By Daniel Rodriguez | Dr. Budgets
Finding ways to save money gets me excited… finding ways to save money that are also good for your health gets me really excited! In this post I’ll share with you 5 tips that are good for your health and your wealth.
1) Drink Water. In an earlier post (Drink Water for Your Health and Your Wealth) I shared how drinking water when you eat out can save you $500 – $2,000 per year. The savings are even more dramatic if you reduce the number of alcoholic beverages you purchase when you eat out! Furthermore, cutting out soda completely will save you money on your grocery bill. In terms of your health, water is the purest form of hydration, which is a better alternative than those unhealthy sugary drinks.
2) Dine In. Dining in instead of eating out is another great way to save money. More importantly, when you cook your own meals at home, you choose which ingredients go into your meal and how to prepare your food. My wife and I eat healthy meals at home so often, that when we do eat out, we frequently feel thirsty. Why? Because many restaurants prepare the food with lots of salt, and our bodies are not used to that anymore.
3) Pack Your Lunch. In a previous post (Pack Your Lunch to Save Money, Time and Calories!) I shared how packing your lunch is good for your health and your wealth. You can save hundreds, even thousands, of dollars by packing your lunch instead of going out to eat for lunch. This is also healthier because you have more control over your portions and the ingredients that are going into your lunch. And, if you are preparing a lunch for your significant other, this can also be a sweet gesture (Can Packed Lunches be ROMANTIC?). Bonus points for including a love note 🙂
4) Walk. Walking is proven to be good for your heart (Walk, Don’t Run, Your Way to a Healthy Heart). And best of all, it is FREE! If you walk and do other outdoor exercise, you may not need your gym membership. Also, if you walk outside in the sun for approximately 20-25 minutes, you are spurring your body to create Vitamin D (12 Ways to Get Your Daily Vitamin D). If walking isn’t for you, then I recommend you spend your money on exercise you enjoy. For example, my wife had a gym membership that she didn’t use very frequently because she wasn’t excited about her workouts. She now spends a little more money on Pilates and looks forward to her workouts!
5) Play Disc Golf. Ok, this one isn’t really for everyone, but I had to include it. If you’ve played golf, you know how expensive it can be to purchase golf clubs, golf shoes, golf balls, etc. And that doesn’t even include green fees and the cost of practicing at the driving range! I have found an alternative that I enjoy even more: disc golf! Compared to “ball” golf, it is much less expensive (you can buy a “disc” for $10 – $20 and green fees are either free or a few bucks). If you typically use a golf cart to play golf, then you will probably walk more playing disc golf (I usually get about 8,000 steps per round), which is good for your health. I’ll write more about this in a future blog post.
So those are my 5 tips that are good for your health and your wealth. I would love to hear from you some other ways that I didn’t mention here in the comments section below!