The frugal shopper’s guide to protein

Protein is one of the most important nutrients in our diet.  It is the one responsible for growth and bodily repair.  It is also one of the most expensive nutrients, which is why the protein part of your meal (the meat) costs the most.

But wait!  Not all protein is as expensive as your filet mignon.

So I set out to put together a short study of the various sources of protein readily available and their cost, as much for my own use as for blogging here.  The goal is to find out how I can get a complete serving of protein for under a dollar.

I used the assumption that a complete serving is 20 grams, although you might want more right after a workout…and also you should have some between meals, because 60 grams of protein per day is pretty low.

Before reporting the results of my study, I must offer two big caveats:

  • First, I am strictly reporting on the cost of various sources of protein.  I am not judging the value of the sources, some of which might have a lot more fat or sodium than others, or a lot more other important nutrients than others.
  • Second, prices vary.  They vary from store to store.  They vary over time.  They vary from brand to brand or even from package size to package size.  I attempted to report pricing based on the most common package size available at regular grocery stores.  Specialty stores might sell for more, discount stores for less – and, of course, you can always get your protein for less by watching for sales, couponing and all the other sorts of things that a frugal-minded shopper will do.

One last thing before reporting the results, because I really need to get this off my chest…

funny gifs
Yes, trying to convert back and forth between grams and kilograms and ounces and pounds and cups and… Aaauurgghhh!

Well, now that that’s over with, here are the results:

Copy this code to publish this table on your site:

 

So you can see that there are several fairly frugal alternatives to steak. For instance, making a milk shake or a smoothie with protein powder allows you to control both the taste and the levels of other nutrients. I often add some protein powder to “milk shakes” (mostly fruit, some milk and just a little ice cream) as a snack for my kids.

Peanut butter is also quite inexpensive, although pretty high in fat. Peanut butter on a whole grain bread gives a nice between-meals level of protein.

Do you enjoy mixed nuts? Very healthy, great for protein, but not great for fat if you eat too much of them. Make sure you have plenty of peanuts and dry soy beams in the mix – a great frugal way to add protein, and the soy beans will dilute the overall fat content.

READ ALSO: Get a $1000 Raise With Your Personal Fast Food Outlet

Turkey and canned tuna are still the cheapest meat sources of protein. Both make great sandwiches or great salad toppings.

Chick peas and lentils are both also quite cheap and very healthy. Both go well in pretty much any salad or soup, and most meat dishes. The only problem with them is that to get enough protein form them alone, you would have to eat an awful lot. However, they are not complete sources of protein, so they would need rice or bread or some other grain with them, anyway.

Rounding out the under-a-dollar sources of protein are eggs, milk and chicken. Most people drink milk anyway for the vitamin D and the calcium, but it can also be a great source of between-meals protein. Chicken is very similar to turkey, but usually pricier (although often on sale – hint, hint). And eggs are packed with other nutrients, too, and if you don’t mind it turning out more like scrambled eggs, you can usually squeeze more veggies into an omelet than eggs.

As for the rest of the protein sources, some of them are also very healthy in many ways, but they will cost more. So if you are committed to frugal, there is only one thing you can do about these – watch for coupons and specials.

 

Quirky ways to save money on your car

I am sure you have heard all the “usual” ways to save money on your car.  Lets’ breeze through them quickly to refresh your memory…

  • Shop around before buying.
  • Buy a smaller car.
  • Check insurance costs before deciding what to buy.
  • Shop around for insurance.
  • Pay cash rather than a car loan.
  • Drive slowly to conserve gas.
  • Keep your car well-maintained.
  • Keep the trunk empty to save gas.
  • Keep tires inflated.
  • Don’t idle.
  • Car pool.
  • Combine errands.

Did I miss any?  Probably a few.  All great advice, of course.  But these “usual” ways to save money on your vehicle are fairly > yawn < boring.  How about some fresh, quirky, exciting ways to save big bucks on your vehicle or with your vehicle?

Let’s start with something tame.  Turn the air conditioning on at high speeds.  Why?  Because the wind drag gets more as your speed gets higher.  And wind drag can really eat up fuel.  So on the highway, keep the windows closed and the air conditioning on.

But in the city, roll down the windows and turn off the air conditioning.  Why?  Air conditioning does use up energy, and lowered windows do not use up energy at low speeds.

So you can save money at high speeds one way, and save money at low speeds another way.

OK, ready for something just a little more quirky?

