2014 Frugal Living Challenge

cw18

abby1234519 wrote: »

Yes they do. However I'm not eating so.......can't eat more if I'm not eating at all!

I'm just not hungry. Which is odd

Not eating is NOT good for you.

If you don't consume a minimum number of calories a day (considered to be 1100) your body goes into starvation mode, which means it will then convert every single calorie you do consume into stored fat as it thinks you're living in times of famine and it doesn't know when it'll get anything else. It also messes up your metabolism, such that when you start eating again your body doesn't know how to process the food which again means it all gets stored as fat.

And that's without considering the fact your body needs vitamins and nutrients from a varied diet in order for it to do what it needs to do, and if you're missing out on those your risking making yourself ill.

(Climbing off my soapbox now)

happybird71

abby1234519 wrote: »

Yes they do. However I'm not eating so.......can't eat more if I'm not eating at all!

Abby. I'm a bit concerned. I think it's fantastic that you're really determined to lose weight and I know it costs a lot to go to clubs or the gym. However, the best way to lose weight really is through a healthy diet & exercise. If you don't want to eat rubbish then don't buy it (and it makes everyone else healthier!). I had a friend who did the Lighter Life diet eg 500 calories a day through drink sachets & bars. She lost 4 stone which was amazing. However, she recently told me that she has wrecked her digestive system & has some sort of reflux.

Please don't take this as a lecture. I'm just concerned for your health. If I didn't eat I would be soooo grumpy

patentgirl

Goldiegirl wrote: »

Lol, when I said next spring, I was thinking Spring 2015!

Like you we are in a good position, we don't have a mortgage anymore, we will go down to one car, and we have pretty much all we need.

But we would like to do some good holidays for a few years, so I feel I need to boost my savings a little bit more before we finally stop work.

I'll be really interested to read about how you get on when you stop working - you are my role model! :rotfl:

I will be watching you both as another one who wants to retire early but like goldiegirl we love our holidays not sure I could live without them a so many places in world still want to see, wish in one way I was like Dawn then retirement could come a lot quicker OH is very stressed with his job not good at his age! For time being just keep plodding on being frugal and saving every spare bit of cash we have.
Have good frugal day

abby1234519

cw18 wrote: »

Not eating is NOT good for you.

If you don't consume a minimum number of calories a day (considered to be 1100) your body goes into starvation mode, which means it will then convert every single calorie you do consume into stored fat as it thinks you're living in times of famine and it doesn't know when it'll get anything else. It also messes up your metabolism, such that when you start eating again your body doesn't know how to process the food which again means it all gets stored as fat.

And that's without considering the fact your body needs vitamins and nutrients from a varied diet in order for it to do what it needs to do, and if you're missing out on those your risking making yourself ill.

(Climbing off my soapbox now)

I probably should have explained its not just for weight loss, its also because I have a severe sugar addiction and am pre-diabetic. My insulin levels are all over the place so this is sort of a "wean". I am having fasting blood tests done as well speaking to the doctor on the phone every week.

happybird71 wrote: »

abby1234519 wrote: »

Yes they do. However I'm not eating so.......can't eat more if I'm not eating at all!

Abby. I'm a bit concerned. I think it's fantastic that you're really determined to lose weight and I know it costs a lot to go to clubs or the gym. However, the best way to lose weight really is through a healthy diet & exercise. If you don't want to eat rubbish then don't buy it (and it makes everyone else healthier!). I had a friend who did the Lighter Life diet eg 500 calories a day through drink sachets & bars. She lost 4 stone which was amazing. However, she recently told me that she has wrecked her digestive system & has some sort of reflux.

Please don't take this as a lecture. I'm just concerned for your health. If I didn't eat I would be soooo grumpy

I already have reflux, I take medicine for IBS but don't have IBS. I can't eat heathily, it sends my gut into spasm. It can't cope. I can only cope with unhealthy food. Genuinely stuff that is fiberous sets me off, stuff that is carby is fine.

