People like you: 18-29
Meet Laura, a 25 year old personal assistant working in Reading. She currently lives with her boyfriend in a rented flat on the outskirts of the city, but they are saving hard to buy their own place. We take a peek at what a day in her life is like as she manages her job, home-life and money, while trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
My alarm went off at 6am this morning, as I decided last night to get my week off to a good start and head to the gym before work. I do a weights workout and then walk the rest of the way to work (the gym is about a brisk ten minute walk from my office – a bit more exercise and I’ll save money on the bus fare too!).
I usually have breakfast at home but with my early morning workout I’ll need to eat afterwards. I pick up a banana (28p) and a big bag of oats (£1.10) to make a quick porridge to eat at my desk. I also buy some protein bars (£2.87 for a pack of four) as I know I’ll get hungry later. I leave the oats and the remainder of the protein bars at work to make myself a quick, cheap breakfast in case I decide to do another early morning gym session this week.
The sun is shining and although it’s cold, it looks like a lovely day outside! My office is in the city centre so I decide to pop out at lunchtime to stretch my legs and have a wander around the shops. My boyfriend and I are currently saving up to buy our own place so it’s just window shopping for me today!
I head back to work and eat my lunch which is homemade vegetable soup (£1.01 a serving) with a bread roll (11p a roll) today. My boyfriend’s mum bought me a bread maker for my birthday and I’m enjoying making my own bread – it’s pretty economical too. I also grab a coffee from the machine at work. It’s much cheaper than my shop-bought lunch last week which ended up costing me about £6 for soup and a roll (£3.45) and a cappuccino (£2.45).
Before I know it, it’s time to head home. I usually alternate between taking the bus and walking home to save money, but I’m tired out from my gym session this morning so I decide to take the bus. My boyfriend is already home by the time I get in and we decide to cook together – it’s easy as I’ve already planned our meals for the week. Today it’s a comforting Spaghetti Bolognese, a classic from our student days. As usual, we make far too much so I put some in the freezer for another day.
After dinner we watch some TV on my parents streaming account (sharing this means we use it for free!). I plan our meals for next week at the same time and order our food shop online, which helps us to eat a variety of healthy, home cooked meals. My employer offers a discounts portal, so I use this to save money on the food shop every week. I also spot a code for free delivery so I make use of that!
I get my lunch ready for work the next day and head off to bed about 10:30.
*Prices accurate at the time of writing.
