The Real-Life Diet of Arch Manning, Who’s Into Earthing and Cookie Cakes

Many of us formed some of our greatest memories as teenagers. Arch Manning, the 19-year-old quarterback for the University of Texas, is still making them, reaping the benefits of impending football stardom at one of the country’s largest universities. On the field, he’s next in line to be the Longhorns’ QB1 after putting up strong numbers in the two games he started in 2024. Off the field, he’s taking advantage of all the resources that UT has to offer, which means plenty of gourmet eats at the football facility and rarely turning on his stove at home.

The son of Cooper Manning (Eli and Peyton’s brother) and likely to be the fourth member of the family to reach the NFL once his college days are over, Arch is currently catching a little downtime. As he waits for August to roll around and the 2025 season to begin, the youngster is enjoying offseason workouts, life in Austin, and a new deal with Red Bull (“It’s good people over there, and they came to me with an offer I couldn’t deny”).

While it doesn’t sound like he’s going to be whipping up complicated meals anytime soon, Manning is learning to curtail his use of food delivery apps, spending a lot of time in the cold tub, and side-eyeing anyone in his life who overuses a certain condiment.

Yeah, I guess in high school I didn’t really follow nutrition that well. My brother and I would go get [Raising] Cane’s before games and I’d get a root beer, or a medium-to-large lemonade. When I got to college, I saw everyone taking it more seriously and I thought, I gotta start doing this. Now, I’m drinking a lot of water—mixing in some Red Bull—staying away from fried food, and eating well.

We have a team nutritionist and, I mean, they overfeed us. We’re getting fed all the time. I feel like I’m the most hydrated I’ve ever been, and a cool thing about the partnership with Red Bull is they allow me to access a nutritionist and get all the information I need to enhance my performance.

Box combo, no coleslaw, extra fries. It was big time. I thought it was good protein, tasted good. I wasn’t like, “I need this to help me perform.” It was fine, but my body’s growing and changing, so I don’t think that would last me in college. When I eat Cane’s now, I feel terrible the next day.

I try to eat no fried food during the week, but it’s just so easy to DoorDash some Chick-fil-A on the weekend when you don’t feel like eating out. But I try to stay away from it during the week … [whispers] even though I had Chick-fil-A this morning.

We eat our meals before the games at the hotel. I usually like to eat grilled chicken, pasta, some vegetables, and some fruit. Maybe a smoothie.

The workouts were no joke. It was hard! On one of my visits, a player told me to make sure I run a lot and lift before I get to town. I took that to heart, so I was pretty prepared, but they are not easy. I think the intensity, and how often [we did them] was the toughest part. In the summer, we’ll get out there at 6:30 at night, and then you’re back the next morning at 6:30 for another workout. There’s not much time for recovery, but you gotta get the most out of it.

I would say it’s important to compete. Try to get a sweat in every day. Maybe not every day, but at least five to six times a week. I just think it’s good for your mental health, and it’s fun! It’s better than staying inside doing nothing all day. I’ve never gamed, but I’m on my phone a lot, so I try to get outside and have fun, laugh, and sweat at least once a day.

I’ve tried all of it. It’s cool because I didn’t really have that in high school. We have access to all of it: cold tub, hot tub, sauna, the red light stuff. I’m a big, big, contrast, hot tub-cold tub guy. Getting in the sauna too, I love that stuff. Whatever can help make me feel better, I’m all for it.

My buddy Michael Taaffe, who’s a safety on our team, he helped me a lot with that. We’d always do extra mobility work or hop in the tubs. That was a fun way to bond with him and learn about the team, but also help our bodies out. It’s tough. I can’t stay in the cold tub for longer than, like, 10 minutes. But I like that it makes me feel better after. I’m willing to suffer through a little bit of pain.

Nah. I trust who we got. They were hired for a reason, so I’m going to trust them. I don’t need much explaining.

No more pregame chicken tenders for this guyTim Warner/Getty Images

I like doing a lot of band work for my arm, just keeping my shoulder strong and mobile. A lot of stretching, trying to stay flexible so you don’t get injured. I’m not really benching and squatting all the time, just staying mobile.

I’ve tried Pilates, and I do like yoga. I remember in high school we’d kind of just go out there and play. Now, I do a full warmup and stretch before I throw. It’s been cool to learn about my body and try to make the most out of it.

Uhh, I guess it’s a little superstitious! I do the same thing before every practice and game just to have a routine. It’s just a certain order I do with the bands, nothing over the top.

I’m trying to be better about being on my phone less and not scrolling for no reason. I do shower every morning before I go to the facility. My quarterback coach said I had to start doing that to look alive a little more. I’ve done some grounding [aka earthing]. That’s good stuff, feeling connected to the earth. I’ll just take my cleats off right after practice and walk around. Everyone’s like, “What’s the matter with this guy?”

I am. I love breakfast. Eggs, bacon, pancakes, yogurt. I love it all.

I do not, but I want to learn how. I made a bagel yesterday. Baby steps.

It’s the lack of time, and I’m blessed at the University of Texas. The football staff and nutritionists give us so much food and it’s so good. I don’t know if I’d trust myself with cooking. I’d rather just rely on the professionals. They give us some vitamins—fish oil, one other thing, and I also go in and out of creatine in the offseason.

I don’t like to rely on that stuff, but we’re an early-in-the-morning team. If I’m feeling tired in a meeting or need some energy before a workout, I’ll have a Red Bull, all the flavors. I like the Red Bull Zero.

I like those cookie cakes from Great American Cookies. Fire! Dip that in milk, it’s gas.

A lot of these Cali guys put ketchup on everything. I don’t know how I feel about that. I’ve never put ketchup on eggs or anything. I’ll dip my fries in some ketchup, but other than that I stay away.

In Real-Life Diet, athletes, celebrities, and other high performers talk about their diet, exercise routines, and pursuit of wellness. Keep in mind that what works for them might not necessarily be healthy for you.