CVS Sillyness

I've talked before about trying to reduce my family's food spending, and thanks to various internet sources, I'm happy to report that I've had what I would consider some great success. Our mid-May to mid-June food cost was $295.80. That's still $45 over my goal, but it's better than the $400-$500/month we were spending before.

I have to tell you about my weekend trip to CVS. Where my food spending was $0.

Last week I came across this excellent blog, from two different sources, actually. It's that interesting. Basically this man is trying to prove (to his sister, with whom the bet was originally made, and to the rest of us, who are just trying to learn) that he can eat well on $1/day using coupons and other saving methods. It's definitely different than the method that j. is using over at 365 Dollar Year, which is where my interest in food budget reduction originally came from, but it's also incredibly interesting. I spent a couple hours one night reading the entire thing, then decided to try one of his methods over the weekend.

I planned two trips to CVS using the couponing blog above and this site. To start with, I had two $5 off a $25 purchase coupon I had gotten the last time we were at CVS picking up prescriptions, one from the coupon machine at the front door, one printed on my receipt. So my goal was to get as close to two separate purchases of $25 each as possible. On the first trip, I had a bit of trouble because of my own failure to read correctly, but it ended up working out in my favor.

I purchased 3 boxes of Cheerios, 1 Gillette Pro-Glide razor, 1 Cover Girl lipgloss, and 3 Power Bars. With coupons and $3 in ExtraBucks that I already had, I spent $14.96 out of pocket. I also received $10.97 in ExtraBucks back, making my out of pocket $3.99. I then realized that I had picked up the wrong type of lipgloss and hadn't gotten the deal/EBs I had expected (it should have been $4.99 with $3 back in EBs), so I asked the cashier to return the lipgloss. She probably should have made me redo the entire purchase because of the $1 off Covergirl coupon plus the $5 off $25 I had used, but I think she got flustered and just refunded me $6.48 in cash. So at this point I was $2.49 ahead.

I decided to wait until later in the day to go back. I felt bad about the refund mix-up, and I didn't want to encounter the same cashier again. I'm still trying to get the hang of this extreme couponing, and I suspect I'm going to mess up sometimes until I get better at it.

On my second trip, I got 1 big bottle of Herbal Essences conditioner, 1 John Freida conditioner and 1 John Freida frizz smoother, the correct Covergirl lipgloss, 3 more Power Bars, and a 4oz. canister of dry roasted peanuts. I used the $10.97 in EBs from the previous trip, the other $5 off $25, and a few manufacturer coupons to bring my total down to $2.34.


Subtract that from the $2.49 I was already ahead, and as far as I can tell, CVS paid me 15 cents, plus gave me $8 in ExtraBucks for a future trip to take all this stuff out of their store. This picture doesn't include the other 3 Power Bars that the kids and I already ate. Sorry for the blurry photo!



This really wasn't terribly difficult, and I'm already working on my trip using this week's ad. The worst part was the embarrassment with the lipgloss return, so I'll just have to be more careful in the future. I also got lucky with the $5 off $25 coupons, and definitely wouldn't have done as well without them. But one came from simply scanning my card at the machine near the door, so it's possible that anyone could get this deal as well.

Why You Might Totally Dig a Group Exercise Class

First, a quick update. After being back on Dietpower since Monday, and actually making it to the gym twice in the morning plus three times after work, I've dropped 2 pounds in a week. I hate proving myself right. I have to track what I eat for the rest of my life, or this weight yo-yo battle crap will go on for the rest of my life too. How nice for me. Anyone else out there struggling with your weight on a daily, monthly or yearly basis?

Now, what I really want to tell you about...

I was in spin class yesterday when I realized that I should talk about group exercise classes here. I know not everyone has access to these, and I recognize how lucky I am to live in a city big enough to have a few large fitness club chains. I am also lucky that I've been a member long enough that I'm only paying $12/month for access to like 6 different clubs in the city (I use 3 regularly, depending on where I'm going and which one has a class I want to take at a convenient time). But if you have the opportunity, or could make the opportunity with a little effort, you should definitely get out and try a class if you haven't before.

So... group exercise. You show up at a specified time for a specified class and work out with a bunch of other people. That was probably obvious, huh? Depending on the type of class you choose, you can have lots, to little, to no interaction with other people. I know sometimes people like to socialize at the gym, but I think most people are like me and just want to get in, get a workout, and talk to as few people as possible. You can still do this in a group fitness class.

