“So you don’t eat meat, don’t snack, don’t drink beers whatsoever anymore?” a friend and reader of this newsletter asked me recently.

“I still do all that from time to time. Some almost never and some a little more often than I would prefer,” I replied honestly.

I wish I have the resolute mindset to say no to alcohol, ice-cream, animal products 100% of the time. But as with most things in life, I’m a work in progress.

• A month prior to a big race, I can usually dig deep and go full-on healthy mode. No junk food and wholesome real foods only. During the off season with no specific goals, I estimate that I eat healthy 80-90% of the time.
• For alcoholic-beverages, I rarely indulge anymore. Don’t really see the fun in it, and it’s easy to say no.
• As for a plant-based diet, I find myself wavering more than ever the past year. For the planet’s sake, I’m a little ashamed of my lack of discipline.

I may never stay 100% sober or become a whole-food only vegan. And I probably don’t want to corner myself that way either. After all, all healthy all the time makes me a dull boy.

But what I do want for myself and you folks are to change our relationships with certain habits.

• Do you need a cup of chemical-packed soda every single afternoon? Or should it be a special treat that you drink once a week or month?
• Do you need a few beers or glasses of wine to celebrate, de-stress, when you feel down, watch a ball game, after every run…in short, is every occasion a reason to drink? And can four beers be just two?
• Do you need to eat a big slab of meat every day? Or can you cut down your meat consumption to just twice a week?

Living a healthier lifestyle that’s friendlier to the planet and yourself doesn’t have to be all or nothing.

• If everyone just cut down their consumption of animal products by 25%, Mother Earth will give you a big thumbs up.
• If you drink only on the weekends, your liver and many other organs will thank you for it.
• If you don’t overeat and stick mostly to real foods, everything, from waking up with a clear head to finding the motivation to work out, will be that much easier.

Progress is addictive

The best way to make a healthy habit stick is not through blunt force will power. It’s seeing progress.
When something works, it makes you want to do that thing even more.

I changed my relationship with bad habits one baby step at a time from the year before. And for sure, living a whole lot healthier compared with 5 years ago or with the 20-something me.

One successful move towards the desired direction can lead to a bigger stride, and by this time next year, you will find yourself fitter and healthier too.

When we founded RUNIVORE, it was also just one step to change our relationship with a bad habit, which was eating convenient store crap for our adventures in the mountains. We wanted something that can effectively fuel our runs and learn more about what our body needs. Here’s a round up of our latest learnings. Enjoy.