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So I've been pretty focused on eliminating wheat products from my diet lately, but admittedly, it's been an on-again, off-again relationship for about two years now.  I haven't been diagnosed as being gluten intolerant, I haven't taken that step, but I definitely feel better when I'm not eating so much regular bread, pasta, or crackers. The sluggishness, the bloating, the headaches... Not there when I don't eat the stuff.

Since being introduced to the gluten-free world by a girlfriend back in 2020, I've sampled and reviewed a number of gluten-free products in tinkering with my diet.  Some foods I've really enjoyed with such products very similar in taste and texture to their wheat-based counterpart.  Some foods I've tried really sucked, or were "eh" and not repeat buy worthy.  A common problem with gluten-free options is the higher price tag which in many cases is cost-prohibitive in my book.  Have you seen how much a loaf of gluten-free bread costs?

It's tough to have a cheeseburger with a GOOD gluten-free bun that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.  Pizza, my favorite food has been a challenge to stay away from because gluten-free options haven't compared favorably, although they have improved.  Pasta dishes in the past too were not so good with gluten-free alternatives, but there's been some solid progress there.

New products are being introduced every day now it seems, that cater to a gluten-free diet.  I love cheese wrap products as an alternative to flour tortillas for example.  They are not only tasty, but they cost about the same as a package of gluten-free tortillas.  I've never been impressed with 'fake' flour tortillas, they lack the versatility, durability, and flexibility of the real deal in a variety of preparations.  They crumble, they fall apart, and they don't fold, brown, or crisp up as well.

Traveling makes sticking to a gluten-free diet tougher. Yes, more and more restaurants are including gluten-free options on their menu, but it's still a challenge eating right when on the road. In recent travels, about half my meals included wheat, simply because I didn't plan ahead or care to choose more thoughtfully. Lesson learned. After this latest trip, I don't need an official diagnosis from a doctor. My body gave me a proverbial slap upside the head. Next trip, I'll plan ahead a little more diligently, pack more snacks, I'll order smarter from a restaurant menu and I have to learn to say "No thank you," or just pass on the wheat options being served up at the dinner table of family and friends.

So in moving forward, I'll be doing a daily diary of going gluten-free, including my meal menu and the review of any new gluten-free products I sample in taking this journey.  I'll be taking a special focus on eating gluten-free in restaurants, what options are available, and what to do when the restaurant isn't exactly gluten-free friendly.

The Bachelor on the Cheap Gluten-Free Challenge 2023!

Related: Food Review: Mission Gluten Free Tortillas

Related: Gluten free crackers that will step up your snack spread and not break the snack budget

$pend Wisely My Friends...

~ Mike

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Bachelor on the Cheap

So after indulging the last few weeks in guilty food pleasures, the burgers, pizza, french fries, chocolate cake and the like...  You decide you need to "Detox," cleanse the body and reset.

There are all kinds of quick detox fixes online, promising some product or gimmicky little trick that will provide you what your body 'needs' to rid itself of supposed toxins.  All you need the promises claim, is some activated charcoal, pills, green juice, herbal tea, or apple cider vinegar.

That's all horse manure.  You're being marketed.  There's really no evidence that detox products actually remove toxins from your body.

Your body already does a good job of removing toxins.  Provided you have a working liver, pancreas and kidneys, you don't need some detox product or gimmick.  Seriously, you go to the bathroom right?  Bowel movements and urination is your body getting rid of stuff your body doesn't need, to include toxins.

The best ways to aid your body in dealing with supposed toxins is to do three very ordinary things:  Eat smarter, get some sleep, drink water.

Eating smarter means putting less garbage in your body, putting less stress on the liver, pancreas and kidneys.  Sure, indulge in those guilty pleasure foods once in a while, but follow it up with smarter choices afterwards.  Good eating and drinking habits results in a more efficient body and your system will be quicker to 'rejuvenate' when you do have that occasional - not habitual - burger and fries.

Getting 7-8 hours of sleep a night plays an important role in helping your body to naturally 'detox.'  This is when your body does its best work in removing toxins from your body.  When you only allow yourself 5 hours of sleep, you didn't let your body complete some important processes.  The resulting sluggishness the next day isn't just the lack of sleep itself, it's your body under-performing due to unfinished tasks.

In order for your liver, kidneys and pancreas to perform at their best, you need to drink water and plenty of it.  Every system in your body depends on being properly hydrated.  Water doesn't get the attention that activated charcoals, pills, green juices and herbal teas do for 'detoxing' because it's not a money maker.  But water plays a much more critical role in the performance of your body than those detox products do.  Stay hydrated throughout the day by drinking water, so when you lay down to sleep, your body is at it's optimum and ready to perform those overnight tasks.

