FitSugar

As Gas Prices Rise, Waistlines Drop - Yay?

FitSugar — Tue, 13 May 2008 11:00:00 PDT

I try find the silver lining of all seemingly bad things, even high gas prices.

When I get stressed out about how much I am paying at the pump I try and remember that research has found that an increase of an additional $1 per gallon in gasoline prices will reduce US obesity by 15 percent after five years by forcing us to walk, bike, or take public transportation (more walking) instead of using our cars. Furthermore, it may even lead us to eat at home instead of out in restaurants and drive-thru.

Clearly I have always been a proponent of walking, biking (it is Bike to Work Week), and taking public transportation for more reasons than just the high gas prices (more exercise during the day, better for the environment, etc.), but there is nothing wrong with trying to look on the brighter side of things. I, for one, just paid $4.23 per gallon [gasp] to fill up my car and definitely use the opportunity to walk whenever it's possible. What about you?

Source

Think Gas Prices Are Too High? Just Be Glad You Don't Live in These Countries!

Emily Co — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 14:24:51 PDT

We often grumble about the gas prices that keep on rising because of Middle East unrest, but $4 a gallon is actually looking pretty good if you compare the prices to other countries. Business Insider cited some statistics from a study that listed the countries with the priciest gas. The main reason why gas costs so much in other countries is because of more expensive fuel taxes. Here are the top five countries with the most costly gas:

Eritrea: $9.61
Turkey: $9.54
Netherlands: $8.06
Norway: $8.02
Greece: $7.76

Gas Prices Are Up! What You Can Do to Save

Emily Co — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:20:33 PST

Unrest in the Middle East and the closing of American refineries have gas prices going up, up, and away for US consumers. Analysts are predicting that the prices may continue to rise.

But don't worry, there are a number of methods to save on refueling your car. Here are some tips:

Spend to Save: Look for deals around you that will help you save on your gas. For example, you can choose to frequent wholesale stores like Costco, which will give you a little bit of cash back on Costco gas. If you're a real gas guzzler, check out this full list of gas rebate cards on CreditCards.com.
Don't Top It Off: Topping off your gas may result in a higher gas bill, because you might be paying for gas that goes back into the station's tanks after your gas tank is full, says the Environmental Protection Agency. You can also ruin your car's vapor recovery system if there is no room for the gas to expand in your tank.
Smooth Trip: Starting and stopping excessively can shorten the life of your engine, transmission, brakes, and tires. Go easy on your braking and accelerating. Remember to also turn off your engine if you know you'll be waiting for a long while. Staying put without moving means you're getting 0 miles per gallon.

For more gas-saving tips, read on.

The Cost of Driving: Save Gas, Time, and Money

LearnVest — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 00:15:46 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart Learnvest story here on Savvy!

There’s no lure like finding the best deal in town. And gas prices are no exception.

The scene: You’re on the prowl, and end up driving an extra 10 miles before you find that holy grail of gas prices. Say you get a deal for $3.12 per gallon, saving five cents a gallon. If your car gets 22 miles per gallon, you’ll have saved 80 cents . . . but spent over $1.40 in gas driving to get that deal on gas. (It’s an ironic son-of-a-bitch.) This isn’t to mention the time wasted and the increase in your carbon footprint.

Gas prices are higher now than they have been in about three years, and some predict that they’ll only keep increasing. The current national average is about $3.17 per gallon, up from $2.64 last year. That means a 5 cent savings is going to be less impactful as prices go up, and you’ll be spending more to find it. In other words, don’t drive around aimlessly trying to find the best gas price.

If you’re not sure of your car’s fuel efficiency, estimate it here.

This is how we calculated what you’re paying for each mile of gas: 1/fuel efficiency x cost of gas.

So, if your car gets 22 mpg and gas costs $3.12 per gallon, you’re actually paying about 14 cents per mile. Drive 40 miles round-trip to work, and you’ll spending about $5.60 a day. New motivation to carpool, maybe?

Find out how to find the cheapest gas prices and more after the break.

The Secrets of the World's Healthiest Women

Health — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:45:10 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

From pouring on the olive oil like the Greeks to slashing stress like the Scandinavians, what we
can learn from the happiest, slimmest, longest-living cultures around the globe.

