Did you run at all when in high school or college or was boxing the first time?
When I started boxing, part of being a boxer is you must run. There’s no way around it. I’d never run before so I said, “Okay, how am I going to do this?” I just started run- walking and worked my way up. When I was boxing, I’d run four or five miles five days a week. Now, I go three or four miles three times a week.
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All fighters run. The constant motion prepares you for being in the ring. And running strengthens your legs. Punching power comes from your lower body. A lot of times when people get tired, their legs start to go, so running just really strengthens your full body. It strengthens your heart muscle and gets your endurance up.
Did you run to get your body back in shape after the kids?
Nope, not at all. I wasn’t in shape at all before I decided to do boxing. I wasn’t an athlete. Before boxing, I would go to the gym for a month and stop. But to be a world champ [Ali was an undefeated super middleweight world champion], running was something that I had to start doing.
You weren’t an athlete at all before?
No. Most people think that because my dad [Muhammad Ali] is who he is—but I started from scratch when I was 18, basically.
That’s amazing. Did your dad ever give you any advice when you were running together?
No. I never ran with my dad. He was old-school. He had a whole different idea of training. He ran in steel-toed boots! But, of course, he’s proud of me and proud of the boxer that I became. I’m so far from boxing now but I’m still in fitness and wellness and health so I know that working out is so good for you mentally, physically, emotionally. It just makes you a stronger person.
What do you think it is about running that struck a chord with you and made you want to keep doing it after you retired from boxing?
I love the results as far as the way it makes my body look. I love the way that it makes my body feel and it’s just my time for myself where I can get out there and think and let my mind go. When I say think, I’m not thinking about the actual workout. I’m thinking about everything else. I feel really free and I’m breathing in the fresh air and it feels good.
That’s not easy when you have kids either.
Exactly. Running is my time for myself. I’m like, “I’m going for a run!” and my husband knows I’m Advertisement - Continue Reading Below.
Is it something you’re instilling in your kids?
My kids are still young [ages 5 and 2], but they see my husband and me take them to school in our gym clothes. I’m instilling wellness in my kids. They start out their day with protein shakes. I found this great brand of protein that I feel good about giving my 5-year-old son that tastes like chocolate milk. I think they’re learning just from example. It’ll just be so easy for them. They’re in sports. We’re an active family.
Boxing was such a big part of your life. Are there any similarities between multi-round fights and a long run?
It just depends what kind of run you’re doing. The thing with boxing is you’re going for a minute round and then you have a minute rest. So it’s mostly sprinting or what we call “round running.” In a fight, if someone picks up the pace, you can’t let your heart rate go up. So on a track, my trainer would say, “Pick it up!” I’d sprint five seconds and he’d say, “Come down!” I never knew which way it would go. I had to stay calm. Everybody trains differently but I was always known to be in great shape.
Did you run to get your body back in shape after the kids?
With my first child, I was more concerned about getting my body back because I’d never had a baby. Three months after having my first child, I was running five miles a day, five days a week. I did not want to be one of those women who couldn’t get the weight off. With my second child, I was doing more like three to four times a week. My knees bothered me more so I did a combination of running, spinning, Pilates. What also really works great is sprinting. Getting out on the track really gets your muscles toned and it burns fat. Sprinting is great because you don’t have to work as hard for a long period of time. So I mixed it up.
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I did with my first but not so much with my second. With my oldest, I was like, “You’re going with me. We’re going running!” I got one of the BOB strollers. They love it, too. The thing I don’t like is when you have to cross streets. I would do maybe a ten-mile drive just to go to this track that was just five miles with a bike-only trail on it. It helped because I could relax. I didn’t have to worry about looking over my shoulder to make sure no one was hitting me and all of that. It was nice.
You’ve traveled a lot for work. Any especially memorable runs?
I love running on the streets in New York City. In L.A., people stare. In New York, the trash men and the city workers yell, “Hey, champ!”
