Mum who lost 34kg in nine months shares the practical hacks to save you $50 a week on groceries 

A busy mum-of-four who lost 34kg in nine months has shared the simple ways she cuts her grocery bill by $50 a week, as the cost of living soars across Australia. 

Sascha Farley, from Sydney, credits the Healthy Mummy program with her incredible weight loss – and said the secret to saving money at the supermarket is always having a plan.

‘I’ve always been good at budgeting, but now with the cost of everything going up around us, I really need to ramp up all the budget hacks and tips I’ve learnt to save more,’ Sascha told Healthy Mummy.

‘These tricks help me to save $50 a week, which is $200 a month or $4,470 a year.’

A busy mum-of-four who lost 34kg in nine months shared the simple ways she cuts her grocery costs by $50 a week, amidst rising cost of living across the country (Sascha Farley pictured)

Sascha Farley, from Sydney, credits the popular Healthy Mummy program with her incredible weight loss  (Sasha pictured before and after)

Sascha Farley, from Sydney, credits the popular Healthy Mummy program with her incredible weight loss  (Sasha pictured before and after)

Sascha’s first tip is that you always need to have a plan.

Every week, she writes a list and does a scan of what she has in her fridge and pantry to see whether she can make any meals with the items.

Sascha will also correspond her grocery list alongside the supermarket catalogues to see what’s on special and how she can put those things into her meals.

When it comes to the shop itself, the mum-of-four said she always looks down to find the cheaper home brand items instead of shopping at eye level.

‘Swap out product types and brands; go for good quality home brands, use frozen fruit and veg and buy in bulk to freeze,’ she recommended.

The Farley family also eat two or three vegetarian dinners a week and buy dry herbs instead of fresh.

Sascha (pictured) said you always need to have a plan when you're shopping, and she recommends looking down in order to find the cheaper home brand items

Sascha (pictured) said you always need to have a plan when you're shopping, and she recommends looking down in order to find the cheaper home brand items

Sascha (pictured) said you always need to have a plan when you’re shopping, and she recommends looking down in order to find the cheaper home brand items

The mum-of-four (pictured before and after) said you should stock up on pantry staples when they're on Special like rice, pasta and tinned tomatoes

The mum-of-four (pictured before and after) said you should stock up on pantry staples when they’re on Special like rice, pasta and tinned tomatoes

‘Stock up on pantry staples when they’re on Special – rice, pasta, tinned tomatoes,’ she said.

‘You can also cut down your food waste by freezing overripe bananas, and save your bread crusts in order to turn them into breadcrumbs.’

Elsewhere, Sascha recommends the ‘cook once, eat twice’ philosophy, whereby she puts some food in the freezer for the future.

‘You should also always check out the price per 100 grabs for the best value,’ she added, as it’s not always the cheapest just to buy the largest item. 

Sascha Farley’s grocery shopping secrets 

* Check the pantry and fridge every week to know what you have so you don’t double up or waste food. 

* Look at the catalogue before hitting the shops to plan your meals and confirm what you need.

* Swap out product types and brands; go for good quality home brands, use frozen fruit and veg, and buy in bulk to freeze.

* Eat less meat with two or three vegetarian options each week. 

* Swap fresh herbs for dry herbs.

* Stock up on pantry staples when they are on special – rice, pasta, tinned tomatoes. 

* Avoid food waste by freezing overripe bananas, and save your bread crusts to turn into breadcrumbs.

* Do regular meal preps throughout the week to create double batches for the freezer, saving you money but also time. 

* Check out the price per 100 grams for the best value (as noted on the shelf price tags in major supermarkets). 

Source: Healthy Mummy 

Some of Sascha's favourite budget-friendly dishes to make for her family are with chicken mince, which is often much cheaper than lean beef mince, she said (one of her meals pictured)

Some of Sascha’s favourite budget-friendly dishes to make for her family are with chicken mince, which is often much cheaper than lean beef mince, she said (one of her meals pictured)

Some of Sascha’s favourite budget-friendly dishes to make for her family are with chicken mince, which is often much cheaper than lean beef mince, she said.

Recently, the mum-of-four made chicken mince rissoles with vegetables, as well as chicken san choy bow and healthy sausage rolls made with chicken mince.

‘I do like to get my kids to try new things but to be honest, I tend to stick to what they like so I know they are eating nutritious food and meal times aren’t a struggle,’ Sascha said.

She also whips up snacks for them to take to school so that they don’t have to buy ready-made options.

Previously, the mum shared the diet and workout secrets she swears by for maintaining her toned physique (pictured before and after)

Previously, the mum shared the diet and workout secrets she swears by for maintaining her toned physique (pictured before and after)

Sascha said the secret is to eat every two to three hours, incorporate protein into each meal and change up your exercise regime

Sascha said the secret is to eat every two to three hours, incorporate protein into each meal and change up your exercise regime

Previously, the mum shared the diet and workout secrets she swears by for maintaining her toned physique.

Sascha said the secret is to eat every two to three hours, incorporate protein into each meal and change up your exercise regime.

‘I swear that adding more protein to every meal is key if you want to lose weight,’ she told Healthy Mummy.

‘It will boost your metabolism, reduce your appetite and help regulate the hormones that support weight loss.’

When it comes to how Sascha lost the weight, she said one of the keys was changing up her exercise routine constantly and drinking as much as three litres of water each and every day

When it comes to how Sascha lost the weight, she said one of the keys was changing up her exercise routine constantly and drinking as much as three litres of water each and every day

Sascha said meal prepping is hugely helpful when it comes to weight loss, and she subscribes to the cook once, eat twice philosophy (meal prep pictured)

Sascha said meal prepping is hugely helpful when it comes to weight loss, and she subscribes to the cook once, eat twice philosophy (meal prep pictured)

When it comes to how Sascha lost the weight, she said one of the keys was changing up her exercise routine constantly and drinking as much as three litres of water each and every day.

‘You need to make sure you’re drinking consistently throughout the day, there’s no point drinking in the morning and afternoon. Little sips all day is key,’ she said. 

For workouts, the mum-of-four does everything from running and walking to circuit training using one of her four children as a weight.

‘Whether it be the type, the time, the effort, it’s true we become conditioned to thing we do consistently for a long period of time so “shock” your body and you’ll get a reaction,’ she explained.

Sascha eats a meal every two or three hours and swears it’s the secret to avoiding over-eating at any one period in the day.

She also drinks two smoothies each day – which she acks full of fruits and vegetables – and meal preps regularly.

Sascha normally does a bulk cook every 6-8 weeks in order to stock her freezer full of healthy meals.

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