Earlier this year, I wrote a blog post on 10 things I don’t buy as a minimalist. In the meantime, I moved and traveled a lot and realized that there are a lot of things I don’t buy, use or even need anymore. So here are the additional 15 things I don’t buy.
Food-related things I don’t buy
1. animal products
I went vegan about 5 years ago and then I stopped buying animal products. Nowadays there are vegan versions for literally everything. So it was an easy transition for me.
Vegan milk, vegan eggs, vegan fish… Whatever you can think of, there is a plant-based option. Since I stopped buying animal products, my health has improved, my nails got stronger, my digestion has improved as well… Those are only a few benefits.
2. bread
I talked about how I quit eating bread in this post so I won’t get into details now. But essentially what happened was that I realized I was eating too much bread and how it wasn’t very nutritious (at least the cheapest ones I was buying), so I just stopped buying it.
Now I eat more wholesome foods that give me more energy and I feel much better not eating sandwiches all the time and adding bread to every meal.
3. pasta
Same as bread, loaded with wheat flour and not quite healthy. Of course, there are many other options. For instance, chickpea pasta or quinoa pasta, but I would always overindulge in it so I stopped buying it.
I just switched to buckwheat and quinoa, which are, in my opinion, healthier alternatives.
Might as well put a little disclaimer here since food is often a very touchy subject; I’m not telling you what food you should eat or avoid. I’m just sharing my experience and my point of view. You do what makes you feel good.
4. oil
I was regularly using olive oil which I would pour over almost every meal or sunflower oil for cooking. And then I watched this video where dr. Michael Klaper said that if you wouldn’t pour oil in your sink because it would clog your drain, why would you put it in your body? He made so many excellent points that I just stopped consuming it.
You can use water instead of oil for cooking or baking sheets when you’re baking something that would require oil. I am consuming healthy fats from chia seeds, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc. And, according to this site, I’m not lacking anything.
Since I’ve already mentioned it, it’s a really great site to track if you’re getting all the nutrients you need. I use it occasionally just to see if there’s some area that needs improvement.
5. sea salt/table salt
I use Himalayan black salt which actually has the taste of hard-boiled eggs. It makes the dish so much more flavourful, and it also reduces bloating and is great for digestion.
I was using too much sea salt so I just stopped buying it, and switched to the healthier alternative. Here you can read more about the benefits and uses of black salt.
6. sugar
White sugar, brown sugar, stevia… All the things that I don’t buy anymore.
I drink plain tea and occasionally put plant-based milk and Ceylon cinnamon in my decaf coffee, and that’s it.
If I’m baking something that would require sugar, I use dates instead because they are naturally sweet (as is all fruit).
I don’t see any health advantages in adding sugar and it took me maybe two weeks to get used to the taste of plain green tea, but now I enjoy the taste so much more.
7. flour
I make my own flour in a blender. I just put oats in it and there you have it – oat flour. Or if you prefer gluten-free flour, buy gluten-free oats.
8. pre-cut produce
Pre-portioned fruit, salads, etc. Quite unnecessary and a lot more expensive than buying separately apples, lettuce, etc.
9. multivitamins
Occasionally I like to watch morning routine videos on YouTube and oftentimes people are taking heaps of vitamins in the form of a pill, as soon as they wake up. That never made any sense to me.
If you need zinc, eat pumpkin seeds. Vitamin C? One orange a day is enough. Iron? Spinach. Omega-3? Chia seeds.
Just one tablespoon of chia seeds per day is enough. I know, they can seem pricey but they will last you a long time so I think it’s a reasonable investment.
I do supplement vitamin B12, and that’s often suggested to everyone. Even to carnivores because even the animals you eat are supplemented by B12 and you don’t get it in its pure form. If you want to know a bit more about B12, check out this video.
10. soda/fizzy drinks/juices
After I stopped consuming sugar, when I would buy some juice it would be so unbearably sweet that after trying out a few different ones, I just cut them out completely. And, needless to say, they are not healthy at all.
Read more about minimalism:
3 ways minimalism will make you more productive
9 ways minimalism changed my life
Minimalism for beginners – how to get started
Non-food-related things I don’t buy anymore
11. paper towels
(Okay, we’re still in the kitchen…) I believe kitchen towels and sponges are enough.
Getting into the habit of stocking up on paper towels every two weeks is an unnecessary expense if you think about it. Which suddenly brings me to thing number 12, which just popped to my mind…
12. oven mitts
#minimalism, am I right? I don’t know, I just never use them. I always simply grab a kitchen towel, roll it and that’s it.
13. plastic bags
I reuse the same big plastic bags for carrying the groceries, so there’s no need to buy new ones every time I go to the store.
And, regarding produce – I purchased cloth bags so I don’t need to use small plastic bags at the store. It makes life easier.
14. duplicates
If you have something that works, why would you want a duplicate?
When it comes to buying something you already own, yes, you will love it for a few days. But after that initial excitement is over, the only thing that is going to be on your mind is what you did to your bank account. So do yourself a favor and think twice about buying things you already own.
15. hairdryer
I don’t take it with me on my travels, I didn’t take it with me when I moved to another city for a few months, and I don’t use it now.
Mostly I wash my hair at night and let it dry naturally. It gets dry in about 20 minutes so I don’t see a reason to use a hairdryer anymore.
Read more about minimalism:
3 things you need to know when you’re living with a non-minimalist
6 things to declutter for a more organized life
Q: Is there anything you stopped buying? Let us know in the comments!
Until the next time,
Ivana
Just a heads up on oats. Iron filings (an industrial waste) are often added to oats and cereals to boost their iron percentage on the label. Thanks FDA! Organic oats do not have iron filings added. Notice the iron percentage on the organic label is zero and compare to natural oats. Natural and organic are two different things. Dr. levy does a demo on YouTube showing the iron filings added to cereal and oats.
Have you tired tofu, it’s really healthy and can be added to almost any dish, plus it’s organic! Taste great stirfried with string bean and bell pepper.
Yes, I love tofu 🙂
First time hearing about the oats. We don’t use flour too often but use almond flour when we do. I’m gonna look into the oats though.
Almond flour is a great alternative 🙂 I find out flour the easiest to make 🙂
Yep, meat is definitely one of those things that actually cost more than what people realize. I mostly eat plant-based and even though saving money isn’t the main reason why I switched – it’s definitely a huge benefit. And paper towels….sigh…I am seriously guilty of using too much of them! I really need to cut back on it. Thanks for sharing.
-Aly
http://www.plantbasedandbroke.com
Excellent ideas. I did not realize how simple it could be to cut back on my monthly expenses, but you have made it look so easy. Thank you for sharing your ideas.
Glad to hear that! 😀