Don’t buy a red car.  Yes, police officers are racist when it comes to cars – even if they don’t think they are.  Research has shown that police are more likely to give a speeding ticket to the driver of a red car than to drivers of other cars going the same speed.  No – wait!  It turns out police like red cars; they hate grey cars.  It’s all psychological of course – all except the ticket you have to pay.

Walk.  Or bike.  Or skateboard.  OK, that’s not too quirky, but keep in mind that if you walk most places or take the bus and you own a car, you should drive it at least once a week.  That keeps all the moving parts under the hood well-lubricated.  Sometimes when you don’t drive a car for a few weeks, things stick.  Sometimes very badly.  Sometimes costing a lot.

But wait!   A car is a costly beast to maintain.  If you typically don’t drive it more than once every two weeks, maybe you could save money by joining a car-sharing program or even just renting a vehicle when you want to travel outside of your usual haunts.

Here is one that is a little off the wall and surely not one that we can recommend.  Call in sick more often.  Every time you stay home instead of driving to work, you save on gas, wear-and-tear and mileage on your vehicle.  If you call in sick an extra five times a year, you could save a few hundred dollars. A job is supposed to earn you money, but in fact you lose money by going in to work when you could stay home with the Activated Recessive Influenza (or whatever disease you invent).

OK, last one.  Live in your car.  This is, of course, pretty extreme.  But what about just temporarily, using your car as a hotel?  Friends of mine actually did this.  They travelled to Costa Rica and instead of having to search for a place to stay each night, they rented an SUV that could accommodate them at night.  They paid less for the car rental than they would have paid for a combined smaller car rental and accommodations, plus they spent more time enjoying the countryside and less time arranging accommodations.

All it takes to save money on your car is some discipline and the willpower to be quirky.  Do you have what it takes?

 

Stay grounded or reach for the stars?

You may have heard the saying that you should reach for the stars.  It comes out in different ways…

Leo Burnett said: “When you reach for the stars you may not quite get one, but you won’t come up with a handful of mud either.”

Mike Tyson said: “I’m a dreamer. I have to dream and reach for the stars, and if I miss a star then I grab a handful of clouds.”

Les Brown said: “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”

It has been said in many other ways, but the idea is that if you aim high enough, even failure is amazing. Even failure becomes a success.

But Emil Zatopek , a middle distance runner from the Czech Republic, has a different take on it: “You can’t climb up to the second floor without a ladder. When you set your aim too high and don’t fulfill it, then your enthusiasm turns to bitterness.  Try for a goal that’s reasonable, and then gradually raise it. That’s the only way to get to the top.”

So which is it do you set your sights on the stars and aim high?  Or do you keep your eyes just one step ahead and aim for the next step.  I know when I climbed Mount Washington, at a certain altitude we were in the clouds.  We kept climbing and climbing and climbing…and still all we could see was a few feet up.

The mountain seemed endless.  We could not aim high because we could not see more than a few feet ahead.  Did that work for us?  Yes.  Would seeing the top of the mountain have worked for us.?  I am sure it would have.

READ ALSO: Zig Ziglar (1926-2012) Motivational Quotes

What is the moral of the story?  I am not sure.  But I think it helps to have a lofty dream, to keep the big picture in mind.  I think knowing where you want to end up gives you motivation and inspiration to get up each day and get in the game.

But I also think that when it comes to actually putting your foot forward, you need to keep your eyes on the ground.  Each action needs to be measured on its own merit.

Big goals.  Small steps.  Why not have both?

 


Poetic Happiness

This poetic guest post is from Rodrigo Silva

HumanKind searches for happiness on things they can see and touch
when in fact happiness can´t be seen and is untouchable
and because of that , it can be stable and endless
but instead people have been building up illusions and putting their hopes on things that can end tomorrow .

 


if there´s one thing I learned , is that life will always find news ways to try to bring us down and make us feel hopeless and without strength
but I also learned that it´s from the most difficult obstacles , the hardest disappointments and the biggest problems that we can get a wide range of knowledge and courage ……
but if they´re not put into action , they become empty and so does hopes
wisdom is way more than only knowing , it´s about acting
strength is way more than having the courage , it´s about battling .

 

As unbelievable as it may seem to some people
peace can be achieved
but not without battling , running away only makes the emotions that destroy our chances of being happy  grow bigger and stronger while we get weaker , because happiness isn´t about having everything good in life , it´s about turning the bad things that appear on the way into opportunities to get the best we can from them , we should get  our wisdom and strength from them , instead of them feeding on our weakness and lack of faith .

