Q&A Wednesday: Could YOU Survive On $35?

Yesterday, Chuck Runyon, CEO of Anytime Fitness, gave an interview regarding his experiences on the television show Secret Millionaire, and the budget he was given to do his grocery shopping:

Tell us about the Survive on $35 Challenge.

On Secret Millionaire, Dave and I had only $35 each to feed ourselves for a full week, which is equivalent to what someone on government assistance receives. We did our best to show that not only could it be done, but it could be done in a healthy way.

Now, Anytime Fitness is challenging ten FitFluential Ambassadors to do the same. Can you survive— and even thrive— on $35/week? Keep in mind that for 7 days and 3 meals/day, that averages out to only $1.66 per meal! Of course, families will have a bigger budget to work with ($35 per adult, $20 per child). The challengers will strive to eat healthy and hopefully tasty food on that meager allowance.

Challengers will be judged by Anytime Fitness staffers based on budget, health, and taste. It also doesn’t hurt to get great feedback in the form of likes, shares, comments, etc.

Two Ambassadors will each win a $1,000 donation to the food shelf of their choice.

We understand this challenge was your idea. What inspired you to do it?

First, I was inspired by the show, where for a short time we experienced firsthand how difficult it is to get by on government assistance. I wanted to bring that issue into the public eye. There are so many people, especially children, who are not getting the nourishment they need due to poverty.

Second, I was inspired by one of biggest excuses in our industry, which is that eating healthy is too expensive. It really doesn’t have to be if you do it right.

Notice, I didn’t say it was easy. But, it doesn’t have to be expensive.

What was your experience trying to eat healthy on $35 a week while on Secret Millionaire?

I’m not much of price-conscious shopper in my normal life, so it was quite a change to be wandering through the grocery store, comparing prices on everything we bought.

We’re not cooks either, so we kept it simple. Yogurt, granola, whole wheat bread, turkey, etc. We had to think hard about whether we could afford a simple luxury like coffee. Like everything we did on the show, it was a total change of perspective.

And, as a FitFluential Ambassador, of course I was given the challenge.

…and, as the queen of saving my pennies (in other words, you need the jaws of life to pry my wallet open), of course I took that challenge. $1,000 is a lot of money, and I know of several places that could use it – shoot, plenty of you know of places that could use that – so, here’s what I need from you.

Are you listening…er… reading?

I’ll be posting photos of the recipes on my instagram account, which you can follow by searching for “bgg2wl” on instagram. The photos will be posting on my twitter account, as well as on my facebook page. If you like what you see, hit those like buttons! The winner is chosen by crowd participation, so you guys will be a key component of us winning!

How will I manage to make it? Well, we do have a hefty series of posts on how to save money, which will be a huge help:

• Save Money On Groceries: Buy It In Bulk
• Save Money On Groceries: Buy It In Season
• Save Money On Groceries: Go Weekly
• Save Money On Groceries: Buy The Private Label (Go Generic!)
• Save Money On Groceries: Go Frozen!
• Q&A Wednesday: The $50 Challenge
• Save Money on Groceries: Go… Smaller?
• Save Money On Groceries: The Readers Share Their Tips!

Keep your eyes peeled on the #surviveon35 hashtag, and let me know in the comments what tips you’ve got to make it easier for someone to #surviveon35!