) or bulk quantities. I also recommend the \u201cWorld Foods\u201d aisles in the mainstream supermarkets, where you can acquire 5kg bags of rice or lentils for mere pennies in comparison to \u201cown brand\u201d purchases.<\/p>\n

5. Other tips on staying healthy on the cheap:<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Cook more yourself! Limit the amount of food waste, cook in bulk or for your housemates. We recently made delicious and relatively healthy homemade pizza, which set us back only \u00a33.25 each*. Imagine how much cheaper a recipe like a veggie pasta bake is.<\/p>\n

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Dash for the discounted items shelf in the supermarket or find out when your shop puts discount stickers on items and purposefully shop at those times. Scout out Iceland and other discount stores for items that are indeed cheaper to buy there.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re desperately craving that Two for Tuesday Domino\u2019s, go for a cheaper and healthier version by popping down to Derwent Drive behind the university library for the latest cool co-op between Bom Bom Patisserie and Peter\u2019s Pizza. They are serving discounted (about \u00a35) sourdough pizzas fresh out of the oven in the back of their truck. Every Tuesday until end of term, 5 \u2013 8pm.<\/p>\n

Finally, look out for more ways to save money by signing up to discount notifications, sticking to a shopping list, using a cashback bank account, investigating if cash helps one pay attention to your spending or even growing your own herbs on a windowsill!<\/p>\n

*Cost breakdown for homemade pizza:<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n

Flour \u2013 45p<\/em><\/p>\n

Yeast \u2013 85p<\/em><\/p>\n

Tomato sauce \u2013 90p<\/em><\/p>\n

Olive oil \u2013 0p, borrowed from housemate<\/em><\/p>\n

Mozzarella \u2013 <\/em>\u00a31.90<\/em><\/p>\n

Peppers \u2013 90p<\/em><\/p>\n

Salami \u2013 <\/em>\u00a31.00<\/em><\/p>\n

Basil \u2013 50p<\/em><\/p>\n

How can the University help?<\/h4>\n

\u00a0<\/em>If you\u2019re experiencing money issues, please do not hesitate to talk to your tutor, your departmental wellbeing advisor, or walk into the Bridgeman Building to talk to Student Advice and Support.<\/p>\n