My name is Tina and I live in the wonderful city of Boston. I live with my husband, Mal, and my adorable pug, Murphy, in a loft-style apartment just south of the heart of downtown. I enjoy the hustle and bustle of city life and try to take advantage of everything it has to offer, including dining out in the South End, attending Red Sox games, and running by the Charles River. Life rarely slows down for me! Through all the craziness, however, I do my best to eat well and live a healthy lifestyle.
My passion for healthy living extends beyond my home life and into my career as a social media strategist for a company called NuVal. NuVal is a nutritional scoring system that ranks foods from 1-100 based on how nutritious they are for you. Basically, the higher the number, the better the nutrition. It helps make grocery shopping easier for you and it may just change the way you shop! We’re implementing NuVal in grocery stores around the country. (Currently, NuVal lives in Price Chopper, Hy-Vee, Meijer, and soon Texas United stores.) NuVal may not be in your area yet, but here on my blog, you can get a sneak peek at some of the new scores.
Living in a city definitely has its perks, but it can also be very expensive– from the groceries you buy to the gym membership where you exercise. However, this doesn’t mean that you need to give up on your healthy lifestyle. With the right knowledge and know-how, I believe that anyone can make smart choices about healthy living within the parameters of their budget. Trading Up Downtown is devoted to healthy city living while being wallet-friendly. Hopefully, no matter where you live, my posts and simple tips will help you live well on a budget. 
Developed by an independent panel of nutrition and medical experts, the 