The secret to a long, healthy life in America? According to longevity researchers, it may be to act like you live somewhere else.

It seems like every year another country's lifestyle is touted as the new magic bullet to cure us of obesity, heart disease, and premature death: for an unclogged heart, herd goats and down olive oil like a Mediterranean. Avoid breast cancer and live to 100 by dining on tofu, Japanese-style. Stay as happy as Norwegians by hunting elk and foraging for cowberries.

Health.com: Weight-Loss Secrets From Around the World

The places we're usually told to emulate are known as Blue Zones or Cold Spots. Blue Zones were pinpointed by explorer Dan Buettner and a team of longevity researchers and are described in his book The Blue Zones: Lessons For Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest. They're areas in Italy, Japan, Greece, California, and Costa Rica where the people have traditionally stayed healthy and active to age 100 or older.

Keep on reading for more great tips from around the globe.

18 Ways to Save (at Least) $1 a Day

SavvySugar — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:00:28 PST

It's true: the little things add up. As anyone who ever had a piggy bank knows, small everyday actions can help you save big. Hoping to create a financial cushion for yourself this season? Follow these 15 easy tricks to help you save at least a dollar a day:

Hold the milk. In your coffee, that is. If you regularly stop at the coffee shop on your way to work, order it black to avoid any extra costs.
Go generic. At the grocery store, pick the generic variety of different foods to save big on pantry staples.
Keep the change. Sure, sometimes it's annoying to have change littering your purse or jangling in your pocket, but you'd be surprised by how quickly those nickels add up.
Swap soda for water. If you can't give it up altogether, vow to sip water instead of soda during at least one meal each day.
Trade CDs with a friend. Hoping to add the latest Rihanna song to your workout playlist? Reach out to a friend and burn CDs for each other to gather new music for free.
Fuel up for less. Unless it's required for your specific car model, nix the premium gas habit and use gasbuddy.com to find the cheapest gas in the area.
Find free WiFi. Work in cafés or libraries with free WiFi. Not sure which spots offer Internet? Use the Free Wi-Fi app to scope out local places with wireless access.
Practice your sewing skills. Skip a trip to the tailor and learn to do the simple adjustments yourself, like shortening a hem or taking in a blouse.

Keep reading for more tips to save $1 a day.

10 Things You Do to Save Money That End Up Costing You More

Wise Bread — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:15:37 PST

We're thrilled to present this smart Wise Bread story here on Savvy!

Have you heard of the expression “penny wise, pound foolish”? It’s something I heard a lot growing up, from my parents, and it can have multiple meanings:

You are very careful with small amounts of money, but throw caution to the wind with large amounts. This is akin to someone who eats from the dollar menu every day but then blows a hundred dollars every month on a gym membership that’s never used.
You do things to save money now, only to have those savings cost you more farther down the road.

The second definition is what I’m focusing on today, because it’s a lot easier to fall into the trap of saving money only to have it bite you later on. Here then are 10 things that you may be doing to save money that could actually cost you a lot more in the weeks, months, or years to come.

RELATED: The Case For Expensive Shoes

1. Avoiding Regular Checkups With the Doctor, Dentist, or Optician

It’s something I did in college when money was tight. “Aah, who needs to pay money to a dentist to have him tell me I should floss more?” Well, after leaving the dentist alone for a few years, I paid the price. Avoiding the regular cleanings and checkups left me facing a hefty bill later on when I needed a bunch of costly fillings. I was lucky that I didn’t need root canals or replacement teeth. Now I have a dental plan that covers free checkups twice a year, but even if you don’t, get to the dentist and doctor for health checks. It’s a lot better to pay a co-pay now than pay for major surgery later on. And worse still, it could even cost you your life, especially as so many conditions can be treated if they’re caught early enough.

Read on for more.

Hi-Tech Living at the Stovetop

Kelly Schwarze — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 06:30:50 PST

Want to add a futuristic edge to one of the more relatively primitive parts of the house? At CES, luxury appliance company Thermador introduced the Freedom Induction Cooktop, which is the first full-surface induction appliance to let you cook on any part of the surface. Position cookware of any size and shape anywhere on the stove, and get started on that complicated Winter soup you usually have too little space to make.

