Number one, like yourself. Number two, you have to eat healthy. And number three, you've got to squeeze your buns. That's my formula.

Self-care starts with liking yourself

We often think self-improvement requires some elaborate, complicated system—the right app, the perfect diet, the latest fitness trend. But this formula cuts through that noise with something almost disarmingly simple: like yourself first, then take care of your body, then actually do the work. There's real wisdom in that order. You can't sustain anything if you're running on self-criticism and shame. You have to genuinely want good things for yourself, not because you hate who you are, but because you deserve them.

The surprising part is that this isn't actually about fitness at all—or at least not just fitness. "Squeeze your buns" is shorthand for showing up consistently, for doing the unglamorous repetition when nobody's watching. Most of us know what we should do. We just don't do it. We skip the gym, we order takeout, we scroll instead of sleep. The gap between knowing and doing is where most people get stuck. What Michaels is really saying is that self-care isn't mystical. It's three concrete choices: respect yourself enough to try, fuel your body deliberately, and follow through when it's boring or hard. That's it. Everything else is just noise.