Don't waste your money on those supposed detox products, you don't need them.  Keep that money in your pocket, all you need to do is eat smarter, get some sleep and drink water.

$pend Wisely My Friends...

~ Mike

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If you appreciate the information you just read and want to support more great content on BachelorontheCheap.com, you can help keep this site going with a one-time or a monthly donation.  Thank you so much for your support! ~ Mike

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By Mike Thayer

I used to look up carb counts on the internet or read the packaging for each and every food item I prepared and ate.    When putting something on the grill or in a frying pan for example, I would read the packaging or look on the internet for the serving size and carb count.  Writing those numbers down, I would then do some math to get a carb count total for all foods consumed at meal time.  That carb count research got tedious at times, but now I've got some great data to share!

You don't have to look up carb counts one-at-a-time, yours truly- Mr. Bachelor on the Cheap - has done all that work for you!

Find carb counts for meat, fish, dairy, veggies, fruits, right here on www.bacheloronthecheap.com.

And if you don't see the carb count for a food you want to eat listed on these pages, it's not listed for a reason - the carb count is too high, don't eat it! 

Beef Carb Count: You don't really have to worry about carbs when eating beef

Poultry Carb Count: Chicken and Turkey meats are USUALLY carb-free

Pork Carb Count: Pork is loaded with protein and low in carbs

Fish Carb Count: Eat any kind of fish you want, just not breaded or battered

Dairy Carb Count: Dairy products are fine in moderation

Veggie Carb Count: Veggies provide you with all the carbs you need, no pasta, rice, potatoes, bread, chips required......

Fruit Carb Count: Fruits are tasty, but can be too much of a good thing

Stick to eating the foods listed on these pages and you'll lose weight.  You could probably get away with not counting carbs in a daily diet diary, but I don't recommend it.  Keeping a diary helps you stay disciplined, focused and tracks your progress.

TIP:  Add a cost element to your tracking, it will show you the financial benefit of sticking to low carb foods.  You'll actually see a drop in your grocery bill!

$pend Wisely My Friends...

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It looks better than it tastes

If you appreciate the article you just read and want to support more great content on BachelorontheCheap.com, you can help keep this site going with a one-time or a monthly donation.  Thank you so much for your support! ~ Mike

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Mike Thayer

It's official, inflation has a solid grip on America and there's no indication that grip will loosen any time soon.

The price of gasoline is up 50% over last year.  The price of groceries is up almost 13% and that doesn't include the costs for beef, pork and chicken, up an average 18% overall.  FYI, beef tops the big three meats at a 23% increase over last year.

I went into Fantastic Sam's today to get a haircut.  I've been going there since 2016, where the price for a men's haircut has been $12.95 all that time.  On Saturday, 07/23, the price went up to $18.  That's more than a 28% increase.  I should have gotten my haircut on Friday...

I don't like the increase, but I understand it.  The cost of everything is up, fuel for your vehicle, energy for your home, food - grocery & restaurant, pretty much anything you consume, the price has gone up.  Part of that problem are labor and supply/distribution shortages. When visiting with the lady giving me a haircut today, I found out she's a popcorn lover like I am.   She then informed me there is a popcorn shortage going on!  Seriously?  Popcorn of all things?  "Thanks" Joe!

So sadly, Fantastic Sam's may no longer be the cheapest place to get a good haircut in town.  I'll be updating the price list I did just last month.

Stay tuned for that list, my guess is if Fantastic Sam's has raised their prices, the other shops have too.

By Mike Thayer

This was tonight's dinner. Two pork rind crusted Tilapia fillets. That's right, you read that correctly, pork rind crusted! DELICIOUS!  Finely pulsed regular, plain pork rinds in a food processor, rather than bread crumbs.  I added some seasoning to the pulsed pork rinds, some dried parsley, garlic powder, salt, black pepper.  After soaking the fish fillets in some milk for a bit, I 'breaded' the fillets and put them in some hot canola oil, 3 minutes on the first side, 2 minutes on the second.

It's another dose of YUM!  I'm full, I'm feeling very satisfied with a crunchy fried food..... no side dishes required. And guess what, no carbs! This dinner provided me with 40 grams of protein. I tested the pork rind 'breading' on fish because fish doesn't take long at all to cook, my fear was burning the 'breading' from a longer stay in the frying pan. But based on these initial results, I'm thinking some thin cut pork chops is worth a try!

And this was a very Bachelor on the Cheap wallet friendly meal.  Tilapia is an inexpensive fish and pork rinds are flat out cheap!  This tasty fish meal cost me about $6 to prepare and I've leftovers for lunch tomorrow and plenty of pork rinds to snack on later!

