The actor and comedian with a new November Hulu special on the way shares how laughter keeps us young, in more ways than one.
Sebastian Maniscalco has made a career out of noticing the little things most of us overlook, then blowing them up into comedy gold. But these days, the 52-year-old funnyman is more thoughtful about his health than you might expect. He’s learned that—just like in comedy—timing matters when it comes to mealtime, and he’s become more deliberate about how food, fitness, and recovery fit into his routine.
From cold plunges that wake him up “like physical caffeine,” to a nightly steam room routine that helps him connect with his wife and kids, Maniscalco is surprisingly grounded in his approach to self-care. Ahead of his new special, It Ain’t Right, releasing November 21 on Hulu—and while promoting the new Frigidaire Gallery Range with Stone-Baked Pizza Mode—Maniscalco shared in a candid conversation with The Healthy by Reader’s Digest why he considers laughter to be the secret ingredient to keeping everything in balance.
Plus, the comedian, whose movie About My Father with Robert De Niro recently arrived on Netflix, reveals how meditation advice from Jerry Seinfeld changed his mental health outlook.
The Healthy by Reader’s Digest: Sebastian, we know you have a love of good food, especially pizza, but you’ve mentioned in your act that you can’t really eat dairy.
Sebastian Maniscalco: I can…I just have to deal with the consequences. Being Italian, you just plow through the dairy and worry about it later. I’m not one of these guys who’s very picky when it comes to food. I’ll try anything. My wife, however—we go out to a restaurant, and by the time she’s done ordering, it’s basically breakfast. The modifications she throws at the waiter are unbelievable. I’ve never seen anything like it.
The Healthy: What does healthy look like to you when you’re in the kitchen?
Sebastian Maniscalco: Healthy for me is probably chicken and fish dishes. I love to make steak. For me, it’s the sides that are tricky. It’s hard finding a replacement for potatoes. I really, really enjoy potatoes. But carbs get me in trouble with weight gain, so I try to stick with more vegetable-forward sides—like asparagus or broccoli. I also have to stay away from bread, because that’s another killer. I’m 52 years old; I eat a sandwich and I’ll gain eight pounds.
The Healthy: Yeah, the metabolism changes! How have you noticed your fitness and nutrition habits evolve over the years?
Sebastian Maniscalco: I used to not care at all what I ate. I’d just burn it off while I slept. Now, I’ve noticed you have to be a little more mindful about when you eat. I think it’s more of a timing issue with me. After six or seven o’clock, I try not to eat dinner, just because I don’t want to go to bed on a full stomach. As I’ve gotten older, I can’t have meat after six o’clock or I’ll wake up at two in the morning feeling like I’m having a heart attack. I get the meat sweats. I don’t know if you’re in that category of sweating while you sleep, but I have to time out my eating so it’s not too late at night. That’s hard to do as a comedian—you’re up late, and you get hungry at night.
The Healthy: Exactly. How do you keep up with those healthy habits while touring, especially with late shows, time zones, and not knowing what restaurants will be nearby?
Sebastian Maniscalco: Actually, I’m more diligent with my diet when I’m on the road. Interesting, right? At home, with family and kids, there’s a lot of snacking and grazing. On the road, you don’t have that luxury of popping into the fridge, so I eat more deliberately: breakfast, lunch, dinner. I’ll carry healthier snacks like beef jerky, a protein bar, or some almonds to get me through the day.
I’ve even flown with my own food. When I was doing a movie in Alabama for nine weeks, I literally had breakfast, lunch, and dinner prepackaged and ready to go. But if you’re hitting three cities in three nights, it gets logistically tough to travel with meals. Usually, I’ll just order room service or grab a quick salad somewhere.
The Healthy: As someone who’s been making people laugh for decades, how do you think comedy and laughter contribute to longevity, wellness, and mental health?
Sebastian Maniscalco: I’ve always laughed my way through life. I grew up in a family where we were either laughing or crying—no in-between. If someone started crying, we’d make them laugh to snap out of it. I feel like laughter keeps a lot of my relationships healthy, both business and personal. My wife and I are constantly laughing. Even when we get angry, we try to inject humor to break the cycle of the argument.
As for health, I do know a lot of comedians who live a long time. Maybe it’s the love you get from an audience. To make 17,000 people laugh at once, it all comes at you—it’s euphoric. I often tell the audience, “I feel as good as you feel laughing, and I feel 10 times better hearing it.” I’m 52. We’ll see if I live to 95 doing this.
The Healthy: That adrenaline rush on stage is real. How do you come down from it, and what does mental health look like in your life?
Sebastian Maniscalco: I’m not the type who wants to go party after my set to keep the euphoria going. I get off stage, go in the car, take a shower, and watch a Netflix documentary. No John Belushi moments here. It’s back to the hotel to relax. As far as mental health, I’ve never really struggled. I feel like I’m a happy guy.
The Healthy: So no meditation or yoga?
Sebastian Maniscalco: Actually, I started doing meditation. Jerry Seinfeld and I have talked over the years about transcendental meditation—he got me into it. I do 20 minutes when I wake up and 20 minutes midday. That’s definitely helped my outlook on mental health and with absorbing stress better than I would without it.
The Healthy: What’s one self-care ritual you refuse to skip, whether you’re at home or on the road?
Sebastian Maniscalco: At home, I love a good steam room. Twenty minutes at the beginning and end of the day. About five years ago, I also started cold plunging. I don’t know if it’s really working long-term, but I definitely feel awake and alive after I get out of a 38-degree tub. It’s like physical caffeine. The steam, especially at the end of the day, relaxes me and helps me connect with my kids and wife.
We’ve got this little routine at home: around six o’clock, everybody showers and gets into their “cozies.” We hang around the house, goof around, wrestle with my son. It resets me for a night of family time. Then once the kids are in bed, my wife and I relax outside, maybe with a glass of wine. It’s a nice way to cap the day.
The Healthy: That’s beautiful. What projects do you have coming up that you’re excited about?
Sebastian Maniscalco: First and foremost, I’ve got a Hulu special [It Ain’t Right] coming out in November, which I’m really excited about. It was shot at the United Center in my hometown of Chicago. My first arena special. The production looks spectacular, and I think the stand-up really shines through. I’m finishing up my tour with some casino dates in Atlantic City and Las Vegas, plus some shows around California.
I also have a podcast, The Pete and Sebastian Show, with comedian Pete Correale. It airs every Tuesday. He’s more of a beer-and-peanuts guy, I’m more of a wine-and-cheese guy, and the contrast is really funny. When I first got into this business, it was all about stand-up, and everything else has been gravy.
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This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
