Food Stamp Challenge

I started my food stamp challenge on a Friday. The Thursday before I spent all but 7 cents at Walmart to get my food for the week ahead. My purchase consisted of a loaf of whole wheat bread, peanut butter, 6 bananas, a gallon of skim milk, a bag of off-brand frosted mini-wheats, 3 large potatoes, 2% shredded cheese, a small bag of carrot chips, and a head of broccoli. I became a little frustrated during my shopping when I realized that fat free shredded cheese cost over a dollar more than the 2%! This may not sound like a lot of food to most people for one week, but I made it through the challenge on these foods and didn't cheat once!

The hardest part of my challenge was the beginning. Since I began on a Friday, I had the whole weekend ahead of me, and I couldn't go out to eat! Going out to eat on the weekends was always a treat that I no longer had. It was also hard to turn my friends down when they invited me out to eat, and I had to say no because I couldn't afford it. In this aspect, the challenge made me feel less sociable, and if I were on food stamps more permantly, it would no doubt make it harder for me to fit in.

Once I made it through the weekend though, it was much easier. The only challenge I really noticed after that was that I couldn't snack and there wasn't much variety in what I was eating. I did change the amount I exercised also. I know this is less healthy for me, but I knew I would get more hungry if I worked out every day. I only worked out one day of the entire week. Normally I work out 4 days of the week.

I ended up with enough food left over to last me about one more day, and I even shared several cups of my milk. The amount of food this challenge allowed wasn't that difficult to make last, but it didn't allow me to be as healthy as I should be. One serving of fruits and one serving of vegetables a day isn't what the food guide pyramid calls for, and unfortunately these are the quite a bit more pricey than junk foods. This challenge gave me a different perspective on why people aren't always able to eat healthy, and I hope after experiencing this people do more to help others.

Food Stamps Challenge

I started the Food Stamps Challenge on Sun., Oct. 5 and ended it Sat., Oct. 11. The Food Stamps Challenge was one of the hardest things I have done. I found it impossible to plan 3 meals a day for 7 days that were nutritionally sound meals.
With $21 I bought: 1 gallon of 1% milk, 1 loaf of whole grain bread, peanut butter, jelly, instant rice, kidney beans, fiber one bars and croissants. I usually like to have a banana for breakfast and another piece of fruit with lunch, but I could not afford it. By Wednesday night I had ran out of milk, fiber one bars, croissants and bread because my roommate ate my food too, although I told him not too. I was so hungry by the time dinner time arrived. I felt like it was a big challenge to eat only the foods I had purchased, especially since I was already running low on food. I have to be honest, I went to Posado's Cafe for dinner Wednesday night. I was so full and it felt good to eat again.

Thursday through Saturday I continued to eat only the foods I bought at the store which consisted of my remaining peanut butter and jelly mixed together and rice and the small amount of beans I had left. I was so hungry when Sunday came and I could eat real food! It felt like my stomach was growling all day.

One thing I really missed was drinking Dr. Pepper. I like to have soda in the afternoon almost everyday. I know this isn't healthy, but I love Dr. Pepper. On Sunday I went to Chicken Express and got a large fountain drink. For dinner I had grilled pork chops, green salad and corn on the cob.

I found that it was very difficult to eat on a budget and eat healthy at that. Now I know how people on food stamps feel.

Erin: More Than a Gesture

Have you ever seen one of those shows where someone beautiful and thin dresses up in a “fat suit” and walks down the street so that she can tell us about the horrible experience of being fat in our society?

I grew up poor. Let me make this clear, being poor sucks. I wish I could say that there was some quaintness or some incredible amount of character building going on, but those moments are far outweighed by indignities.

The last thing I mean to do is belittle the “Food Stamp Challenge”, I don’t compare it to putting on a fat suit because I think the challenge is not genuine. I am saying that it is a gesture. If you have ever known someone who shaved their head because their friend/sister/wife was going through chemo, you know the difference. A bald head doesn’t make you feel the fear of your children growing up without their mother nor does it make you exhausted and nauseous. But it is a gesture, it is a way of saying to someone that you love “I will fight this fight with you and, when you tire, I will keep fighting.” I am hopeful that this is what the challenge will ignite in people.

