Tuesday, April 10, 2012

What's For Lunch?


One of the things that we try to promote on this site is the adoption of voluntary simplicity as a way of life.  Our goal is not to try to make you feel so guilty that you deprive yourself, but simply to be a bit more conscious about your consumption patters.

For many of us, what we eat and where we eat is a big issue.  Fast food restaurants are all around us, offering the prospect of seemingly cheap food to fill our hungry stomachs.  But is fast food really all that cheap?  How much do you spend on eating out for lunch each day and what could you be doing instead with the money that you spend?

These are the questions that the Lunch Calculator seeks to answer.  It's actually quite easy: just go to the site, plug in the numbers and see what your own results are.  Then share your reflections with the rest of us!

http://www.feedthepig.org/lunchcalc

17 comments:

  1. I usually only eat out for lunch almost every day when I am working and the $6.50 is about right. When I calculated how much I would save by bringing a $3.00 lunch at 6%--which is a little high right now, but historically reasonable--I would have saved over $11,000 over the course of 10 years.

    That's the cost of a pretty sweet used car or a very sizeable down-payment on a new car.

    When you look at it that way, eating out for lunch every day just doesn't make much financial sense.

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  2. I think more often then not, I end up buying lunch or picking up fast food on my way home from a night class because it is easier then having to take the time out to make myself something to eat. I know this sounds incredibly lazy but unfortunately that is the truth. Although lately, I have definitely become more conscience of this and am bringing my own bagged lunched or snacks more often.

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  3. This was an interesting tool to use, but I really feel with most people if they were saving money on lunch, they would spend it somewhere else and never see it anyway. That aside, I myself have made an effort to bring lunch to school with me and dinner to work instead of picking something up or ordering out every night at work. I was spening over 10 dollars each time I worked on dinner I wouldnt even get to finish, or enjoy. But like I said earlier, I just see it as saving a little extra spending money for shopping or nights out. I wont be putting away $5 a day to save for the future.

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  4. I thought this exercise was interesting. I myself really only eat out on weekends. Other then that I bring something from home to work or school or I eat at home before I go to work or school. I used to eat out a lot more but then I saw how much i was spending picking something up for $10 when I could make it at home for a lot cheaper. I don't believe that if people stop eating out they will save that $10 consciously I think they will just spend it on something else that they want. It will just allow you to have more spending money. I know for myself everyday when I am bringing food from home I am not putting $10 in my savings account of what i would have spent on food. Yet I guess when you think about it that way it may not be a bad idea when you see how much you could save in a year.

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  5. Ever since I've had other factors around me (ie gym), my cost for spending fast food a week have decreased a lot. I'd admit, I used to be a heavy spender on junk food. I loved to buy something to eat whenever I got a chance because I didn't like to cook at all or didn't have time after a long day of school and work. After a while, I've experienced that fast food eating was an unhealthy factor in my life, therefore I decided to cut it down to once every two weeks, maybe longer. I'm slowly taking the healthy route and eating when I get home instead of purchasing food every minute. I see much of a bigger difference money wise and will continue to go down this path. Anything that will help me towards the near future.

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  6. This was very interesting to see, I never really thought about how a few dollars here and there for lunch could really add up. What was even more interesting is how much money you could save on bringing bagged lunches with you. Although it could be hard to not go out and buy lunches when your friend, coworkers, are all going out for lunch. If people did save money on not buying lunch everday they would have to not spend that money on other things that they may not need and that could be hard for some people to do.

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  7. I don't usually buy lunch, but this exercise made me realize how much I save by not doing so. People who have commented before me have already touched upon this, but I think that if people see how much they save by not buying lunch every day, they will use the money they are saving to buy other unnecessary things. It won't really be saving much as much as it would be using that money for something else.

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  8. This was cool. I saw that I could save close to $4,000 if I brought lunch with me more often. I usually do bring my lunch to school because it does save money, however it is easier to just buy lunch. Bringing lunch to school is also a lot healthier, I realized that when I bring lunch from home I lose weight quicker too.

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  9. I have to admit, I often buy out when I am at school or work. Fast food is quick and easy, and seems “cheaper.” But spending money everyday to buy out if definitely costly, as I can say that most of my money is spent just on food. I am trying to eat out less and take the time out to prepare lunch for school or work. It proves to be worth it in the long run: both for your wallet and your health.

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  10. This was interesting to see especially since five dollars or so a day for lunch doesnt seem like much, but it really does add up. I do think though that if people were saving this money each week they wouldnt put it away and save it. They would most likely just spend it on something else and the money would be wasted anyway.

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  11. I do not usually go out to eat. I try to bring my own lunch for my house and make it. I realized by eating out I spend at least $10-15 per meal. This did not leave me enough money to save and I realized i had to work more to buy other things I needed. By bringing lunch one can save a lot and realized there money isn’t going to waste and is actually eating healthier and knows were there food is coming from.

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  12. I used to eat out a lot before because it was convenient but up until about 5-6 years ago i have gotten really into health and fitness. I rarely eat out because i am always eating at home or bringing pre-cooked meals from home to school/work. By doing this i am eating healthy because i know what i am putting into my body instead of eating at all these fast food places. I am definitely saving a ton of money for myself as well .

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  13. I am guilty of eating out majority of the time because I am always on the go. It is just way more convenient to just pick up food on the way to school or work. I have been trying to cut down as much as I can not only because I spend less money but also because its mainly junk food that isnt good for your body. homemade meals are the best because you know exactly what your eating as opposed to the junk food these places serve you and now its not even cheap anymore its actually more expensive.

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  14. Unfortunately, I would not even know where to begin when plugging in numnber. My schedule is so fluctuating that I cannot even remember or have a scheduel to how many times I eat out or how much it costs. I guess that shows ill management skillls on my part. However, I can agree that this is a mjor contributer to many of us who cant figure out where all ou rmoney is going... Well- it really does add up. I know this because when my boyfriend and I have began to start saving up we noticed that those dinners out on the weekends were costing a lot. Going out every weekend could cost us almost 400 dollars at the end ofthe month. However, I must say that we did realize it wasn't worth it for us to cut things out completely but we have to find a compromise to save some and also get out a bit.

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  15. It funny this activity was scheduled for today. I was just talking to me mother this morning about how Im bringing lunch every day to work over the summer instead of buying food (this is one of the benefits of still living at home, free cold cuts). I work sometime 18 hour days at work in the summer. That means i would have to buy breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I would spend about 25 dollers a day. I did the math last summer and I would have saved over a thousand dollers if I would just bring my own food. Its crazy how small things add up.

    Chris L.

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  16. Using this Calculator was a big wake up call! I eat out almost everyday, it convenient and much easier then having to prepare a meal for yourself. I must this is probably the reason why so many Americans are suffering from heart disease and obesity. Why is four items off the dollar menu at McDonald cheaper then buying fruit and vegetables, does our society want us to eat these things instead of eating healthy. It should be the other way around we have got alot work to do.

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  17. I tried to use the the lunch calculator but it say the java plugin is out of date. I usually spend $4 a day on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays because of school. The cheapest things I can buy is with the vending machine at school. Its not the healthiest choice but it works to get through the school day until I get home to have a home cooked meal most nights. Only here and there I actually go out of my way for a fast food option.

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