It is not so easy to buy your groceries without having a grocery list in your hand. You can hardly remember all the items at a time. So, to collect every item, you might have needed a lot of time. Try to remember how many times you failed to turn up to your office in time just because you returned late from the market.
Ok, leave it, just take a trip down to your memory bin, how many times you have seen your spouse becoming furious because you had forgotten to purchase one or two essential items—hallucinating still?
Well, you just need a well-planned grocery list in your pocket so that you can save your valuable time as well as money. But you might think that “Is it that important?”.
Just scroll down.
WHY WE NEED A GROCERY LIST?
Statista shows that according to a survey conducted by the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) in 2015, 72% of the Millennial shoppers (aged 18-36) create a list before going for their grocery shopping trip.
Well, those are not deadheads. But you might want to know what makes the difference with or without a grocery list. Here are some reasons why they follow creating a grocery list.
TO FOLLOW A HEALTHY DIET
RAND Health’s research found in 2016 that US shoppers who generally create a list for their groceries made better food selections and are more fit. Also, NCBI has found that those people also run lower BMI, which is very important to stay healthy.
Having a grocery list in your hands, you only purchase the things you intend to buy. But without a checklist, you might end up purchasing unnecessary stuff you don’t need in your diet. That will disorganize your diet plan and may affect your lifestyle.
NOT TO RUN TO THE MARKET REPEATEDLY
Making a well-organized grocery list will ensure that you don’t have to run to market over and over again to buy the things you forgot at your first take. Going to the market is easy, but convincing yourself to go again might not be that simple. Yes, we are too lazy to do the things we don’t like, and obviously, you don’t want to get by the same hassle again. That’s why a list can save some calories for you.
SAVE MONEY AS WELL AS TIME
After going to market, the first 10-15 mins are easy because the things you need would keep on striking your head. But by the time you purchase some, you can forget the other essential items. So, what people generally do is to buy a lot of things as alternatives without counting how much money they have spent already. This type of panic-purchases can burn your valuable time as well as your hard-earned money.
So it is safe to follow a list and spend accordingly. Having a pre-measured bill in hands can restrict your expenditure. You don’t have to ponder what to buy and where to buy.
WHAT ARE THE IMPORTANT THINGS TO CONSIDER IN THE GROCERY LIST?
Having a well-designed grocery list in hand is what everyone wants before going for shopping. But to make it happen, you should have a good enough knowledge of making a perfect combination of carbohydrates, proteins, and fat for a healthy diet plan. Here are some quick resolutions make a grocery list very fast,
DAIRY
Add in your list
- Skim or low-fat milk
- Low-fat yogurt
- Low-fat cottage cheese
- String cheese snacks
- Butter
- Cheddar and mozzarella cheese
TRACK THE FAT CONTENT
Most of the dairy items contain fats. Fat comes in many forms under saturated and unsaturated categories. You should avoid taking trans fat and saturated fats as they are vulnerable to the human body. But if you love whole-fat cheese, then just take a smaller amount in your diet.
AVOID HIGH SUGAR ITEMS
If you like to have yogurt in your table, then only buy plain yogurt because the pre-flavored and sweetened yogurt is high in sugar as well as calories. They do not help maintain a healthy setup.
VEGETABLES
Add in your list
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Cauliflower
- Corns
- Beans
- Leafy greens- lettuce, spinach, kale
- Onions
- Peppers
- Potato (russet or sweet)
- Squash
- Tomato
- Mushrooms
- Peas
- Chilies
TIPS
- PREFER LOWER SODIUM ITEMS
Always search for lower sodium items when you are buying vegetables and soups or broths. Black, kidney, soy, or garbanzo beans are great examples of less-Na vegetables.
- FROZEN FOODS
To make soups, casseroles, and stews, you might consider buying frozen foods. Usually, broccoli, peas, spinach, whole-grain waffles comes as the frozen items in the market.
Low-fat frozen items are essential elements to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
FRUITS
- Apples
- Banana
- Berries (Blueberries or Strawberries)
- Citrus (lemons, oranges)
- Tropical (mango or pineapple or others)
- Dried fruits (dates, cranberries)
- Grapes
TIPS
- PREFER SEASONAL FRUITS
Always try to look for the fruits which are seasonal and locally grown. It is better to have those fruits because you can always get those fresh always. They taste better and cost less because of high production. Usually, fruits you buy in the market come from stores where they preserve these fruits with preservatives while keeping in a cold environment.
- LOOK FOR COLORFUL FRUITS
Colorful fruits, not the colored ones, contribute more nutrients than the other fruits. Always try to have some of those in your cart.
PROTEINS
Add in your list
- Chicken- skinless chicken breast, legs, thigh
- Eggs
- Fish – catfish, cod, salmon, etc
- Nuts- almonds, pecans, pine nuts, walnuts
- Low-fat cottage cheese.
