I have a confession: I’m a lifelong New Yorker, but there have been times in my life when I’ve cheated on the Big Apple and spent months or years living in other cities… Los Angeles being one of them. I’m in L.A. this week and flooding in are all of my old prejudices about it. In my humble opinion, Los Angeles is the place where self esteem goes to die.
Living in L.A. is a paradox of sorts, a place where the genetically gifted go to do menial jobs. Seriously, everyone here is gorgeous, and because everyone is a 10, no one really stands out. While I’ve always thought of myself as reasonably attractive in my comfy lil New York life; I’ve never felt so plain and dowdy as I did in my brief L.A. tenure. It’s a place where a small weight gain can mean public ridicule and therefore healthy living is mandatory.
Here’s the thing though, I think that the lifestyle that New York City provides is way healthier. We New Yorkers know how to move it, move it. Walk that is. Especially now, with the new MTA fare hike in place, if something is under 30-40 blocks – I’m walking it! LaLaland, on the other hand, is a place ruled by cars. Hours upon hours are spent waiting for a break in traffic somewhere along the lines of Moses parting the Red Sea. What L.A. does have over us is weather. Really beautiful, sunshiney goodness that allows for all sorts of year round outdoor activity. But don’t let that fool you, the gym scene here is pretty competitive.
Once, back in the day, I almost got my ass kicked by a typical L.A. hot girl, when I didn’t realize the elliptical machine protocol. “No you may not take that extra five minutes to cool down, it’s 30 minutes and bust chica!”
It was after that that I started driving out of my way to the more ghetto-fabulous area where I could use the gym without fear of a beatdown. I guess when you spend 23 hours a day waiting in traffic, that one hour left for the gym is golden.
Oh, and the food! Seriously, this may be the homeland of Pinkberry, but one can’t drive through Los Angeles and wonder if L.A. is to fast food what Florida is to old people. There are so many fast food joints here, and not just your run of the mill McDonalds and Wendy’s… there are Wienerschnitels, Jack in the Boxes, In-and-Out Burgers, Fat Burgers, Carl’s Jrs, Poquito Mas‘s… Oh, and what’s the difference between Taco Bell and Del Taco?! Wait, and did I mention Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf? Starbucks has nothing on their blended’s, let me tell you…
One could survive happily here and never have to leave their car. While the fresh produce in L.A. totally abounds that in New York, I in general think that New Yorker’s have healthier options at their disposal. They may have glorious avocado’s available year round, but we’ve got Whole Foods like whoa!
There’s no denying that New York has some of the best food in the world, heck, we’ve got some of the most wordliest food in the world, and while that may not always be healthful, at least it feels more genuine to me than Fast Food and Dineresque cuisine as far as the eye can see. Did I mention the original Bob’s Big Boy is in L.A.?
There’s no denying that the good people of Los Angeles are hot and fit, but I sort of wonder at what price. Back in my L.A.- living days, I stopped eating. Well, not eating enough, that is. Not in an eating disorder kind of way, in a “no one else was eating” so I just never had time to or thought about it, until one day I walked into work and passed out. When I came to, besides feeling super humiliated, I felt super anxious to get back to New York, a place where people ate things, enjoyed life and walked everywhere. A month or so later I was back on my home soil and have been eating ever since.
I’m not saying everyone here has an eating disorder, I think a fair amount of the people here are genetically blessed and can eat whatever they want. But being able to eat fast food three times a day doesn’t mean one should eat fast food three times a day. In my many, many years in New York, I can probably count the times I’ve hit up a fast food restaurant on both hands. Fast food just never seems to occur to me in a city with so many amazing food options, food options that I’ll gladly walk to.
To each their own when it comes to coasts… but I feel comforted in knowing that it’s just as easy, if not easier, to live a healthy lifestyle in the confines of NYC as it is in the Hollywood Hills.
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