Warren Buffett’s lifestyle
Very less is known about Buffett’s early life, likes and dislikes. Born on August 30, 1930, in Omaha, he attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Columbia Business School. At the age of 94, Buffett continues to live with five cans of Coca-Cola a day, McDonald’s breakfasts based on market moods, and no exercise.
His gastronomic tastes are decidedly humble, including McDonald’s Chicken McNuggets at least three times a week, potato chips for snacks, ice cream for dessert and an average of five cans of Coca-Cola per day.
His hobbies include bridge and playing the ukulele.During Berkshire Hathaway’s annual shareholder meeting last weekend, Buffett defended his junk-food diet and distaste for exercise. “For 94 years, I’ve been able to drink what I want, do what I want, and I’ve defied all the predictions of what should’ve happened to me…Charlie (Munger) and I never really exercised all that much. We were carefully preserving ourselves,” he said.
Cokes, candies and no gym
Seated with two cans of Coca-Cola and a box of See’s Candies on the table in front of him, the billionaire investor reflected on life, health, and happiness. “Bad things do happen,” he said, “but overall, life has been pretty good.”
Buffett likes steaks and enjoys candies from See’s, which Berkshire owns. He estimates that one-fourth of his calories come from Coca-Cola, a longtime Berkshire investment, according to a report in Reuters. Buffett’s daily routine has remained unchanged even in his 90s. His diet famously includes hot dogs, fries, popcorn, cookies, and candy, unapologetically unhealthy favourites.
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“I checked the actuarial tables,” he once joked, “and the lowest death rate is among six-year-olds. So I decided to eat like a six-year-old.”
He said to CNBC in 2023, “If somebody told me I would live an extra year if I ate nothing but broccoli and a few other things all my life instead of eating what I like, I would say take a year off the end of my life and let me eat what I like to eat.”
Warren Buffett acknowledged that neither he nor his late business partner, Charlie Munger, were ever enthusiastic about physical fitness. Speaking at the annual shareholder meeting, he reflected on how they largely avoided regular exercise throughout their lives.
We preserved ourselves,” he said with a smile, implying that steering clear of intense physical activity may have contributed to their lasting physical stability. Buffett pointed to the wear and tear experienced by professional athletes as a cautionary example, suggesting that rigorous exercise can sometimes do more harm than good.
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Mcdonald’s meal, coke and ice-cream
Warren Buffett still lives in the same Omaha home he purchased in 1958 for $31,500 and regularly stops by McDonald’s for breakfast. What’s even more interesting is that his McDonald’s breakfast is based on the stock market’s performance, his documentary ‘Becoming Warren Buffett’ reveals. If the market is in green, he might splurge on a bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit. And if down, he opts for the modest two-sausage patty order, paid for in exact change, his wife puts in the car.
“I tell my wife, as I shave in the morning, I say, ‘Either $2.61, $2.95 or $3.17.’ And she puts that amount in the little cup by me here [in the car],” he explains in the HBO documentary, “Becoming Warren Buffett.”
Each amount corresponds to one of his three go-to breakfast items.
“When I’m not feeling quite so prosperous, I might go with the $2.61, which is two sausage patties, and then I put them together and pour myself a Coke,” he told the documentary director Peter Kunhardt in the McDonald’s drive-through. ”$3.17 is a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit, but the market’s down this morning, so I’ll pass up the $3.17 and go with the $2.95.”
Apart from grabbing McDonald’s for breakfast during his morning commute, he also consumes at least five cans of Coca-Cola daily, split between office hours and home, preferring regular Coke during the day and Cherry Coke at night. He also regularly indulges in Dairy Queen ice cream.
Also, Buffett has made Coca-Cola and Kraft Heinz two of Berkshire Hathaway’s largest holdings and acquired companies like See’s Candies and Dairy Queen.
“I think happiness makes an enormous amount of difference in terms of longevity,” Buffett said in a 2023 interview. “And I’m happier when I’m drinking Coke or eating hot fudge sundaes or hot dogs.”
Buffett has been married to Astrid Menks since 2006. His first wife Susan Thompson Buffett died in 2004, and he had three children with her: Susan, Howard and Peter.
(With inputs from Reuters)