Fit-Twist Health: Money 101

Chinese Chicken Salad

I love salads and used to bring this for lunch at work. I'd eat it 5 days a week and my co-workers used to tease me about it. "Don't you get tired of eating the same thing every day?" They'd ask. "No." I answered. "I love Chinese Chicken salad! I can eat this again and again." I did that before the economy slowed down in 2007. While others at work ate out, drank their sodas or Starbucks coffee, I stuck to my salads and water. I realized that I got to save more money because I like to eat healthy and drink water. Let's say a cup of coffee or soda costs $2-3. If you drink that 5 days a week, you're paying about $15 for something non-essential. Coffee, wine, beer, sodas and juices contain water but they also contain caffeine, alcohol, sugar, artificial sweeteners or other chemicals that can dehydrate the body. The more you drink these beverages, the more dehydrated you become because the only thing that can healthily hydrate the body is water. You may be lethargic, depressed, stressed and drained when you're dehydrated.

70% of our bodies is made up of water. A healthy person can drink about 3 gallons (48 cups) of water per day. Coffee contains caffeine and can act as a mild diuretic, preventing water from traveling to necessary locations in the body. Pure water (H2O) has a neutral pH of 7, which is neither acidic nor basic. Water dissolves more substances than any other liquid. Wherever it travels, water carries chemicals, minerals, and nutrients with it.

Do you suffer from a lack of energy? Perhaps, you are not drinking enough water. I hope you will consider eating in and replacing your drink with water.

During the global economic recession in the late 2000s, many of my co-workers who used to tease me for bringing lunch to work began to copy me and ate in to save money. I figured that an average meal at a fast-food place costs $5 or $25 a week and $100 a month. In my last job, I managed to save over $1,200 a year by bringing lunch to work! I had a cheaper and healthier meal by eating in. So, I saved money with food and benefited from a mostly plant-based diet. I actually saved about $10,000 in the past 5 years by eating in and that's a low estimate. I have a healthy bank account and invested part of that money in medium-risk mutual funds. So, even though I don't make as much income as I did before I started my own business, I am not in debt.

I am partnering with Michael Jacobs, CEO of Thank You Plan to empower you to be healthy and wealthy. Get a complimentary 90-minute financial consultation with no further obligation! Tell him I referred you.

Michael Jacobs