Something that has stuck with me for many years after hearing it from the pulpit was, "Abstain from sin!" I truly believe that this is the first and foremost important thing that one should commit their selves to during this coming season of Lent.
Aren't we supposed to do this every single day anyway?
Makes no sense.
This idea of "What do you plan to give up for Lent ?" is a Novus Ordo thing. Period.
Of course it makes no sense for a priest to say that for Lent we should "abstain from sin", it is typical Novus Ordo, where they can't say that you have to fast, so they say "give up something". Since they are appealing to the lowest common denominator Catholics in the Novus Ordo, who rarely if ever go to confession, it does make sense that they would ask people to abstain from sin "as a sacrifice".
What we did before was a Lenten fast. My 1940's ordained priest told us "to have one main meal with meat if you like, and two other smaller meals (no meat) during the day. The smaller meals can't add up to more than the one main meal". That does not mean we pig out in the one main meal. No meat at any meal on Friday, nor meat in sauces. That fast sounds pretty lame to me. In olden times they really fasted, every day no eggs, no cheese, no meat, one mail a day....
I have one main meal with meat, and no meat on Friday and hold out till 2-5pm to have the meal. I have a glass of orange juice in the morning and maybe an apple with some cheese in the evening if I ate the main meal early like say 2 pm. I'm now 63, and have added 2 eggs in the morning if I'm going to do heavy physical work that day.
We were last Sunday by our SSPX priest to "give up something for Lent", unfortunately the SSPX went lame on Lent like 12 years ago.
Go at it young man!