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Many people during the Mardi Gras & Lenten season celebrate customs and traditions that involve indulgence (especially with food & drink) that precedes a season of giving up something. With respect to those customs, if you feel that your health goal progress is always on a non-stop roller coaster, I ask you to maybe re-think how you go about your yearly habits this time.

People indulge today, but they might indulge on Valentine’s Day too. They probably indulged on Superbowl Sunday. The holiday season was a binge. There was also a wedding, birthday, weekend trip, and random party thrown into the mix. The list goes on all year long and that is why New Year’s resolutions exist and why our society is sicker than ever. I vote to make today not another excuse to damage your health. Don’t say you’ll clean things up next week, next month, or next year. You have to make the decision Right Here, Right Now. (Quoting Van Halen…)

Likewise, if your customs involve a season of giving up something, think about trying something a little different. Let’s be honest with an example – if you give up chocolate for a while, it’s very to easy to replace it with a million other unhealthy dessert choices. You’re not really making any kind of sacrifice, you’re not teaching yourself anything, nor helping the world in general. There are a million other similar examples.

Instead make the effort over the coming weeks to not ‘give up’ but improve your daily habits. Positive habits that you won’t suddenly stop this spring. Read a book or watch a documentary that you never got around to. Bring your own lunch to work. One day a week, save the money you’d spend on eating out and use it towards healthy groceries.

It doesn’t have to be a major lifestyle change immediately. Make the effort to gradually educate yourself on what you need to do to reach your goals, be healthier, be happier, and motivate the people around you.