There´s a wonderful world that can be built within
that can´t be destroyed by anything
but it must be built based on the things that really matter
the ones we can´t see or touch
but would get ourselves and our lives from the bottom to the top .

Rodrigo’s biography :

I´m a person who learned from my mistakes ,
built up strength during hard times
and found happiness where once was dark and void
Life was doing everything to make me stay on the darkest bottom
but I rose up and found light .

my blog is called Land of Glory : http://www.journeytoyourendless.blogspot.com

Time to say goodbye

For Wordless Wednesday, let me share with you a video of Chantalyne singing “Time to say goodbye” last weekend.  This performance earned her the title of Vars Idol 2013 (a father’s right to brag a little).

 

(Somehow the embed seems to have stopped working. The video on YouTube is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPG-nX_jmoQ.)

Three rebukes people eagerly give that you should ignore

Society has norms. That’s how we all get along. And when people around us break those norms, we sometimes feel a bit threatened, a bit uncomfortable. I am not talking about norms that are put into law for people’s safety, like murder or rape. I mean things that are simply considered by most people to be “inappropriate”.

And most of us are really quick to chide those who violate those norms. Oh, sure, most of us do so only in our heads. And when we do so out loud, we try to do so “good naturedly” so as to appear less rude than we really are being. But let’s face it, we all say or think such admonishments.

But sometimes, we reproach too hastily. Here are three very common, almost stereotypical rebukes that we would do better to keep to ourselves – and that you would be best to ignore if they are launched at you.

Get a job!

In many cases, this is more like a curse, an insult or a threat. I am not saying that nobody should have a job, but if God has graced you with the skills and opportunity and character to follow your passion without a job, so much the better.

By way of background, there are very few people with total freedom. A few people are almost self-sufficient in their homesteading and a few people are independently wealthy. The rest of us have to barter with other people to get the things we need or want.

I am self employed. I have am still dependent on other (my clients) and so much of what I do is governed by their needs. But I am much freer than someone who has a job.

Even amongst job-holders, there is a big difference one’s level of freedom. A teacher has no choice about what hours he works or what days he takes for vacation; his tasks depend on coordinating his schedule with everybody else. A clerk at a large store can usually choose shifts and co-ordiate vacation days with other people.

A freelancer can work whatever hours he wishes. What a cruel thing it would be to tell him to “Get a job!”

If you live to teach, if that is your passions and that is your fulfillment, you have no choice but to trade in some of your freedom, and you most likely feel it is totally worth while. But if you are doing something else that you find fulfilling, if you are following your passion, ignore the ill-advised advice of the get-a-job crowd.

Need a freelancer?  Click here.

Get a room!

I have no idea where this comes from. Two people are passionately kissing and everybody starts thinking “Get a room!” And often somebody will say it.

Why?

Are passion and love and romance and affection things we find distasteful? Apparently we do when it is done in our presence. I am not sure where our discomfort comes from. Perhaps it is envy or jealousy – that it is too vivid a reminder of how our own lives lack that level of passion and excitement.

I think public display of affection is a good thing. Rather than hide what we don’t do enough of, so that we can feel smug in our own comfort zones, why not be reminded of romance? Why not be reminded that we could be a little more passionate? Why not pull us out of our comfort zones and increase our own levels of affection?

Sometimes discomfort is a bad thing. Sometimes it is a good thing. Don’t get a room; share your affection with the world.

Grow Up!

This is perhaps the worst common rebuke I know of. It is typically launched when someone is acting silly or childlike. When someone is not carrying herself with sufficient dignity or maturity, often (but not always) in public.

The problem – and yes, this is a big problem – is that when we become adults we often stop acting silly. We stop kidding around. We stop joking. We are told that we have to carry ourselves with dignity. We are conditioned to believe we have to act reserved. We stop laughing. Don’t look at me that way; how many times do you actually laugh out loud in a typical day? Not nearly enough for your own basic health.

If anybody ever tells you to grow up, there is one thing I recommend you do: laugh!

Name Your Tune

Just in time for Wordless Wednesday, here comes a “scriptless” film. This film, co-staring Alison Postma and Chantalyne, comes with a message: the importance of making your work your own. Don’t just copy someone else’s work; build on it. Put yourself into it. Make it your own.

