Extreme couponing: time better spent

I am attempting, for the first time in my life, to be on a strict budget and am excited about the journey of it all. I have caught myself checking out the coupon section at Whole Foods to see if I could snag a deal here and there or looking in the paper for a $1.00 off of anything we use.  I have had minimal success but the thrill of catching a price break is exciting every now and again. With that, I watched Extreme Couponers on TLC last week for the first time and let me just say; I was less than impressed.  If you have not seen it, the show follows families who strategically save coupons and go to the grocery on double coupon days and leave with $400.00 worth of groceries for $5.00 or something equally as extreme. I understand in today's times the need for frugality and cutting cost wherever you can but the time spent to embark on extreme couponing is kind of ridiculous.  One of the ladies I watched spent at least 35 hours a week collecting and cutting coupons.  I do not know about you but  that seems a little excessive! The second thing that bothered me about this show was that the food products that they buy are all highly, processed foods and candy bars.  Who really needs 57 bottles of Barbecue sauce and 110 Snickers? I think that it is really backwards when we can get frozen, preservative full dinners for basically free but not fresh veggies.  This is a reality that really disturbs me. If I, as a chemist, cannot pronounce the additives listed on the back of a box; I am probably not going to eat it or rub it on my body. What happened to food actually be composed of, guess what, FOOD!  When I see a coupon for fresh veggies or pasture raised chickens, then I will be excited! Anyway, that is my rant on food for the evening.  I will leave you with a book that I recommend on the food system, Michael Pollan's Food Rules: An Eater's Manual. It is a quick, easy read that gives you tips for healthier shopping at the grocery store.  
XOX,
Ginger