food shopping.....£20 budget

[Pate]

Okay, I've got £20 for shopping. It's got to last me a week or two, and I've already got:

enough rice, pasta and some uncle bens sauces.

I'm looking for some suggestions to help me bulk up whilst I'm running/lifting weights etc.


Thanks.


(Yes this thread is banal, but I actually need constructive advice).

 

[Pate]

Wow, didn't know there was a food section now!

I am behind on the times haha

 

[Pate]

Whey protein or skimmed milk powder is going to be the only way if you have £20 a week total to get by on!

I'm not a body builder lol, just looking to get more food into me during the day etc.

I'm guessing I should stock up on mince beef and chicken?

 

[Pate]

Oh hell no.

Had enough of those noodles. They are cheap granted, but they don't fill you up etc

 

[Pate]

Not that anyone actually cares........

But here is what 20 of the Queens pounds got me.

4 pints of milk (got loads of weetabix already)
3 for 10£ chicken fillets (450g x 3)
15 Free range eggs
2 loaves of bread.
Creamy colesaw (???!)
18 bags of walkers crisps
Value Cookies
Value Shorties
Foxes ambers (biscuits)
Foxes Crinkle crunch (biscuits).


Such a mistake to go shopping on an empty stomach

 

[Pate]

Hmm, a lot to spend on just chicken. I would have got cheaper cuts.. e.g. thighs and legs and boned them.

Left over chicken for pasta bakes/stir-frys etc.

It is a lot indeed. Each pack has 3 fillets in it, and I used only half a fillet for my dinner tonight. Truth be told it's so much simpler than the other cuts.

Think you could have done a lot better for the money, but that should get you through 1/2weeks. Out of interest why? Skint, rents away, fun?

Out of curiosity, what changes would you have made? I made the mistake of morrisons (was curious as to what the shops like), didn't have half the "value" range of the big stores.

I'm completely skint at the moment, no student loan etc.

 

[Pate]

A vegetable or two maybe? Cheaper meat like Turkey breast or beef mince.

haha, never even thought of vegetables.


Turkey breast seemed to be really expensive? Maybe I was looking at the wrong cuts.

Had enough of beef mince to be honest. It dosen't go well for "off the shelf" sauces etc and burgers + bolognaise are limited.

 

[Pate]

Whey protein is certainly not something just for bodybuilders. It's a cheap, good source of protein.

I don't understand. You said you are trying to bulk up, and you're buying cookies, biscuits and crisps? You'd be better off keeping your food to a minimum for a little while, then ordering £20 or so of chicken (you can get a lot of chicken for this much). Then buying brown pasta/rice/oats. All of these are dead cheap, and are the basics of what you should be eating really. Add in a little bit of green veg too, which is dirt cheap.

If your £20 a week is only temporary until you get your student loan, then I'd suggest you re-evaluate what you think is a healthy diet. Just because you're not a bodybuilder does not mean you should be eating so much bad food. Your body needs protein, healthy carbs (brown rice/pasta etc), healthy fats (think nuts, real butter and so on) and some veg in order to grow healthily.

I spend most of my day away from my flat (travel to campus) and thus need stuff to keep me going. A packet of crisps + a few cookies = me sorted til home time. The milk allows me to have cereal, and the chicken breast allows me a meal when I get home (got rice and pasta + uncle bens sauces already).

I would have loved to have ordered £20 of chicken, love the meat, but it wouldn't have the longevity or ease of use as the snacks.

I'm also running a few miles a day + various weights, so hopefully they will not impact negatively on my health to much.

Thanks for the tips though, when I get some cash (got a few pence to my name at the moment), I'll buy some whey protein to keep the protein levels high.

Should have got something like pack of sausages for a stew which is cheap or some chuck steak / stewing beef as it's cheap and when you cook it for an age it's still nice and tender. These last for days as well once cooked.

Personally I'm really really not keep on gravy.

I'll bear it in mind next time, considering I'm not in the position to be complaining