Here's how you can make grocery shopping feel a lot less stressful
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PUBLISHED ONJune 01, 2020 2:35 AMByPriyanka Elhence
When you’re trying to eat healthy and nutritious, eating out all the time doesn’t help, so eating a healthy and balanced diet really starts with the choices you make at the grocery store.
But while some it enjoyable and even therapeutic, for others, grocery shopping is quite stressful.
Whether you’re physically shopping in a store or doing online shopping, having too many options and trying to accommodate everyone’s requests on a limited budget can be quite challenging.
Try these 7 practical ways to making grocery shopping less stressful:
1. Have an organised fridge and pantry
When your cupboards, fridge and freezer are well-organised, it’s easy to see what staples you already have at home and what you need to buy, rather than blindly buy everything you can.
Plus, who can afford to waste precious space stocking up too much at home unnecessarily?
2. Arm yourself with a grocery list
Never shop without a list. You’ll end up buying everything you didn’t need.
But a grocery list will help stick to buying healthy, staying within a budget and also limit the time you spend shopping.
It also helps if you can plan your meals in advance so you know you don’t have to shop again for at least another week.
3. Never shop #hangry
If you’re hungry while doing groceries, you’re more likely to shop for more junk and empty calories rather than healthier options. Plus all the available food options will make you more cranky and irritable.
Keep the hangry pangs at bay by eating before shopping so that you aren’t tempted into wasting money on something you don’t really need.
4. Shop regularly at off-peak hours
You might not have the luxury of choosing online shopping or when to physically do your shopping, but try to avoid the busiest times likes evenings and weekends.
Having someone to help you shop can help halve the time spent doing groceries.
And if you go shop at a regular time each week, grocery shopping will feel like a less stressful part of your routine.
ALSO READ: Make fewer trips to the supermarket - buy these!
5. Frozen is the new fresh
Yes, fresh is best, but increasingly, frozen whole fruits and veggies can be nutritionally better than fresh sometimes, as they tend to be picked at the peak of ripeness and freshness and processed right away to retain nutrients and flavour.
Plus, frozen options can be much cheaper compared to their fresh cousins too.
6. Look up and down
Shelf stackers are trained to put the more expensive options directly at eye level, while cheaper, generic brands sit on the higher and lower shelves.
Every cent adds up, and you’ll end up with a ton of savings if you bend down a little and choose a home brand instead.
ALSO READ: Best credits cards for your grocery runs in Singapore
7 Choose the shortest line
This sounds obvious, but there are actually math formulas on the best grocery line.
And surprise, surprise, the best line is almost always the shortest one not the express line, even if the trollies ahead of you are relatively full.
This article was first published in Wonderwall.sg.
