The money diet: Two weeks in and the savings are adding up

I'm on week two of the "Money Diet," and while I apparently haven't lost any weight, I figure I've "earned" a lot more than I have in previous weeks.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm referring to the diet I've nicknamed the Money Diet. On January 1, I announced here on WalletPop that this year I really am going to lose weight, and in order to motivate me, instead of counting calories, I'll add up what I think I'm saving by not spending my money on junk food, fast food and scarfing down second and third helpings of food.

Now, let me say right here -- yes, I could save a ton of money by not eating at all. Yep, that would be great, except for the part about not eating at all.

I'm not proposing that. Starving doesn't really do a whole lot of good. And in fact, I'm eating plenty, which may be why I didn't lose any weight this week. That said, I didn't gain any weight this week either. In any case, I'm still snacking and thus maybe not saving much money, or I may actually be spending more, since healthy foods aren't exactly cheap. But I'm at least putting my money into healthier fare most of the time, instead of toward high-fat, high-caloric foods.

So here's a list of what I think I probably saved:

• I went to a McDonald's and bought my daughters ice cream, but I didn't buy anything for myself, like, say a drink and the new Big Mac Snack. Estimated savings: $3