But my hope is to clear my system, reset the bacteria and all that jazz and then I will slowly introduce some form of clean eating into my system. But I have to do it slowly so that I can work out what my tolerance levels are. I'm not gluten intolerant however I react badly in terms of fatigue to refined foods yet its the only stuff I can digest without having to take lots of Omeprazole. A few weeks ago I woke up in the middle of the night to find myself on all fours on the bed coughing and gagging having burnt my throat really badly. I was tested for that Helisomething bacteria and it wasn't that.

Since I have stopped eating during the day I feel a lot better. I'm not having reflux and I don't feel sluggish. When I get home I am having an evening meal and that doesn't seem to affect me at all.

I don't know whats wrong with me but the doctor has no idea. So we agreed I would try intermittent fasting for a little while, so thats why I haven't eaten during the day, and at home I'm probably only having 500-600 calories in a meal but hey ho

lhead123

Almost had a NSD today, however OH rang me when I finished work saying we need milk for breakfast tomorrow. I remembered I had a £1.27 off my next shop voucher and found milk and a few other bits totaling £1.20 but it wouldnt let me underspend at the till, so a cheeky pack of haribo and I spent £1.30 costing me 3p!

I have however just remembered that as it's March tomorrow we need car tax and we need a T online shop...I would love to go back to a!di but with no one to help with the trolley or carrying it up the stairs when oh is at work its easier to do it online. As soon as baby arrives I'll be right back there though!

Had a very frugal dinner tonight - yesterdays noodles with some leftover cooking bacon, tiny bit of cream cheese, milk and a sprinkle of cheddar = a simple carbonara type thing. And it was yummy.

Right time to get off MSE and onto my superm@rket to do this online shop

X

Frugalsod

I was thinking of getting some milk today but will be off to Aldi tomorrow so might as well get it from there instead. So another NSD today. Most of this week has been good. I have my cash back for the top up shops for next month and will be doing a top up shop tomorrow so will be fine for at least a week. The early part of the month was bad but the end turned out really rather well. With only on hit on the accounts on the last two weeks. I am now back in the non spending zone that can last for months for me. If all goes well all my spend will end up on two days a month. The rest being funded from cash back that was already counted.

cw18

Accounts updated with todays spends, so I can report status as of end of February




I've done some minor work on the budget figures - and a lot on how it calculates the 'budget to date figures' for spends that don't occur every month.

Council Tax - budget the same, monthly calculation changed to cater for the 2 non-payment months
Water - unchanged
Gas/Electricity - unchanged
C/H Cover - unchanged
Bldgs/Cont Ins - changed so that the budget is allocated to December
Phone & B/Band - budget and monthly payment calculations changed to reflect the fact I've downgraded my package and paid 12 months line rental up front
Gym - unchanged
Mobile Phone - unchanged as yet, but still looking to drop monthly cost from late May
Windows - unchanged
Presents - unchanged
Car Insurance - budget changed for adding DS1 onto policy from middle March, and monthly calculation changed to allow for payments to be made in March and July only
Breakdown Cover - updated to cater for total spend in January
Road Tax - updated to cater for total spend in January
MOT - updated to cater for total spend in July
Service - updated to cater for total spend in July
Petrol - unchanged
From DJ - unchanged
From DJ for car - new category to cater for DS1 covering the extra on the car insurance, and the mileage charge to/from work (I expect to get more from him on this one, as he's also going to be wanting to borrow the car for other journeys)
Wu@ki - unchanged
Contact Lenses - unchanged, but will possibly be skipping a shipment later in the year which will save me over £90
Camino - major changes to the way the budget's allocated. Most is now Sep-Oct (with a small amount for the first week in Nov) when I'll actually be doing the walk, with the rest divided equally between the first 8 months of the year
Groceries - budget dropped slightly. I had allowed a small amount above standard calculations to allow for holidays with extra mouths, but I've well underspent so far and won't be using my 'share' while on the Camino (as I've included food in my Camino calculations)
Toiletries/Cleaning - unchanged
Anything Else - as a result of the other changes this budget has increased by £565, yet I'm still in an overspend situation :eek:

I've then broken my Anything Else spends into various categories to try and see where I'm struggling, which gives the following

The biggest spends are on household and entertainment.

