The grocery store is where your healthy-eating journey begins. Food shopping can be a mundane task, but it’s important to start off your health journey by steering your cart in the right direction!

However, I agree that it can be time consuming, expensive, and frustrating. Let’s see how we can make our shopping experience more palatable.

Here are a few tips to keep you, and your shopping cart, moving along productively:

1. Plan

Maintain a shopping list in a little notebook or on your smart phone – one list for general items you use regularly, and another for items you like to stock but don’t need to buy so often. I’m sure that like me, oftentimes you head to the grocery store for a specific item only to return home with many items apart from the one you set out to buy!

If you like to plan your meals, or try a new recipe every week, then of course take this into account and add to your list.

I always take a list to the grocery store. Sometimes I even remember to take it with me inside the store!

2. Don’t Shop When Hungry

All food, including unhealthier fare, is more appealing when you are hungry – so you’re more likely to make unwise choices. Therefore, it is better to shop after you have eaten, or enjoyed a healthy snack prior to setting off. 
When hungry, you might be tempted to snack on something while walking around the aisles – usually from a packet, and therefore not so healthy.

3. Stick To The Perimeter

Fresh and refrigerated produce is stocked around the perimeter, with the inner aisles containing mostly processed and packaged food. Therefore, skip the inner isles, especially when pressed for time.

4. Read Labels

Ingredients are listed from highest to lowest volume, so avoid items that have refined sugar, vegetable oil, or any other desirables listed in the first few items.

As they are virtually weightless, food additives and other nasties are listed towards the end, so do scan right down the ingredient list and be aware of ones that you might be sensitive to.
 A general rule is to avoid packages that have more than five items listed, or names that you cannot pronounce.

5. Be Aware

Be aware of cunning marketing claims on the front of packets (‘no cholesterol’, ‘low-calorie’) as these are carefully worded to distract you from unhealthier ingredients used in making the product.

6. Be A Proactive Shopper

Avoid pesticides, chemicals, GMO, and food processes (e.g. refining, canning, irradiation) which basically turn our healthy food into something you will wish to avoid for better health.

7. Be Organically Aware

Organic produce can be more expensive. Be aware of the organic priorities for you and your family, as sometimes there is little benefit over their conventional counterpart. To help priorities, see my article Buying Organic.

8. Choose From A Rainbow Of Fresh Produce

Add a new fresh produce item to try every week. Also, experiment with a new fresh herb or spice so that you get more creative in the kitchen.
Frozen fruits and vegetables are also great to stock as they are often the best of the bunch picked to freeze, without additives or preservatives. On that note, when fruits and vegetables you enjoy or use often are on offer or in season, buy in bulk and freeze at home for future use.

9. Use an Online Delivery Service

Grocery shopping can now be so much easier, as everything from fresh produce to frozen meats and fish can be ordered from the comfort of your personal device. Take advantage of organic and fresh produce boxes, as these items are specifically selected for freshness and variety. Plus, that surprise element of “I wonder what is in the box this week” is always fun.

Here in Singapore, delivery charges are often waived, so you save on parking and travel costs as well as time.

10. Make It Fun

No matter how tedious a task, we should try and make it fun – phone a friend as you wander the aisles, listen to some new music, send the kids off on little errands around the store, or take the time to learn about new food offerings and how to read labels – all making your shopping experience more productive and entertaining.

Visit the Health & Vitality page to find out more about Liza's business.

^{This article was originally published on Health and Vitality blog and has been reposted on Executive Lifestyle with the permission of the author. 
Edited by Michelle Sarthou
Image credit: Shutterstock}

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