The reason I dig classes so much (and you might too) is because it pretty much guarantees that I'm going to do a full hour of exercise. I don't know about you, but if I go to the gym and just work out on the treadmill or Arc trainer, I'm often tempted to cut it short. I'll go for like 35 or 40 minutes, then something in my brain goes "c'mon, you've done enough, you're a little sweaty, let's quit." And sometimes I do.

The truth is that there are times my brain tries the same shtick when I'm in a class too, but I would be way too embarrassed to just leave while it was going on. I saw this happen last week in a Body Pump class. There were two girls there, both overweight, obviously new to class, that got halfway through the second song and left. They could have gotten a great workout in the 60 minute class, but instead, one looked over at the other, rolled her eyes and kinda motioned to the door with her head. The friend shrugged, then nodded, and both put away their equipment and left. I get that every person isn't going to enjoy every class all of the time, but they didn't even try. The minute the class started to get difficult, they quit. And yeah, I don't want anyone else blogging about me being a quitter, or thinking in class that I'm a quitter, so I stay; even on the days that I truly wish I was anywhere else.

The other advantage is that most days, I don't wish I was anywhere else. The classes I take are engaging and challenging, and I really feel like I'm doing something good when I'm there. Most have music with a good beat, and I find that music makes just about any workout better.

So if you have the chance, but have been too nervous about the unknown, just go for it! You can always take it slow. You can always stand in the back. You can keep your head down and no one is going to bother you. You can talk to your neighbor and maybe make a friend for life, or at least for 60 minutes. And if you try one and hate it, try something else another day. There are so many different classes available these days, you could probably go for weeks without doing the same one twice.

I'll also try to tell you about the classes I'm really partial to. The ones that I get to two or three times a week because they're so much fun. Does anyone have a favorite class you can't go a week without? I'm always looking for new ones to try.

It's Time to Surrender

I have to admit to myself and everyone else that my little experiment has failed. Writing this blog hasn't helped me to keep the weight in check so far. And since the scale said 139.5 this morning, and I totally flipped out, I'm back on Dietpower.

I've officially gained back 10 pounds that I already lost a year ago. It's sad and frustrating and I know I have no one to blame but myself. I can try to rationalize it up and down and sideways... it's almost that time of the month... it's Monday morning... it's... all bullsh*t.

So, I ask that you put up with me while I deal with this frustration and defeat. And I'll keep talking about what's working and what's not. Consider this accountability X2.

The Things Kids Say

I have a Sunday ritual. I call it a ritual because I've been doing it for the last 5 or 6 weeks. That counts, right? I make a batch of steel cut oats for the week. (I know, not as bizarre as say... dropping babies... but it's a ritual and it's one I'm willing to do.) One and a half cups of steel cut oats turns nicely into 5 cups of cooked, yummy, filling breakfast food for my 5 days of work.

So yesterday, when I was doing my Sunday ritual on Monday (Memorial Day and all), and trying to figure out who I was going to pawn the extra cup off on (since I wasn't motivated enough to scale the recipe to yield 4 cups), my daughter came into the kitchen. She just turned 3.

I had just finished filling up my 5 little containers when my daughter says "Wow! You got it all in there. Now you gotta take a picture, Mama!" like this is absolutely the most exciting thing ever.

Do you think this food blogging thing is getting out of hand?

I didn't take a picture, but in case anyone is interested:

Weekly Steel Cut Oats
Yields 5 one cup servings

1 1/2 C steel cut oats (I buy these from the gravity bin at Whole Foods... way cheap)
4 1/2 C water
1 1/2 C skim milk (you can definitely make this without milk, I just like it for the extra protein)
pinch of salt

Bring the water and milk to a simmer in a pot. Add the oats in, stir a bit, then let it simmer untouched for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, stir in the pinch of salt and let it simmer another 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. I'll then turn off the burner and just let it sit for a bit to thicken up.

I like to measure it out evenly into Ziploc containers and store them in the fridge for the week. Then each morning I'll decide what I'm in the mood to add and throw it on top. When I get to work, I'll add a bit of water, mix it all up, and nuke it for 2 minutes.

Stuff I like to add:

• Tablespoon of roasted sunflower seeds and teaspoon of brown sugar (ala Less Is Enough)
• My own dirty version of Gingersnap Oatmeal which includes about a dash (or however much you'd like) of the following: vanilla, cloves, ginger, cinnamon & nutmeg, plus about a teaspoon of brown sugar and about a tablespoon of ground up blanched, slivered almonds.

Anyone else have ideas for oatmeal add-ins? I can't quite bring myself to try that savory version in the post with the Gingersnap Oatmeal... especially for breakfast.