Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 5: Weekly Review and Final Reflection

Sorry, no picture of the receipt this week. I accidentally threw it away...oops!

(Photo is the link to the source of the picture)

My SMART Goal: I will buy organic products to equal at least 50% of my total bill when grocery shopping 1 time per week (Sunday) for the next 10 weeks.

SUCCESSES

This week, I am very happy to report that I met my goal at spending 54% of my grocery bill on organic products! This is the highest amount yet so I was pretty excited. Like I reported last week, buying organic is my main goal when shopping now and it actually feels abnormal to buy the typical products I used to. It has become very natural and I don't even have to strive to do so anymore.Also, the store I went to had a GREAT variety (Whole Foods Co-op) so it was easy to find a lot of items that I liked.

CHALLENGES

Like the other weeks, organic foods can be really expensive. This has made me think really hard about what I am buying and what I absolutely need to be eating. Sometimes, I must admit, it's really hard to walk away from candy aisle with nothing in hand.

FEELINGS

I feel really good about myself now that I only buy organic products (some, I should say). I feel that if I keep this up, I will be able to have the same affect on my family and also when I create my own family. I feel like I'm feeding my body the right kind of nutrition it needs.

WHAT I LEARNED

I learned that the longer you uphold your goal, the easier it'll become. It isn't easy at first and you may not always reach the goal but when you stick with it, you'll eventually do a lot better.

NEXT WEEK (AND FROM NOW ON)

I will continue to uphold this goal even after the class has finished. It will be a challenge since I will be moving back in with my parents and eating organically isn't exactly of their main concern. Also, availability may be an issue but I intend on doing the best of my ability to keep it going.

ECO-CHIC LIFESTYLE FINAL REFLECTION

My SMART Goal was "I will buy organic products to equal at least 50% of my total bill when grocery shopping 1 time per week (Sunday) for the next 10 weeks."

This goal did not change throughout the process as it wasn't always easy to reach as it was but was still attainable if I tried.

What helped me be successful was that I knew I was doing the right thing for myself and the environment and it was a good incentive as I like to take care of my body (most of the time...). Some of the things that got in the way was the availability of the products I like and the cost of them. Not all stores had a great variety and when they did, the cost added up quite quickly. To solve this problem, I stuck with certain items that I decided I MUST buy organically so that seemed to help with my goal.

I benefited a lot from this project. It was kind of fun trying to challenge myself in a new way that was better for me and the environment. I became very aware of my feelings while I was shopping (happy when there was a sale; frustrated when things cost a lot; etc.). I also learned that behavior change can take a lot of effort but it is best to stick with it for a while as no change is easy to do at first.

I think when I move home I will try to get my family to make the same goal in buying organic. I will try to show them why it is much more beneficial to them and the environment. This has helped the environment by supporting organic farmers and not support the corporate ones with GMO products and horrible animal conditions.

I plan to continue this behavior to the best of my ability. It is important to keep my body healthy when I'm younger for the future and it is also important for the environment's health.

My recommendations for those considering a lifestyle change is to stick with it and keep trying even if you don't always meet your goal. It may not be easy at first but sooner or later it will become natural and you'll feel better about yourself in the end.

http://amyintherain.blogspot.com/2010/12/eco-chic-lifestyle-change-week-5-weekly.html

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 4: Weekly Update

SMART Goal: I will buy organic products to equal at least 50% of my total bill when grocery shopping 1 time per week (Sunday) for the next 10 weeks.

SUCCESSES

This week I met my goal by spending 51% of my bill on organic products. This was an improvement of about 10% from last week so I was really happy about that. I made sure a lot more of my products were organic.

CHALLENGES

Since I wanted to improve from last week, I tired to buy a few more things to reach my goal. I bought a couple of things that I wouldn't normally buy. This caused me to spend a little more but it also made me try a few things that I wouldn't normally buy so it was OK in the end.

FEELINGS

I felt better this week having reached my goal and spending a little extra money to try a few more products. Overall, I feel better not contributing to the mass productions of other products and knowing that I am putting good products into my body.

WHAT I LEARNED

This week I learned that spending a little extra money (if you can) on organic and new products is kind of fun and a good way to explore what else you like and don't like. I also noticed that I am able to through the store faster as I am getting more used to the organic products and what to look for.

NEXT WEEK

Since I wasn't able to make it to a new store this week, I might save the last week for the best and go to... drum roll please.... WHOLE FOODS CO-OP!!

Blogged for Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 4 Hosted by Amy @ Amy in the Rain

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 3: Weekly Update

SMART Goal: I will buy organic products to equal at least 50% of my total bill when grocery shopping 1 time per week (Sunday) for the next 10 weeks.

The second with of the lifestyle change didn't turn out quite as successfully as the first week. I spent $7.53 on organic products out of the $18.93 total spent. This accounted for 41% of the spending.

SUCCESSES

This week, even though I didn't meet my goal of spending 50% of my total grocery bill on organic products, I still feel that I was somewhat successful. This is because a) I was relatively close to reaching my goal and b) the organic products I bought were produce items, which I feel, are the best items to buy organically. Like week one, I spent a lot of time looking at different items and ingredients and thinking about how I would spend my money without going over a budget.