 


Please note that this video has also been cross-posted at http://www.seo-writer.com/writers/index.php/2013/01/09/scriptless-with-chantalyne/

 

Top 10 Hottest Psychologists of All Time

If you’ve read about the top 10 hottest poets of the 19th century, you may be wondering who the hottest great thinkers in other fields are. Psychologists aren’t necessarily known for their dashing good looks, but there have been a few rather attractive psychologists over the years. Here are ten of the hottest psychologists – male and female – of all time, in case you’re curious:

1. Virginia Johnson

One of the first psychologists to study human sexual response, we can thank Virginia Johnson and her former husband, William Masters, for much of what we know today about the diagnosis and treatment of sexual disorders. Ms. Johnson’s awe-inspiring beauty and depth of insight into human behavior easily make her one of the hottest psychologists of all time.

2. Lev Vygotsky

Vygotsy is one of the most famous and popular Russian psychologists. The research he did in the early 20th century in the fields of education and child development is still relevant today, and psychology students still study his theories regarding cultural-historical psychology. Not to mention, Vygotsky’s chiseled face is undeniably easy on the eyes.

3. Mamie Clark

In the 1940s, Mamie Clark and her husband, Kenneth Clark, founded a social service organization for children in Harlem and conducted groundbreaking research about children’s perception of race. Throughout her career, she worked tirelessly to help promote the psychological well-being of children in Harlem. Mrs. Clark’s kind heart and inquisitive mind weren’t the only things that stood out about her. Her stunning appearance was also known to turn more than a few heads.

4. Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud was the founder of psychoanalysis and is well-known for his theories about dreams and the human subconscious. Additionally, Freud’s distinguished appearance, innovative mind, and bravado made him swoon-worthy.

5. Anna Freud

Like her father, Sigmund, Anna Freud was a pioneer in the field of psychoanalysis. Much of her work specifically dealt with child psychology as it relates to psychoanalysis, and she devoted her career to promoting her father’s theories. Anna Freud didn’t just inherit her intellect from her father. She also inherited his good looks.

6. Dimitri Uznadze

Dimitri Uznadze paved the way for other psychologists in the country of Georgia in the early 20th century. He co-founded the Georgian Academy of Sciences and published several important books regarding psychology, pedagogy, and the nature of human thought. Pictures of Uznadze reveal his strikingly handsome face. It’s not difficult to imagine that Dimitri Uznadze was a lady-killer.

7. Sabina Spielrein

Sabina Spielrein stood out in the early 20th century as one of the few female psychoanalysts. Her work in the field of psychoanalysis is still discussed today, and she has been featured in a number of documentaries and historical movies about the advent of psychoanalysis. As a young woman, she caught the eye of Carl Jung, and the two psychologists had a torrid love affair. She is remembered for her intelligence and her graceful beauty.

8. Hans Eysenck

Hans Eysenck’s theories about race and intelligence were certainly controversial, but few can deny the influence of his theories in the realm of psychology. During his career throughout the 20th century, Eysenck published important books and research regarding smoking, intelligence, psychoanalysis, the media, astrology, and much more. In his younger days, Eysenck was quite handsome, with big brown eyes and a charming smile.

9. Margaret Mahler

Margaret Mahler is known for working with troubled children and attempting to heal their emotional afflictions with psychoanalysis. She published an extensive number of works dealing with child psychology and the cognitive development of infants. Mahler also possessed a sophisticated kind of beauty.

10. Philip Zimbardo

One of the few contemporary psychologists to make the list, Philip Zimbardo is tall, dark, and handsome, even at the age of 79. In the 1970s, Zimbardo’s controversial study of prisoners and prison guards illustrated the deleterious effects of prison on the human psyche and is often cited and discussed in academic communities. Philip Zimbardo is currently a professor of social psychology at Palo Alto University, and a post-emeritus professor of psychology at Stanford. We can assume that at least a few undergrads have had crushes on him during his tenure as a professor.

Each of the people on the list above should primarily be remembered for his or her contributions to psychology. However, there’s no harm in daydreaming about any of these psychologists when the mood strikes.

Casey Wheeler is a blogger and freelance writer for psychology news and education sites, including onlinepsychologydegree.net. When she’s not writing and researching psychology, Casey likes to spend time with her twins and go camping. Please leave your comments and questions for Casey below!

End of the world – (Wordless Wednesday)

December 21 is the end of the world, so say many. And what an excellent day to end it all on. In order to celebrate this achievement of reaching our final goal…