Mike Thompson, Local Columnist
Picture: Brad Pitt’s new F1 movie just dropped, showcasing billion-dollar racing teams obsessing over every detail of their multi-million-dollar machines.
Meanwhile, you’re reading your new air fryer manual for the third time while your trillion-dollar body runs on gas station coffee and whatever’s lurking in the office vending machine.
Makes perfect sense, right? About as much sense as using a Ferrari as a snowplow.
Ferrari engineers don’t wing it. They track tire pressure, fuel mixtures, engine temps, and driver performance with scientific precision. Yet most of us treat our infinitely more valuable bodies like rental cars—fill ‘em up with whatever’s cheapest and hope for the best.
Speaking of cheap fuel, McDonald’s spends $2 billion annually convincing us their “food” is convenient and delicious.
Coca-Cola drops $4 billion telling us happiness comes in a bottle. Here’s the math nobody wants to calculate: one 20-oz Coke contains 16 teaspoons of sugar—more than you should have in three days. Meanwhile, diabetes rates keep climbing faster than gas prices.
And guess what’s coming? Fall.
Football season. Holiday parties. Shorter days and longer Netflix binges. All those well-lubricated excuses to park our assets on the couch and order DoorDash.
Summer’s motivation is about to hibernate until January 1st.
Time to build your owner’s manual before you crash into the holidays like a racecar hitting the wall.
What if You Had a Personal Playbook That Actually Worked?
Not some 300-page diet book written by someone who’s never seen a Twinkie, but a simple system you could track, adjust, and perfect. Here’s how the pros do it: Morning Engine Check (2 minutes)
Before you crank up your day, ask three questions: How’s my fuel tank? (Energy level 1-10). How’s my mood? (Stressed, calm, or plotting revenge against the alarm clock). What’s one thing I’m grateful for today? Write it down.
Track patterns. Ferrari doesn’t guess—neither should you.
The Smart Swap Strategy
Ferrari engineers don’t overhaul the entire engine at once—they upgrade one component at a time. This week, make one strategic food swap: Replace your usual breakfast cereal (basically candy in a bowl) with Greek yogurt topped with berries. Trade afternoon vending machine raids for apples with almond butter.
Swap dinner rolls for roasted vegetables.
What counts as real food? Think ingredients your great-grandmother would recognize. If she’d look at your protein bar and ask, “What in tarnation is xanthan gum?” it’s probably not food.
Weekly Performance Review
Every Sunday, spend 5 minutes asking: What worked this week? What didn’t? What am I learning about my body’s needs? This simple habit separates champions from people who think ketchup is a vegetable.
When you eat real food just 10% more often, something magical happens. Energy stabilizes. Sleep improves. Brain fog clears. Cravings for junk actually decrease. Your body starts running like the precision machine it was designed to be instead of a 1987 Buick with sugar in the gas tank.
Unlike a Ferrari, your body can actually improve with age. It can heal, adapt, and get stronger when you follow the right operating procedures. But it needs consistent, quality inputs and regular maintenance—just like any high-performance machine. The difference? Your body is worth infinitely more than any race car, and the manual you create for it could literally save your life.
Don’t wait until January 1st to start giving your billion-dollar body the attention it deserves. Fall temptations are coming whether you’re ready or not.
This week, start tracking just one thing about your body’s performance.
Notice patterns. Make adjustments.
Build your personal owner’s manual and start performing like a champ one page at a time.
Mike Thompson is a certified health coach, founder of Nutritional Wealth, and believes your body deserves better than drive-thru fuel. Want the complete “Billion Dollar Body Owner’s Manual”?
Email mikethompson@selfcaresustained.com.