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By Mike Thayer

Eating chips means eating carbs and those kind of carbs are a bad thing.

Eat a bratwurst or a hot dog instead.

Eating a brat has about the same amount of fat as the chips do.  Yes, really.  A brat also puts twice the proteins in your body and it's a snack that will stay with you longer and won't drive your blood sugar up like chip carbs will.   In other words, a brat is better for your body's metabolism. 

Here's the breakdown:  A 2 ounce serving of Nacho Cheese Doritos have about 280 calories, 16 grams of fat, 32 carbs and 4 grams of protein.  A brat, which typically run at about 2.3 ounces, has about 200 calories, 17 grams of fat, 1 carb and 8 grams of protein.

A brat has fewer calories, more protein and most importantly, far less carbs.  

Another plus to snacking on proteins regularly instead of chips and such.....  Snacking on proteins will eventually lead to snacking less, a.k.a., weight loss.

And then there's the Bachelor on the Cheap wallet friendly cost factor...  Cost of a small snack bag of Doritos - 47¢.  Cost of a brat - 80¢.   You'll be reaching for something else to snack on to tide you over if you went with the chips.  No so with the brat, the proteins keep you fuller, longer. 

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By Mike Thayer

What would you rather have, a grilled hot dog or one that's been heated up in a frying pan?  Would you rather have a breast of chicken grilled, or oven baked?  I don't know about you, but I'll choose the grilled variety every time just based on flavor, but a bonus is, most grilled versions of meats are leaner too. 

Grilling lends itself to a leaner diet, just by the method of cooking.  Think about it, fats come off the meats and drip down into the coals, making for a leaner bite vs. a meat that's fried or baked in an oven.  Both of the latter two methods of cooking typically means the meat is sitting in a hot pan of oils and/or meat fats.   Yes, grilled beats even oven baked because most recipes for the oven call for the addition of oils and/or starches (carbs) to add flavor and keep them moist and the meats bathe, er, cook in those oils and/or starches.

Here's an example:  You can throw an all beef hot dog on the grill, as is, get that great grilled flavor - 150 calories.  Throw an all beef hot dog in the frying pan with a teaspoon of olive oil and add 40 calories to that to hot dog total and now you're eating 190 calories.  Never mind that the fried version doesn't taste as good.  If you're into counting calories, that's significant, especially over the long term, 30 calories here, 40 calories there....  It adds up.   Heck, it adds up in just one meal....  If you eat two grilled hot dogs - 300 calories.  If you eat two fried hot dogs - 380 calories.

Now regular readers know that counting calories isn't really done in the Carb-Check Diet, so let me give you another example in how grilling lends itself to a leaner diet.   A six ounce grilled chicken breast with some dry rub and a kiss of olive oil is about 280 calories, no carbs and it's delicious!  A six ounce chicken breast done in the oven is about 250 calories, but then, how do you make it taste good?  Add a little olive oil and tomato sauce?   Add another 80 calories and 8 grams in carbs.  How about rolling it in bread crumbs and oven 'frying' it?  Add another 120 calories and a whopping 21 grams in carbs!

And here's an even better measure in how grilling goes hand in hand with the Carb-Check Diet.....  Eating two deliciously seasoned grilled cheeseburger patties with no bun is better in terms of diet, enjoying the food and STICKING to the diet, than eating a fried burger on a bun with a side of fries.  Eating a tantalizing grilled chicken breast is better than eating oven 'fried' chicken tenders.  Eating a mouth-watering grilled steak is better than eating baked steak smothered in a mushroom gravy and served on a bed of noodles to make it taste good.  It's those carbs that kill you, especially in foods that are breaded and fried, heck, as you can read, even oven fried!

Grilled meats are typically leaner and they have a flavor advantage created by the smoke (no calories, no carbs) and grilled meats can also save you time in future meals, grill a bunch to create some great leftovers!  

Eat leaner, eat grilled and save money by not buying bad carbs to boot.

By Mike Thayer

IF you're going to eat some bad carbs...... try to do it in the morning.   Sometimes it's tough to get through a day of meal planning without taking in some kind of bad carbs, I know, been there, done that.  But if you eat them (if you really, really just can't help it) in the morning, at least you have the remainder of the day to burn those bad carbs off.  Having toast or potatoes with breakfast?  OK, fine, but then you have to be disciplined enough to stay away from chips, pasta rice, etc., for the rest of the day.  

The worst thing you can do, is eat bad carbs with supper.  Your body won't be able to burn those carbs off before you hit the hay, it will just store the excess as fat.   Ooops!

