In a City of Pedestrians, Why Are We Overweight?
I've come to the frightening conclusion that there is absolutely no excuse to be overweight in this city.
Don't get me wrong — I'll have 10 more pounds to lose until the day I die. And that makes it even more frustrating.
I live all the way on the West Side. I mean, ALL the way on the West Side. If I lived any more west, I'd have to swim to the subway. That much west.
So any given day, unless a bus shows up at the time I'm leaving my apartment, I'm guaranteed a walk of at least six-tenths of a mile if I'm going to one subway, seven-tenths if I'm going to another, and even nine-tenths if I'm going to a third.
So if nothing else, you figure that every day, at a MINIMUM, I'm walking 1.5 miles, just to exist as a productive member of society.
Days when I have meetings? Two, three, four, five miles in a day are not uncommon. Add that to the amount of walking we do as human beings in New York … to the supermarket, to the dry cleaners…. We should all be supermodels.
But then, it's because we live in New York City that an antithesis to this rule exists: In Iowa, I'm betting they don't have FreshDirect. In Montana, I'm betting that your dry cleaning won't be waiting for you when you get home. (What are they going to do, hang it on a horse?)
So the balance there, for us, is that we live in a world with so many manmade conveniences that they can easily balance out our quest for supermodelness.
This, of course, is a pain in the butt. It totally goes against everything that is healthy about living in NYC, but then, totally goes with everything that's supposed to be cool about New York.
So my challenge is this: Do I walk home carrying my dry cleaning because I know it'll be healthier and I'll look better in the very clothes that I'm carrying, or do I let them be delivered to my door because this is New York City, and that's how we roll?
Decisions on this cold Wednesday evening…. There are so many of them.
There's also a fun race this weekend — the Joe Kleinerman 10K in Central Park on Sunday. Joe worked tirelessly for the sport of running before he passed away. Come enjoy the cold air and get a good workout in.
Also: The New York Road Runners announced the opening of registration for the 31st annual Empire State Building Run-Up! I applied. This is an amazing chance to — yes, run up the Empire State Building! It takes place February 5. I hope I get in — I'd love nothing more than to blog about it. It's a truly amazing event!
Stay warm!