I have to be honest; I quit the challenge after 5 days. You don’t have to convince me that $21/week is not enough money to maintain a healthy diet, much less an appetizing one. I get it. My parents worked hard, often they both worked multiple jobs, but it isn’t as easy as just “working hard”. Forty percent of food pantry/soup kitchen clients are working poor. Add to that number the clients who are children and seniors and you don’t get a lot of ne’er-do-wells.

My point is this, the simple act of striving to understand what it feels like to be food insecure is a great lesson for everyone to experience at some point. But don’t allow it to just be a gesture. This isn’t just about the inexplicable mathematical formula that made $21 seem like a reasonable number. It is a reminder of the people who are trying to make their food budgets work for more than just one week. It is a reminder of why you chose to apply your talents to the nonprofit world. It is a reminder of why you write that check to the food bank or give your time. Mostly, it is a reminder that we must fight this fight with them until they grow weary, and then we must continue to fight for them. Don't just hang up the fat suit and go back to your original hotness.

On a lighter note, no one on food stamps ever turned down free coffee. I would even bet that people have chosen jobs based on the availability of free coffee.

Molly: Food Stamp Challenge Update

I will have an update on my Food Stamp Challenge tonight (Friday) on KLTV 7 news at five. If you miss it don't worry... it will be on our website kltv.com.

Thursday evening update for the week

Becky and I have made it through Thursday, after beginning the challenge last Sunday morning. Really, it's been pretty neat to see how we can stretch our food shopping dollar---although it's been Becky who has done all the stretching! I think I said before that she made chicken and dumplings one day, which we ate for two meals (and could have been three, but just got tired of it). Also, a great casserole was the menu for today, along with sandwiches for lunch, and our normal cereal for breakfast. What we've had to give up are things like fresh orange juice, salmon, some beef dishes we like to fix, and a few other things. I would not say that we have suffered, but the week so far has really made us plan and think about what we're eating. I have to admit, Tuesday evening I attended a company event, and we did eat that meal out (free), so we do feel we sort of "cheated" on that evening, but couldn't be helped. Otherwise, we have tried very hard to stay the course. I'll try to catch this blog one more time between now and Saturday night to keep all of you posted on our progress.

Molly: First Big Purchase

My first big purchase on Tuesday after my Food Stamp Challenge was a Starbuck's non-fat White Chocolate Mocha. I honestly don't buy them all that often because I ususally make coffee in the morning, but it was the fact I could. Plus, I ran out of regular coffee and didn't want to make instant coffee anymore :). I still have to go to the grocery store, which will be my big project today now that I finally have a day off. Again, I learned so much during the past week. I appreciate everyone's comments and encourgement and really it wasn't all that hard, but just an inconvienance at times. I think if I had children to worry about it would be a lot harder because I would worry about getting them the nutrition they need... and if there is one thing I learned eating healthy is not an option on food stamps. Again, I will never take another meal for granted... and waisting food is not an option. I'm sure I will be much more aware of every dollar I spend now on food, which is something I should be doing anyway.

First entry for the hunger challenge from Rick E.

A few weeks ago, I got home after work and following a food bank board meeting and discussed the food stamp challenge with my wife, Becky, thinking she would absolutely, positively not want to commit to a challenge like this.  Was I wrong!  She immediately began to work up a week's worth of menus (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) and set our food budget up for the week beginning this past Sunday, September 14th.  So, we're on the program for this entire week.  This is my first time ever to participate in a blog, and I will do my best to keep you all updated as we go through the week, but so far it really hasn't been bad for us.  For example, today, Becky cooked a real, old fashioned chicken, de-boned it, and make a great chicken and dumplings dish---which we haven't had in our house in years!  But it was great and very filling.  One thing we both try to do is eat as healthy as we possibly can.  We cheat occasionally, but generally stay with it.  She said 'buying healthy foods on a very limited budget is very difficult', when she did her shopping for this week.  So we're three days in and counting!  Will keep you posted.