- Peanut butter
- Seeds ( pumpkin or sunflower)
- Soybeans
- Tofu
TIPS
The appreciated daily intake of protein comes around 46 gm for women and 56 gm for an average weight man. To calculate your protein requirement, you can simply multiply 0.36 with your weight in pound. So, you must be wise to choose the perfect quantities for your protein items. One roasted skinless chicken breast contains 53 grams of protein, while one cup of cottage cheese can provide you 28 grams of protein.
- Try to add cottage cheese in your diet a little as it is rich in Ca, P, Se, vit-B12, riboflavin (B2), etc.
- Salmon fish is essential as it provides 19 gm protein in a 3-ounce serving and only 175 calories.
GRAINS
Add in your list
- Bread (whole-wheat)
- Oatmeal
- Pasta (whole grain)
- Popcorn
- Rice (brown or white)
- Tortillas
- English muffins
- Cereals (whole-grain)
BREADS AND BAKERY PRODUCTS
You should look for words like ‘whole wheat’ or ‘whole wheat flour’ as the primary ingredient on the label of the packet while purchasing your breads and bakery products.
Fiber is an integral part of our body build-up. So, you should choose the whole-grain breads, which preferably contain at least 3-4 gm of fiber and can offer fewer than 100 calories per slice.
PASTA AND RICE
You should always be looking for whole grain products whenever you are purchasing rice and pasta. Whole-grains contain 5.5 gm of fiber per ½ cup uncooked brown rice compared to 2 gm in white rice. According to USDA, you might develop NCGS( non-celiac gluten sensitivity)-a celiac disease if you are running short of fibers.
BREAKFAST FOODS
You should purchase cereals that are high in protein and low in sugar. Use berries, fruits, or any fruit juice to add some flavors to your breakfast.
OIL, SAUCES, AND CONDIMENTS
Add in your list
- Mustard
- Barbeque Sauce
- Vinegar
- Extra-virgin olive oil, non-fat cooking spray
- Tomato sauce
- Light mayonnaise
TIPS
- Most of the deserts and condiments are high Na (Sodium) and sugar content so, you should look for the sugar-free varieties. You should also keep track of your sodium consumption; otherwise, you may get into trouble in the future.
- If you love having mayonnaise in your dish, then you should consider light-fat mayonnaise to stay healthy.
SNACKS
Add in your list
- Whole-grain crackers
- Hummus
- Dark chocolate bars
TIP: choose your chocolate bars wisely. It should contain more than 70% cocoa.
DRINKS
Add in your list
- Tea (preferably green tea)
- Calcium-fortified orange juice
- Mineral water
TIP: always keep in mind that flavored syrup only satisfies your taste; it doesn’t contribute to your health. So, you should search for 100% fruit juices.
HOW TO ORGANISE YOUR GROCERY LIST VERY FAST
Making a grocery list might come last to the preferred order of your daily works. With so many things to keep track of in life, it is normal. But when you don’t have a grocery list, you don’t have a plan. So, you might end up visiting restaurants more than you expect just because you don’t have enough resources in your house to make a good meal. So, you need to make your grocery list quickly; otherwise, you may get bored of it.
PLAN BEFOREHAND
Just nurture your needs in your mind before you pick your pen up. It is essential to plan for your meal beforehand because, without any plan, you would never be able to finish a list quickly. You will just keep writing your items but never complete it in a well-organized fashion. Plan a healthy meal and put the things accordingly.
WRITE DOWN THE DOMAINS FIRST
You should write the food categories first to organize your grocery list. It will remind you of the items of your need and calculate your protein, carbohydrate, or fat intake very quickly so that you can plan the groceries accordingly. You can put categories like below,
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Proteins
- Carbohydrates
- Dairy
- Beverages
STICK TO YOUR PLAN
You should stick to your weekly meal plan; otherwise, you would have to make a new list every week or every time you go for shopping groceries. Once you make your grocery list, the only thing you have to do is to change the quantities before going to market. Yes, it is evident that every person wants some changes to their meal plan day by day, but changing the whole plan will hamper your diet and take more time to create a new list as well.
MAKE AN E-CART FOR YOUR GROCERY ITEMS
You should consider making an online grocery e-cart and add the necessary items to it. After making your cart once according to your list for checkout, you only need to select the quantities, nothing else. It will hardly take 1-2 minutes.
Online grocery carts also give you an idea of your expenditure before you make your payments, which is also very helpful to purchase according to your budget.
PUT ITEMS FROM YOUR E-CART
making an e-cart can help you even if you don’t like online grocery shopping. As you want to make a grocery list before you choose for a brick and mortar grocery, you can simply put the items saved on your e-cart previously. It will make creating grocery lists a lot easier and faster.
Just put the items from the e-cart without wasting time to remind your needs and put quantities beside those.
Still struggling? I guess not.
WHAT WE OFFER AT NOW NOW EXPRESS?
We, here at Now Now Express, offer you the most comprehensive collection of grocery items to send those to Nigeria from anywhere in the world.
But have you noticed something?
Yes, guys, we currently hold the crust of Nigeria only; nonetheless, you can always make an e-cart here and add items to that. You only have to register yourself, and you can start your campaign.
