One of the biggest struggles that us, as consumers have, is knowing how to shop and choose the right foods when visiting the grocery store. And while there are SO many choices and a TON of confusion at your local store, they've actually made it really EASY for you to shop, if you know what sections to visit, and which to avoid. In fact, I can get in and out of the grocery store with a full cart of body healthy food items in just 15 min nowadays, simply because I know I'll NEVER even visit 90% of the shop's aisles on most visits.
So, before we get into my exact grocery list, here's my EASIEST grocery store tip EVER:
- Shop the perimeter of the grocery store and avoid the middle aisles. That's it! Here's why it works: With few exceptions, the middle aisles of the grocery store are full of processed, packaged foods while the perimeter contains almost all of the whole, natural foods you'll need to stock up your healthy living kitchen.
Here's my usual routine when visiting my local store, and I'm sure your Checkers or Woolworths is set up in a similar way. When I walk in the door I make sure to walk right past the bakery! Did you know that nearly every grocery store puts the bakery right at the entrance intentionally? If they can get your saliva glands working right away, it's very likely you'll spend more as you travel through the store... nothing in a grocery store's layout is by accident, which is why I know your shop is probably laid out the same way. So, quickly pass by the bakery and head straight to the produce section... this is where wholesome goodness starts... fresh fruits & veggies.
In my most recent trip, here are the items I grabbed from the produce section:
- Grapes
- Bananas
- Cherries
- Berries
- Green Beans
- Broccoli
- Sugar Snap Peas
- Carrots
- Sweet Potatoes
- Spinach
- Romaine Lettuce
- Lemons
Of course there are loads of other great choices lying around the fresh produce section... pretty much any vegetable and/or fruit would be a great, nutrient-rich choice. Of course if you know where to find organic, locally sourced produce that's first prize!
I then walk from the produce section to the fresh meats and poultry. At a Woolworths or Checkers & certain Spars, they have some all-natural, organic meats that are sourced from animals not treated with hormones and antibiotics... your store probably has something like this as well. Just ask if you aren't sure. From this section I grabbed for my carnivore partner!
- Organic Chicken Grass Fed
- Hormone free Beef (Bone marrow for making stock)
- Organic Lamb
Next up is the milk and eggs section, again right on that back wall (still haven't ventured into the aisles at all). From here I picked up: Organic Butter (only if you are not fighting cancer). Along the very last aisle in the store are some more dairy items where I grabbed: Organic Greek Yogurt (again only if you are not fighting cancer) (Not the processed varieties), hormone free, HTTP free, mostly antibiotic free.
Then head back to the front of the store to check out. A full cart of healthy living groceries all while NEVER visiting to the center aisles where I'm sure I would have been tempted to toss in a bunch of processed rubbish like cookies, biscuits, chips, ice cream, cereal, stove top pasta "mixes"... and the list goes on. If I do ever make a strategic trip into the middle of the store, it's almost always to get these items:
- Beans (Dried not canned)
- Spices (Non irradiated)
- Nuts
- Stevia (In raw dried leaf form)
- Raw unfiltered, unheated honey (non-irradiated)
- Olive oil - for salads (please do not heat)
- Coconut oil
- Avocado oil
… and that's about it
Follow that simple advice next time you're at the grocery store and you'll be in and out in no time while avoiding all those processed items that will end up ruining your health.
Healthy Living