The household spends in January were a new crockery set (much needed) and a few cooking utensils (some needed, a few impulse), and February's were mostly a new battery charger and some new rechargeable batteries (much needed items I've been holding off buying since October, but which have now hit a critical point).

The entertainment spends in January were mostly new CD cases as I sort out my collection - something I've been looking at getting for a fair while as so many of mine are badly damaged. The majority of the spend in February was on two external drives - one to use for my iTvnes library and general day-to-day backups (a compact one for taking out and about), and the other is larger in physical size and capacity for taking monthly (or thereabouts) backups - lesson learned after the drive in my laptop fried itself just before Christmas and I didn't have any restore disks!! (Fortunately I did have backups of my photos and documents.)

So I'm not going to berate myself over those 2 sub-categories, but I need to make sure I keep them under control for the rest of the year.

Fitness includes my annual membership fee for the local running club, which is actually the bulk there (£25)

Vitamins were enough for several months, and they're not something I feel I can do without (specifically need 4 of the 6, and believe I'm feeling the benefits of a 5th).

Clothing appears to be the one I'm going to have to keep a close eye on. My wardrobe is that full I really don't see that I should need much (if anything) else this year - other than 2 or 3 nice plain T-shirt type tops (something I don't have since losing weight and then getting rid off the over-sized or tatty ones).

skintygerlinky

Evening Frugalites xx

Well, that was February then!!

So, how did I do.....I'm not overly pleased, but can certainly see it could have been a lot worse!!

I've managed 11 NSD - want to deffo improve on this!

After rent, bills, phone, gym and union membership have been taken from my account, here's where my cash went:

Food £49.80
Toiletries £1.98 (just shower gel and toothpaste this month!)
Travel £47.30
Socialising £26.30
Newspapers £1.60
Gifts for others £8.95 (this inc most people's birthday cards for the year!)
Gifts for me £2.75 (just on some nice wrapping paper which I use to line the top of my dressing table and bedside cabinet. No new clothes or books :T)
Unnecessary food £4.20 (this is where I could have brought food from home but didn't due to being lazy/unorganised).
Coffees bought at uni £1.40

*Money going into savings: £10 (all I can afford, glad it's something!!)*

Goals for March:
Aim for 15 NSD
Reduce food bill - eat out of freezer and fridge before shopping with 'meal plan' list
Continue reading unread books, revisiting forgotten clothes, CDs and DVDs - no need to buy new!
Ensure to arm self with food when out and about!!


Any comments would be appreciated!!

Grit and determination at the ready for next month! 'Test case' month is over, time to start adopting Frugality as a way of life!

The nights are getting lighter. I'm feeling calm and optimistic http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bj1AesMfIf8

Buffythedebtslayer

have a quick cooking question.


I bought Chicken which needs to be used today.


Thursday I made beef stew. (meat also needed to be used)


Q. I need to cook the chicken tonight can I add it to the stew????


I also need to add more veg (have frozen and celery!)


I was thinking


a. cook chicken and put in the fridge to add to pasta sauce situation.
b. cook chicken and add to the stew


let me know what you think
xx

DawnW

Buffythedebtslayer wrote: »

have a quick cooking question.


I bought Chicken which needs to be used today.


Thursday I made beef stew. (meat also needed to be used)


Q. I need to cook the chicken tonight can I add it to the stew????


I also need to add more veg (have frozen and celery!)


I was thinking


a. cook chicken and put in the fridge to add to pasta sauce situation.
b. cook chicken and add to the stew


let me know what you think
xx

I would personally use the chicken in a separate dish.