A few weeks back, someone asked us in an interview if we could name the top 2 things that have helped us live healthier. The answers came out so quickly and easily that we both looked at each other and knew we had a great topic for an article.
No. they are not get quick rich ideas. And they are not some 10 or 20 step process program. They are simply two time-tested, down-to earth answers to help work towards a better, more fulfilling, quality of life. When we first started this journey of creating “the farm” back in 2010, it was simply to slow down and live better. That was it – just have a healthier, less stressful, and more fulfilling life.
Good organic food is a great way to live healthier and – especially when you grow your own and save on your budget too!
The 2 ideas in this article embrace that concept. And as crazy as it sounds, helped us to be able to save big on our family and household expenses as well.
In fact, the “more cash” part of the headline is about saving more of the hard earned money you make by the two concepts below, than about making more. Let’s face it, money can be a huge stress factor for a lot of people – so finding ways to make yours count for more can help reduce or even eliminate that stress. Below are the two major things that made the most difference in our life. Quite honestly, they will work for anyone or any family that is willing to simply put forth the effort.
So maybe not earth shattering, but certainly life changing. And they have certainly helped us slow down, live healthier, and have near zero stress in the process! In order, here they are:
2 Insanely Simple Ways To Live Healthier
#1 – GROW A GARDEN – Become Responsible For Some, Most, Or All Of Your Food
The number one way to be healthier, have less stress and to save cash is to simply grow some, most, or all of your own food!
It was growing nearly all of our family’s food that helped us save to build the farm
Food is expensive. In fact, food is one of the largest, if the not the largest expense category in every personal or family budget. Now add in that healthy, processed-free and / or organic food can be harder and costlier to find, and growing your own makes complete sense.
Growing a garden solves every aspect in the title of this article. It lets you live healthier by providing great food and exercise, and saves big money!
And contrary to what so many people think – it’s simply not hard with a little effort! By gardening with our raised row method, raising a few chickens, and canning and preserving the extra harvest – we have been able to provide nearly 3/4 of the food our family has needed over the last 6 years. Good, wholesome, inexpensive, organic and preservative-free food. I can’t begin to tell how beneficial that has been to our life and lifestyle. And the garden has become a complete sense of joy for us. Although it doesn’t require huge sums of time to plant or maintain, it does provide incredible exercise to boot.
So many people have the opportunity to grow some or all of their food and save in so many ways; on their budget, and their health. So many are blessed with wide open backyard space that is just waiting to provide so much to their bottom line and lifestyle. Others are blessed with big patio spaces that could be turned into the perfect spot for container gardens.
And what if you don’t have space or land? All you have to do is dig a little more (pardon the pun) to find it! Opportunities to grow are everywhere, you just need to look! There are thousands upon thousands of neighborhood community gardens around the country that allow people to opportunity to grow their own food. And if there isn’t one in your neighborhood, then find and empty lot, ask, and see if you can create one! It’s actually pretty inexpensive to purchase basic, complete heirloom seeds sets in the ground and grow incredible food!
Our Garden changed our eating habits, health, and our saved us a lot of money in the process. Yep, without out a doubt – it is number 1 on this list! See – The Secret To A Great Raised Row Garden
#2 Learn To DIY! Do More Things Yourself
#2 is just as straightforward as the first. If you want to have more and save more – then learn to do more yourself.
Fact – EVERYONE can learn how to do something new. And yes, that includes DIY projects of all shapes and sizes that can save huge sums of money, and give you a little exercise to boot!
Learning to build first our pergola at the farm. I love seeing old photos like this
Contrary to popular belief, you are not born with a green thumb when it comes to gardening. Just like no one is “born” with amazing DIY skills. They are simply learned from a little effort.
I always chuckle when someone tells us we are so lucky to be such handy people. Here is a secret – we had no master skills when we started, I mean ZERO. When we first tore down a barn to build ours 6 years ago to start this little “farm”, we were completely clueless!
What we did have was the willingness to learn, fail, laugh at it, and learn some more until we got it right.
Okay, so a few tools help too. But you don’t have to have thousands of dollars worth of equipment to get things done. In fact, We have used our incredible little Porter Cable 20 volt combo kit of tools to complete hundreds if not a thousand or more projects a the farm. Not bad for not having some giant work shop.
The truth is with today’s technology and a few inexpensive tools, you can learn to do almost any task in a matter of minutes on-line. There are hundreds of how-to articles, videos and tutorials along with inexpensive building plans for almost nothing on line.
By learning to do as many things as you can yourself or together, you can save hundreds if not thousands – and learn some pretty awesome life-changing skills in the process.
One final tip on the DIY subject. Learn to make it fun. Learn to laugh when you mess up. Learn to accept that it won’t ever be “perfect.” Not only will you save big money on projects, you will also get a little exercise in the process.
Here is to the two things that can bring a healthier, happier, and less stress filled life to everyone – Gardening and DIY! Jim and Mary
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