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Yeah, I know this aired on Oprah several days ago, but between computer problems and serious fatigue, this is really the first chance I've had to comment on it, so please bear with me.

Part five of the "debt diet" started getting down to the nitty gritty, with useful info such as how much of your income you should be spending on what. Also, several viewers chimed in with ways they have found to save money. And there were updates on the three debt-ridden couples, their progress and how much money they could save for retirement if they stayed on their new regimen.

The couple with the highest debt, ironically, found they had the highest potential for savings. One of their various vehicles developed unexpected problems, which put a serious damper on things until they realized that by selling two vehicles, they could buy one more practical vehicle. I don't know why two people need more than one vehicle apiece anyway, but it was a good solution to their problem. Now what happens when two people (Dan and I) share one vehicle and it breaks down? I guess I shouldn't complain because at least we don't have car payments right now.

All three couples started looking for additional sources of income, i.e., coaching jobs, painting houses, landscaping, etc. And one of them had their past three years of tax returns analyzed and discovered errors in their favor totalling hundreds of dollars. They were instructed to put this extra income into a retirement fund, and the financial analysts calculated how much money they could have at retirement if they continued to save up. The totals were in the hundreds of thousands of dollars to a million. I have done such calculations in the past on my own retirement fund (to which, sadly, I can no longer contribute), so I knew what potential was there, but these couples were amazed and thrilled with how easy it was to become potentially wealthy.

One of the viewers, who was from New York, was able to accomplish something truly astounding. She and her partner decided to completely eliminate all entertainment expenses and frivolous shopping for an entire YEAR. No movies, no dinner out, no buying clothes. By doing this, they were able to save a whopping $13,000! They wnet to museums on free days for fun, and they walked whenever possible instead of paying for transportation. They lost weight by eating at home and doing all the walking. Now, while I've never come close to spending $1000 a month on entertainment/shopping, I have to admit I'd be hard pressed to give it ALL up. I've been extremely fortunate to receive gift cards from friends and family for holidays and birthdays to music stores, restaurants and movie theatres, so my expenses are wayyyy down from what they used to be, but could I not download a single song for an entire year? Maybe. Could I not eat out at all? Hmmm. That would be very tough indeed. I do admire the viewer, though, for showing that it can be done.

The most valuable information on the show, though, was the formula for calculating how much you should be spending on housing, debt, transportation and savings. It's pretty simple, really: you start with the amount of take home pay you receive per month. Then you allocate 35 percent to housing, 15 percent to transportation (car repairs, insurance, gas, bus, subway, etc.), another 15 percent to debt (monthly payments such as credit cards), 10 percent to savings (don't forget the 401(K) or IRA if they apply), and the remaining 25 percent to "other" (eating out, shopping, etc.). The beauty of the formula is that it works for any amount of income. I decided to check my household budget and see if it fit the formula. I am sorry to report that it does not, at least, not since I had to stop working. With my income reduced to half or less, our housing expenses exceed 35 percent by about 200 dollars, our debt exceeds 15 percent if you include the home equity loan, and our "other" expenses are through the roof. The plus side is that our transportation costs are only a third of what is normally allotted, so that does carry over to absorb some of the "other" category such as medical bills, nutritional supplements and the high cost of gluten-free food. Would you believe that health-related expenses are eating up 12 percent of my income?? And our savings at present is only half what it should be because we also have monthly expenses such as parking and union dues. So it has become rather clear to me that even if Dan is able to avoid getting laid off, keeping this house is going to be a massive challenge.

I've also been able to use this formula to gauge how much of a pay cut Dan can withstand if he gets a job in South Dakota (chances are not great that he'll make the same money there). I've figured out how low he can go without sacrificing the ability to buy a home there. I won't lie: we're gonna have to make some big sacrifices. And all the calculating in the world won't help us if I don't get approved for disability. But I can at least avoid a financial crisis caused by improper budgeting. That makes me feel a bit more empowered.

And that's the beauty of the debt diet: putting you back in charge of your money, at least when possible.