INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Saving up for a car doesn’t just have to come from only spending less money.  Hold a yard or garage sale to sell old clothes, items, and furniture you don’t need or use anymore. You can also sell old electronics on eBay for some quick cash. Tell your manager that you're saving up for a car and would like to get more hours. Or, offer to cover any shifts that your coworkers have conflicts with. If you have a job that pays you a salary, or you don’t get enough hours at your current job, consider getting a second job. This won’t be the most fun way to spend your time, but it will make saving for a car easier and faster, and you’ll thank yourself for all of your hard work when you’re behind the wheel of your new car. If you’re a teen trying to save for a car, ask your parents or your neighbors if there's any extra work for you. Do some babysitting, dog walking, or even yard work.

SUMMARY: Sell what you don’t need or use anymore. Pick up more shifts at work. Get another job.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Eat whole grains rather than refined grains. Whole grains have more of the nutrients and fiber you need. They also tend to be more flavorful than refined grains, which you will appreciate as you start limiting your salt intake. Substitute brown rice (it must be cooked slowly) for white rice, whole-wheat pasta for regular pasta, and whole-grain bread for white bread. Experiment with a variety of grains. Eliminate white flour. Use quinoa, bulgur, oats, amaranth, and barley, all good sources of whole grains. Vegetables provide you with the vitamins you need to lower your blood pressure, as well as valuable dietary fiber, and minerals such as potassium and magnesium. To increase the amount of vegetables in your diet, incorporate them into your main dish instead of only eating them on the side. Hearty, flavorful vegetables such as sweet potato (with low added sugar) and squash (sliced and sautéed, mashed) provide an excellent main dish. Don't be afraid to buy large amounts of vegetables at once: you can freeze the ones you don't use.  If you are vegetable-shy, try buying and cooking one new kind of vegetable a week. Find a few recipes that focus on that vegetable and try them out. Opt for fresh or frozen vegetables. When you buy canned vegetables, make sure they have no added salt, or are labeled "no sodium." Try including at least two vegetables in every meal: one green (kale, broccoli, spinach, collards) and one brightly colored (tomatoes, carrots, peppers, squash). Use vegetables for your starch and eliminate flour products. Skip chips, high-sodium bread and pasta and replace them with delicious pieces of boiled or mashed potatoes, turnips, or parsnips. Eat the skins of fruits and veggies. Much of the flavor and the nutrients of vegetables are found in the skin. Just make sure you clean them thoroughly. Save the stalks. Freeze any part of the vegetable you don't eat in a bag. When the bag is full, boil it with onion and garlic for a few hours to make a vegetable stock. Strain out the vegetables, add a tiny pinch of salt and some lemon juice or vinegar, and use it as a broth. Fruit is mouthwatering, delicious and is full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Fruit can be a snack, a dessert, and can also be treated like a vegetable and served with green salad, fried, or cooked into a sauce. Low-fat yogurt with fruit and some nuts makes an excellent breakfast. Try eating fruits in season, when they are sweetest, or buy them frozen for smoothies and cooking.  Eat the fruit peel for extra fiber and roughage. Apples, pears, plums, and even fuzzy peaches can be eaten with the peel on. Like vegetables, fruits can be frozen when they are overripe and enjoyed later. Juice can count as a serving of fruit. Buy 100 percent fruit juice with no sugar added. Grapefruit juice and other citrus juices can interfere with certain medications, so be sure to check with your health care provider before increasing consumption. Meat gives you protein, vitamins, and minerals. Opt for poultry and fish over beef. Fish such as salmon, herring, and tuna are high in omega-3 fatty acids (and consider taking a purified/concentrated omega-3 oil capsule high in DHA and EHA), and can help lower your cholesterol. Broil, bake, grill, poach, or roast your meat instead of frying it. Avoid sandwich meats and sausages unless they are marked "low sodium" or "no sodium." Some servings of sandwich meat contain more than a quarter of your daily recommended sodium.  The meat you buy should be marked "lean" or "extra lean," and poultry should be skinless. Vegetarians can follow the DASH diet by combining the "meat" and "nuts, seeds, and legumes" categories, and eating that many servings of nuts, seeds and legumes. Even if you aren't a vegetarian, try substituting soybean-based products, such as tofu and tempeh, for meat dishes. They contain all the amino acids you need to form a complete protein. Milk, plain yogurt, and real cheese can give you calcium, vitamin D, and protein. They can also be high-sodium and high-fat, so don't eat too much of them. Yoghurt is not high sodium, can be bought fat-free, and contains probiotics that are good for your digestion. Buy plain yogurt with no added sugar and add fruit. Yoghurt is good on its own and can also be substituted for cream/sour cream.  Put yogurt on your tacos or chili instead of sour cream. Stir some yogurt into your soup for a creamy finish. Mix yogurt with chopped garlic and herbs for a vegetable dip. Substitute frozen yogurt for ice cream, or just serve a scoop of plain yogurt with your apple pie. Drink milk instead of buying a "muscle" or "protein" drink. Most designer workout drinks rely on milk proteins and not much else. Milk is cheaper and better for you. Nuts, seeds, and legumes have omega-3 fatty acids, protein, fiber, minerals and phytochemicals. They can also be high in calories and fats, which is why they are recommended for weekly rather than daily consumption. A serving size might be 1/3 cup of nuts, 1/2 cup of cooked legumes, 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter or seeds.  Vegetarians should combine this category with the "meats" servings and eat 10 – 16 servings of nuts, seeds, and legumes a week. Eat tofu, tempeh, or rice and beans to get a complete protein.  Try topping your yogurt with different kinds of nuts and seeds instead of buying a sugary granola. Almonds, walnuts/pecans, peanuts, cashews, and sesame/chia, shelled pumpkin seeds and flax seeds are all delicious snacks. Experiment with different beans. If you normally eat peas, try kidney beans, black-eyed peas, or lentils. Fat is good for your immune system, but it's easy to eat too much of it. A serving of fat is small: 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise or 1 teaspoon of margarine will do it. Avoid over consumption of meat, butter, cheese, whole milk, cream, and eggs. Avoid margarine/oleo, lard, shortenings, and palm and coconut oil. Eliminate trans fat, which used in processed foods for smoothness and flavor, fried foods (such as breaded fish, meat, and donuts) and commercially baked goods.  Read labels to cut down on trans fats.  Cook with olive oil, canola oil, vegetable oil, sesame oil, and peanut oil. Olive oil and toasted sesame oil are both excellent in salad dressing. Stir oil and vinegar (apple cider vinegar, wine vinegar, lemon juice) for quick, cheap salad dressing. Add a pinch of black pepper, garlic, paprika or stevia for extra flavor.

SUMMARY:
Eat six to eight servings of whole grains per week. Eat four to five servings of vegetables a day. Eat four to five small servings of fruit. Eat six or fewer servings of lean protein per week. Eat two to three small servings of dairy. Eat four to six servings of nuts, seeds, and legumes a week. Limit fats and oils to two to three servings a day.