First Step Taken to Reduce Grocery Spending – No Pop

Well, at least for me (not my husband). I’ve done it before where I’ve quit caffeine only to be drawn back by the sweet taste of Mountain Dew.

By my calculations, we will save about $25/month if I quit drinking my Dew. Instead I will drink water and the occasional flavored sugar-free / caffeine free drink. Not only will I be saving money, I will actually be drinking things that are better for my health.

My health is actually a little side project I have going on right now that I don’t write about much. Probably because I’m still working on my game plan with that. So my decision to cut the pop from my diet is actually a great one because it will help our checkbook and my health.

My last drink of pop was last night and I’ve gone almost 20 hours without caffeine now. So far, so good. I can do this…

UPDATE: I did it!

Posted by Tricia on August 19, 2006 at 5:41 PM in Saving Money | 9 Comments »
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prlinkbiz responded:
Posted: August 20th, 2006 at 12:37 am
You can do it! You will feel so much better, and thinner! And that will keep you motivated on the no-soda thing! I also cut out soda, but I’d rather cut out a whole meal and still have my coffee! lol At least I figured out how to make home-made mochas with coffee, milk and hot chocolate- which is a fraction of the cost of my old daily Starbucks mocha habit!
Ry responded:
Posted: August 20th, 2006 at 12:51 pm
No caffeine can be tough… While I haven’t totally eliminated it, I’m down to 12 oz a day.. and diet at that.. and the Wal-Mart brand too! Drink nothing but water at work all night long. As far as cutting grocery costs… have you looked at taking only x amt of dollars with you in cash to the store so that you can’t spend more than that?
LT responded:
Posted: August 20th, 2006 at 3:19 pm
I’ve been making a pitcher of iced tea (decaf) every day. It’s a lot cheaper and keeps me off the diet sodas.
Jerome Barry responded:
Posted: August 20th, 2006 at 4:01 pm
Good for you.

My wife cut out caffeinated sugar water, her brand was Coke, while she was pregnant. Each time, she weighed less at 7 months than she did at conception. Each time, a healthy baby of normal size was born.

If you’re just desparate to go cheap on food, ramen noodles and a daily multivitamin will keep you alive. Discard the flavor packet if you want to reduce salt intake.
Tricia responded:
Posted: August 20th, 2006 at 4:20 pm
Well, so far today no caffeine. I sure am feeling it, though. The headache is just horrible and I’m on edge. I know it’s gets better though. I just have to make it through this tough part.

Thank you everyone for your comments
Tricia responded:
Posted: August 20th, 2006 at 4:31 pm
Oops, forgot to answer the cash question…

We rarely ever use cash. For us, it’s just easier to keep track of and I know we have lost money over the years when we used to use cash. Our bank is also a few miles away so we just usually mail our paychecks and some are even direct deposited. If there is ever cash in our wallets – it disappears quickly. Maybe we should look into getting cash for our grocery trips – thanks for the suggestion.
Ry responded:
Posted: August 20th, 2006 at 10:43 pm
Just do a withdrawal from the bank and notate it as groceries. I went shopping tonight with a goal of not more than $100 and a list. I always make a list but never hold to it. But tonight I did. Walked away with more than enough groceries for about 10 days and came out spending only $93.
kassy responded:
Posted: August 21st, 2006 at 6:02 pm
We tried and failed to eliminate pop from the grocery budget so I’ve instituted a different rule which seems to work. Coke is only purchased if on sale, if its not on sale we make do with the store brand instead.
Deby responded:
Posted: April 9th, 2007 at 5:04 pm
I know this is an old post, but I wanted to add my 2 cents worth:
I used to take a calculator with me and add everything up as I grocery shopped. I had a set amount I allowed myself to spend, and if I went over that then something had to be put back. I’ve gotten it down now so I rarely have to do that, but I still pull out the ol’ caculator every now and then when I’m trying to be especially frugal.