All those pots and pans now crammed on the Freedom Induction Cooktop are controlled with a 6.5-inch color touchscreen display that powers the heating level, cooking time, recognizes the location of each pot on the cooktop, and instantly updates as pans are moved around the surface. Now, a stove is the last place you normally want a touch panel, but the induction heating ensures the surface remains cool, while maintaining the same power as an ordinary gas stove.

The Freedom Induction Cooktop will be available July 2012, and with a $5,000 retail price, we'll list it among our luxury dream home must-haves for now. At-home chefs, would a hi-tech kitchen appliance like Thermador's new stove make it to your wish list?

What Was Your Biggest Money Worry of 2011?

Diana Nguyen — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 08:24:46 PST

In 2011, we had a roller-coaster year at the stock market, gas prices hit $4 in some states, and unemployment reached 9.2 percent. On top of that, 66 percent of Americans felt like the lack of retirement funds was their biggest financial worry, according to a June Gallup poll. Now that December is coming to a close, and we're ready for a fresh, financially optimistic New Year, we want to know: what was your biggest money worry of 2011? Chime in below and in the comments, and hopefully we'll be able to help settle some of your money-related woes by this time next year.

Source: Flickr User Images_of_Money

Travel Tips For the Upcoming Holiday Weekend

Kristy Korcz — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:45:22 PST

Traveling this holiday? Christmas Eve falls on a Saturday this year, which makes one big mess at the airport. If you can't take a car or a train, be sure to check out these packing and travel tips to make your life easier while booking flights, getting through security checkpoints, and beyond.

Booking Flights

TripIt - Once signed up for the free service, forward travel confirmation emails to TripIt, which will automatically create a master itinerary of an upcoming trip accessible through the web or a mobile device. The itineraries even include the tidbits we seem to forget like weather updates, local maps, and directions.
Google Flight Search - Book that plane ticket before prices rise any further! Google's flight search engine incorporates travel basics like price point, maximum number of connections, and preferred airline with an easy-to-use interface.
Hotel Tonight - If there are too many relatives in one house, scan the last-minute hotel deals at Hotel Tonight for a chic getaway at a discounted price. Every day three hotels in a city reveal their discounted rates starting at noon, and you then have until 2 a.m. to book the deal and take advantage of a peaceful room.
My TSA - Can homemade fruit cakes go through security? How early should you show up to the airport for a flight on the eve of Thanksgiving? Answer the pressing travel questions that could otherwise cause delays or stress by adding the TSA's free iOS app to your device. The app's airport security line estimator may become the most crucial feature on your phone when planning your airport arrival.
HearPlanet ($3) - Take the time to discover the cultural side of your holiday destination. This interactive app highlights attractions in over 300,000 locations and uses geolocation features so that you don't miss any of the nearby fun, plus it's a great excuse to get out of the house and move around in fresh air.
GasBuddy - Hitting the open road instead of the air? Use the free GasBuddy app to locate the cheapest fuel on the interstate. Show your fellow travelers some love and share the low-price gas station you discover within the app.

Gadget Essentials

iPad or Tablet - If you have the luxury of spending upwards of $500 on a tablet, it's probably the only gadget you'll need to tote during travel season since it can hold your ebooks, surf the Internet, and keep you connected.
eReader - If you're sans tablet, pack up your favorite ereader. Whether it's the latest Kindle or the new Nook Simple Touch, you can read the entire Game of Thrones series without all the paper weight.
Compact laptop - Though the MacBook Air is arguably the most popular lightweight laptop out there, there's plenty of compact PCs and ultrabooks to choose from as well.
Chargers - If you're toting all these gadgets, you're going to (obviously) need some chargers to keep things juiced. Thankfully, many airlines are offering charging stations in the terminal and even seat-side outlets on board, so you can stay 100 percent charged throughout your trip.
Headphones - Keep the roar of 35,000 feet at bay with some nice sound-isolating headphones. If you're going over-the-ear, consider Skullcandy Aviators ($149), which offer great sound and deep bass and are even comfy for those geeks who wear glasses.

Get more tips on how to pack your bag and save some dough after the break.