CHALLENGES

Some of the same challenges I faced were the price of organic products. There were somethings I was not prepared to budge on in changing to buy organic products because of this. I focused on buying what I felt like were the most important items to buy organically like produce. These seem to be most reasonably priced compared to other products like cereal, milk, and soup.

FEELINGS

For the first two weeks of this process, I have noticed some changes in my emotions when I'm eating. When I'm eating organic foods, I feel a sense of pride that I am fueling my body with the best foods possible. It has also inspired me to take action in other areas such as recycling and getting my family involved in environmental acts as well.

WHAT I LEARNED

This week, I learned that just because you don't make your intended goal doesn't mean that you failed. I still feel accomplished and have confidence that I will be able to achieve my goal in the future.  I've also learned what foods are a priority to buy organically than others.

 NEXT WEEK

Next week, I will try to buy other unique and new organic items that I haven't tried before. I will also try another store to continue to compare prices of other facilities to find a place that has the best deal.

http://amyintherain.blogspot.com/2010/11/keep-that-eco-chicness-going-over.html

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 2: Weekly Update

This is an update about how my first week working with my SMART goal went. To remind you, my SMART goal is:

I will buy organic products to equal at least 50% of my total bill when grocery shopping 1 time per week (Sunday) for the next 10 weeks. 

For the first week, I almost exactly met my goal. Out of the $34.91 I spent, $17.54 was spent on organic foods. When calculated, it came out to be 50.24% of my spending.

Successes

Overall, I was pretty successful this week. I did this by making sure I had a lot of time to shop. By doing this, I was able to think about what I wanted to buy organically. I was also able to examine the food I was buying and look into the ingredients. I compared several foods in prices in regards to non-organic and organic. This helped me decide what was more important: my bank account or my health.

Challenges

Sometimes it was really hard to want to buy organic as it is typically considerably more expensive. This wasn't an easy thing to do on a tight budget. To battle this, I cut things out from my list that I didn't necessarily need so that I would be able to spend a little more on food that was better for my body. I put the priority items that are the most nutritious at the top of my list so that when I get to the bottom and can see how full my cart already is and how much money I have already racked up, I am less likely to splurge on junk food.

Feelings

I had different emotions between when I was shopping and when I got home. While I was shopping, I can honestly say that I felt a little frustrated with the prices of organic food. I don't understand we should have to pay more for something that is better for our bodies. To deal with this, I thought positively and thought about how much I am helping the earth all together as well as myself.

What I Learned

This week, I learned that this may be more of a challenge than I had previously thought. I don't have a lot of money to spend on groceries and I try to make a dollar stretch as much as possible. Eating organically isn't exactly the best way to do this. Even though this is true, I still plan to stick to the plan for at least another week because I know it is much healthier for me and everyone else in the long run.

Next Week

I think I am going to try a different grocery store in hopes that some of the prices will be a little lower. I also plan to look in the weekly adds to see if there are any deals.

http://amyintherain.blogspot.com/2010/11/eco-chic-lifestyle-change-week-2-weekly.html

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change: My SMART Goal

Over the next 10 weeks, I will be working to achieve a goal that will benefit both myself and the environment.

My SMART goal is:

I will buy organic products to equal at least 50% of my total bill when grocery shopping 1 time per week (Sunday) for the next 10 weeks. 

This lifestyle will benefit the environment and myself by reducing the amount of harmful chemicals that are entering my body, decreasing the demand from companies that provide harmful products by not purchasing the products which will decrease the production in the long run, and possibly keeping the money I spend local.

Ever since I read the book Hormone Deception and watched the documentaries in class, I have become very aware of the harmful effects these chemicals can cause on the human body as they are not natural. Since I am 23-years-old and my friends are all recently pregnant, I've been thinking about ways that I can start to prepare my own body for when I'm ready to have a child someday (not in the near future). I think now is a good time to start slowly ridding my body of the toxins that are lurking around. As well as the effects that the foods are having on me directly, I am not happy with how the large corporations are treating the environment. They are not considerate and are killing it at a very fast rate. Therefore, they do not deserve people to purchase their product as it is unhealthy in so many ways.

I'm very interested to see how my body and energy will be after the next 10 weeks from eating more organic and natural foods. Hopefully, I'll see some good results!

Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 1 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain

Welcome to Samantha: Green with Envi

Hi everyone! My name is Samantha and I am currently a senior at the University of Minnesota-Duluth with a major in Health Education (Community). In my limited free time, I enjoy reading, shopping, and enjoying the outdoors.

My blog will be about a variety of topics concerning the environment. I will attempt to provide the latest and greatest ideas and inventions for going green!

There are 6 possible types of posts on my blog. They include:

1. Advocacy Project
2. Eye Openers
3. Reflections
4. Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change
5. Read 'n' Seed
6. Share and Voice

If you notice at the bottom of this post, the categories will be listed as labels. This post is has been labeled with all five kinds of posts. You will also see the number of each kind of post in my Labels Gadget at the top of the page.  All post titles from now on will begin with one of the categories above.

The members of my web group are:
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Thanks for checking out my blog. I look forward to helping you take small steps that can lead to a big change for a healthy environment!