You know what my dad gave up for lent last year? Ice cream. Oooooh big sacrifice.
Why spend so much effort to try to make others feel less? If you will look closely at it, it harms you too. Why do something that harms yourself?
Are you always joking when you say these things?
To be honest, one of the reasons that many Orthodox I know have their doubts about the RC's is because of how much they've minimized fasting. While not all Orthodox keep the fasts, we are still taught and expected to fast from all meat and dairy every Wednesday and Friday, and to eat less in general. And there are 3 major fasts of several weeks every year. No, its not Death Valley, although the monastics get pretty close to that sometimes. But in our own small way it helps bring us closer to our Lord.