Dieting in New York City

Oh, waffle truck. How I miss you.

I thought I'd do a post to accompany this week's diet vlog, especially since it's not the most exciting video I've ever done. This week I talk about the cravings that have hit me hard this week. The first two weeks weren't so bad in this department, but this last week all I could think about was sugar and carbs. I think a lot of it is just my body adjusting, but living in NYC certainly doesn't help.

Yes, dieting is hard no matter where you live. But New York City is known for its food. They have literally every type of food you can imagine, and they have the best versions of it. I've made jokes before that the cheesecake is my favorite part about this city. But I also love the pizza, halal carts, Magnolia's, Shake Shack, literally any hole-in-the-wall deli or bakery, everything in Chinatown and Little Italy...the list goes on. I'm smack in the middle of the food capital of the world and I can't partake in much of it.

There are ways to get around this, of course. Since eating out is such a social thing in the city, it's usually not too difficult to find a healthy option on the menu. Almost every place has some version of a salad. But when the stick-thin girl next to you orders a pasta, it's hard not to feel envious. There's no denying I love food. I mean, that's partly the reason I'm in this mess in the first place. But as the whole empire of The Food Network knows, there's just something unexplainably satisfying about a well-prepared, delicious meal. Unfortunately most delicious things are not that great for you.

It's slowly getting better. I'm mixing up my meals a bit more so I'm not just eating salad every single day. For instance, today I had salmon and eggplant for lunch and it was fairly filling. I'll allow myself a Hershey kiss every now and then. I try to ignore the smells of the food stands I pass on my way to work by chewing gum. I politely decline when offered sweets at work, and I wasn't afraid to tell my coworkers about my diet. They're all very supportive, which has been great.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. If you have tricks on how to ignore cravings, I'd love it.

Here's this week's video. Next week's will be more entertaining, I promise.