Healthy living in Australia on a budget

There’s a lot of talk about the high cost of living, particularly if you want to live a healthy lifestyle. In Australia though, we’re lucky to have so many beautiful and free spaces outside that support exercise and have a lot of locally sourced nutritious foods. Our year-round climate is also a lot more steady than other countries, so we can enjoy the outdoors easily without expensive gym memberships. Whether you're looking to boost your physical health or improve your mental well-being, maintaining a balanced lifestyle on a budget is more achievable than ever.  

Thanks to nib Rewards¹, living healthy in Australia is even more accessible. 

Healthy eating

90% of Australia's eggs, meats, fruits and vegetables are locally grown, so we have easy access to these high nutrient foods in our supermarkets and farmer’s markets. However, depending on environmental factors such as drought, floods and storms, some produce can have higher costs than at home.  

A good way to eat healthily while on a budget is to plan your meals in advance. This can either be meal preparation for the week – cooking everything you need, ready to go. Or, pre-plan and buy the ingredients you need for each meal so that you are less likely to duck out to take-away or wander the supermarket hungry (buying quick snacks instead of nutrient-dense meal items).

You can also get a little more support for your planning, and save on your weekly grocery bill, with discounts on grocery eGift cards through nib Rewards. For fresh, local produce delivered to your door, subscription food delivery services like HelloFresh offer easy and healthy meal kits.  

If you want to add vitamins or supplements to your diet, nib Rewards also give you access to offers on pharmacy eGift cards. 

Keeping fit

In the last few years particularly, Australians have embraced the holistic benefits of exercise. So much more than just changing the look of our bodies, keeping fit helps us feel happier, more focused and generally healthier.

The best way to keep fit is whatever way that works for you; fits into your schedule, makes you feel healthy and strong, and matches your physical ability (slowly testing your limits in a safe way), so you can improve without injury.  

If you don’t know where to start, a cost-effective way to be your own personal trainer is with free online training. Our ten-minute circuit or a fast and easy core workout will have you working up a sweat in no time, without an expensive gym membership! To help keep motivated, think about teaming up with a buddy. 

With nib Rewards, you’ll also get a range of discounts on health clubs and activewear. 

Mental wellbeing

Great health includes great mental wellbeing. We all need tools and resources to manage stress and anxiety, especially when adjusting to living in a new country.

To support good mental health, there are a number of ways to get free mental health support online, with one of the best free online resources being the Lifeline Toolkit. 

nib foundation partner, batyr provides mental health support to over 2,200 university students through their batyr@uni program. batyr program participant and international student, Linh, shares her story. 

If you or someone you know needs help please call: 

• Lifeline 13 11 14 

• Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636 

• Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800

Socialising

Socialising is just as important for your health as exercise and broccoli. Joining one of the hundreds of low-cost university clubs and societies is a great way to meet new people with common interests. There are also heaps of local sporting teams available to people of all skill levels.  

For less sweaty forms of socialising, with nib Rewards you can get offers on movie tickets and vouchers, discounts at some of Australia's biggest theme parks and cheaper tickets to your next event. 

Please note: The information throughout this article serves as broad information and should not replace any advice you have been given by your medical practitioner. 

¹T&Cs apply. Some offers may vary or be available for a limited time. Payments for eGift cards made by debit/credit card incur a 1% processing fee. nib Rewards are available to new members after 30 days of active membership, provided premium payments are up to date. For more information on member rewards, visit nib Rewards.