Personal Finance Blog | Money Management Blog | Financial Help

Recently I read a post on Laura Rowley’s Money and Happiness Blog about losing weight and getting rich. Since I am hoping to do both of those things, I thought I would try out the theory of creating a “Diet Diary.” The diet diary is supposed to help you be more aware of what you are eating. The same goes with your finances - the more aware you are of where your money is going, the more likely you are to save, invest, pay off debt, etc.

So, here is what I want to know – in addition to helping me lose weight, will recording everything that I eat also help me reduce my spending? I think that it just might! I already realized very quickly that paying $1.06 for a 32 oz coke was not only costing me 4 times the amount I pay for a can of Coke (which is $.25 if I buy a 12 pack on sale), but it’s also more than double the calories! Obvious, I know since it’s 32 oz compared to 12 oz, but I just hadn’t ever really thought about it until I saw it written down in my diet diary. So, here is what I started doing… if I plan to be in my car for a large portion of the day, I pack a little cooler with cans from home. I find that I usually drink a 12 oz can in the same amount of time that I would have, in the past, had the 32 oz fountain drink. I quickly and easily reduced my calories and my spending.

Of course, saving $.81 on Coke isn’t going to make me rich, but as they say, “every little bit adds up!” I wonder where else I will find an easy solution for cutting back on both money and calories. Do any of you have any suggestions?

Jennifer Streiff, Business Development