And think of the money you're saving by dropping the bad cards for lunch, snacking and dinner...

By Mike Thayer

According to our "Oh-so-wise" government, in order to maintain a healthy weight, the U.S. daily recommendation is to consume 225 - 325 grams of carbohydrates per day based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

If you're the typical American, that's horse manure.  If you're the typical American, consuming that many carbs will cause weight gain!

"So Mike," you ask......   "Define Typical American."

OK.

The typical American these days wakes up, gets ready for work, travels to work be it by car or mass transit.  Sitting at a desk makes up much of the day for many.  Standing on your feet performing light physical duties is what takes place for many others.  For most folks, regular exercise is not part of the routine, which is wake up, work, do something not really physically demanding after work, get some sleep, repeat.

That typical way of life does NOT require 225 to 325 grams of carbohydrates a day to function.

Here's a simple, general rule of thumb.  If you work out regularly, you need all those carbs.   If you don't work out regularly, you flat out don't.  The government's recommended daily intake is pretty much garbage in the real world.

A sedentary lifestyle - desk jockey, no work out - your body only needs about 135 grams in carbs to maintain body weight....  Note I said 'maintain', not lose weight.   If you want to lose weight, that carb gram intake needs to be under 60 a day.

A moderate lifestyle - standing on the job, light physical activity - your body only needs about 180 grams in carbs to maintain weight.

So what does that mean in terms of food?  Cut back on the potatoes, rice, pasta and bread and it's not that hard to do.

Consider the following:

A typical slice of bread/toast has 13 grams in carbs.  It takes two slices of bread to make a sandwich and most folks eat two pieces of toast with breakfast.  That's 26 carbs total.

A 1/2 cup of white rice comes with a carb price tag of 23 grams.

A cup of pasta as 35 grams of carbs.

A medium potato has 38 carbs.

Those are all typical serving sizes.  So follow me on this.....  You have two slices of toast/biscuit, croissant/bagle with breakfast, around 26 carbs.... Having a side of hash browns with that?  Add another 19 carbs.  Chinese stir fry and rice for lunch, 23 carbs and that doesn't count the carbs in the veggies that are part of the stir fry....  Some potato chips for an afternoon snack, let's say another 19 carbs.....  Spaghetti and meatballs for dinner, and you had two helpings along with some garlic bread....  Add another 96 carbs....    Total carb intake for the day?  A whopping 183 grams in carbs!  

For that sedentary lifestyle, you've gone over what your body ACTUALLY needs by about 50 carb grams.  Do that everyday and yes, you'll gain weight.

"But Mike," you say, "that 183 grams in carbs you laid out in a typical day is perfect for somebody with a moderate lifestyle right?"

Nope.

Let's dig a little deeper into those carb counts shall we?  Did you have cream and sugar with your morning coffee?  Add at least another 5 grams in carbs....  And how many cups did you have?  Most folks don't drink just one cup.  Did you put some ketchup on those hash rounds you had with breakfast?  Add another 5 carb grams.  That cheese on that sausage, egg, cheese croissant?  Add another gram.  How about those veggies in the stir fry for lunch?  Depending on the mix, that's another 10-20 carbs.  Did you drink a regular soda or two at some point during the day?  Add another 24 grams in carbs.  Did you have a salad with that spaghetti at dinner?  Add another 10 grams in carbs.  So how many MORE carb grams do we add to the total?  Another 55 - 65 grams in carbs.

Even for the moderate lifestyle, that's at least 238 carbs, 58 grams above what a moderate lifestyle kind of person 'needs' to maintain a healthy weight.  It's a recipe for weight gain, not 'maintain.'

So how do you cut back, without finding yourself hungry between meals?  It's easier than you think.  Eat one slice of toast, not two to knock off 13 grams in carbs.  Switch to heavy cream for your coffee (0 grams in carbs) instead of the coffee creamer, knock off 5 more carbs.  Ditch the soda, knock off 24 more grams in carbs.  Don't have that second helping of spaghetti, having a bigger salad instead, knock off 25 more grams in carbs.  Knock off total:  67 fewer carbs.  Doing little things like that, means a better looking you!  We can talk about why the heck you're eating bread, rice, chips and pasta all in one day - you shouldn't be - at a later time.....

And the bonus to carb cutting?  Spending less money at the grocery store.  Seriously, not buying so much bread, pasta, and chips - all those are processed food carbs, bad carbs...  And replacing those items with veggies (good carbs), cheeses and lean meats will save you money at check out.  Yes, I know, meat is expensive, but eating 4 ounces of meat protein keeps you fuller, much longer, than a 4 ounce bag of chips.

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