Spring has sprung. Hooray! The birds are chirping, the buds are popping, and Mother Nature is breathing new life into things that looked dead and gone just a few weeks ago.

And that's the take-home point for today: when the seasons shift and change, so can you. In the winter, many of us tend to shut down and pile on the pounds. In the spring, we awaken and say, "Who shrunk my jeans?" And we push on, knowing deep down that spring is the time for fresh starts and new beginnings, especially when it comes to living a healthier lifestyle. Like plants to the light, we all desire more energy in our lives. But how do we get there? Let spring shower you with inspiration.

Here is how Dr. Elson Haas puts it in one of my favorite East-meets-West medical books called "Staying Healthy with the Seasons" (Celestial Arts):

"The beginning of spring is March 21st, the time of the spring equinox, when day equals night. For the next six months daylight, the sun and yang principle, will be dominating our lives. You may now feel a new spark and power, and be filled with inspiration and energy to act upon your ideas."

(I know this sounds like something you'd find in a fortune cookie, but read on. Spring really is a special opportunity to start anew.)

"Spring is the greening season. It is the time for planting. ... New growth in our lives, relationships, and work is stimulated now as well. We and nature will flourish this season."

So let me plant some seeds to help you flourish this spring and inspire your own new growth:

LET NATURE NURTURE. Reading that spring is the traditional time for new beginnings, new habits, is one thing. Experiencing it is another. I suggest you take a day, or an hour, this week and tune into seasonal change, wherever you can find it. Spend some quiet time at a park, a lake or a garden. Think about your life. Do you want a healthier body? A less tortured relationship with food? Less stress at work? Write down your goals as a way of marking the moment. When you tap into nature and seasonal change, you tap into something bigger than yourself. That connection will help you make lifestyle changes that last.

START A JOURNAL. Don't question why a springtime health/fitness journal is important. Just do it! Make an entry every day, based on the goals you wrote down after your little commune with nature. Don't judge, don't censor: just write thoughts down that relate to your efforts, your feelings, your failures and successes. Focus and feedback are crucial when it comes to changing behavior and keeping a journal — recording when you exercise, what you eat, how you handle stress, for instance — really helps.

CRANK IT UP A NOTCH. This spring, decide to step up your connection to your favorite physical activity. If it's dancing, learn some new steps or switch from salsa to tango. If it's running, work with a trainer, find a partner, try some new terrain or do sprints at comfortable intervals. If it's golf, concentrate on one or two clubs, getting out of the sand or becoming a better putter. If you don't have a favorite physical activity, please find one! Begin the process by taking a 15 minute walk. Contemplate your choices. Tennis? Jump rope? Aikido? If nothing thrills you, do yoga. Give yourself six months of just showing up. Amazing things can happen.

SPRING CLEAN-UP YOUR EATING HABITS. Let spring of 2008 be the season you shift away from old patterns of eating that make you unhealthy, unhappy and overweight. Give yourself permission to stop dieting, now and forever. Instead, root down deep and come up with a new way of eating that focuses on tasty real food you can enjoy in appropriate portions. Do a springtime kitchen makeover, and replace the processed food, junk food and toxic snack food with whole foods and grains, healthy soups, fruits and vegetables, and lean meats in less portions.

ENERGY EXPRESS-O! TEND YOUR OWN GARDEN

"Making contact with your creative self is vital to spring harmony. Who are you inside? You are continually creating your life; be aware of this, and dance and play the tune that you are!" — Elson M. Hass, M.D.

Marilynn Preston — fitness expert, personal trainer and speaker on healthy lifestyle issues — is the creator of Energy Express, the longest-running syndicated fitness column in the country. She welcomes reader questions, which can be sent to [email protected]. To find out more about Preston and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.