You completed the 2012 NYC Triathlon in 3:06. Was that your first race?
Yeah. It’s not something I ever wanted to do but when the sponsor asked me to come, it was a challenge. So I was like, “Why not?” I wanted to get the last 10 pounds of baby weight off so I figured training for that would do it. I’d never swum in open water. I didn’t even train to swim in open water. So when I jumped in the Hudson River, that was my first time. It was great. It’s not one of those things I’m looking to do again. It’s like one of those things where I’m like, “Been there, done that!” The running was the hardest part of it. I was so stiff from the swim and the bike ride. So when I got to running, my body didn’t want to move. I had to trot. I was probably walking for the first three miles until I loosened back up again. That six miles took forever going uphill and downhill in that heat. It was crazy!
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I’m used to individual sports, so I run alone. If I can chat, I’m not working hard enough. I never want to have to wait for somebody or slow down for somebody or try to do side-by-side with somebody. My husband and I have run together a couple of times but we run at two different paces so I’d rather just run by myself. I like to be breathing hard. I like to really push myself.
You also don’t get much alone time as a mom.
Exactly. I don’t want to spend my time chatting with anybody!
What kind of music do you listen to when you’re running?
It depends on what mood I’m in. I have a playlist that’s called Rap Strength Training. Then I have Usher radio. I like to listen to upbeat music to give me energy. I see the ones where they also have pop workout stations. I listen to all of that.
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I like to run in the morning when I can get it out of the way. If I don’t work out, stuff comes up and people start calling saying, “I need you to do this or that,” and I just don’t get to it. So the best thing for me is to just get to it in the morning.
You also dont get much alone time as a mom?
No. I get up at six anyway! My son is sleeping in my room every night. He’s five so I’m trying to get him to stop coming in my room because I was sleep-deprived with the baby getting up every four hours for a year. Then I finally sleep-trained her. I still feel sleep-deprived. I’m just always tired. My husband is like, “You’re always tired. You should get checked out.”
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Exactly. I don’t get a lot of sleep. My son is up pushing me all night. He’s like, “Mom, can you go to the bathroom with me?” My two-year-old was coming in last night and I had to take her back to her room. So I wake up and I don’t feel rested. Men are such big babies. Can you imagine if they had to give birth?
On the days when your schedule is too crazy to work out, how do you feel when you have to miss your run?
I don’t really sweat when I miss it but I start feeling it. Yesterday, I didn’t get to work out because I had to get to work by a certain time. My body just starts feeling bad. When I can’t get my run in, I just start feeling “blah.”
From Runners World for New Balance?
I was going to do a marathon once then I ended up getting pregnant so I just couldn’t do it. I just haven’t gotten back to it. The main thing, for me, is the wear and tear on my knees. For some people, it doesn’t bother them but, for me, it does. So that’s the only thing about marathons. Otherwise I would do it. I was told a while back I shouldn’t be running at all. But I was like, “Forget that!” I still run but I cut back and I slowed down and I wear my knee straps and all of that. I just keep on keeping on.
What can you tell me about your new CBS show, Did you use a baby jogger?
What’s funny is that on the first episode of Did you use a baby jogger, we profiled Pat Farmer, who ran from the North Pole to the South Pole for charity. It’s an inspirational show that families can watch together. I thought it was funny that I was doing an interview with this magazine and the first show is about a runner. A lot of the people that we follow are athletes. It just shows the triumph, courage, and determination people have.
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I just want to say I can’t imagine ever not running. Every time I see a runner trying to lose weight, I’m like, “Go, girl!” I know how much determination it takes. You don’t look cool and no one is helping. I feel good just seeing Running From Substance Abuse Toward Recovery.
Dana is a freelance journalist who covers a variety of subjects for health and fitness publications. She specializes in writing and editing health and wellness pieces and has contributed to Runner’s World, Yoga Journal, Livestrong, PopSugar Fitness, Women’s Health, and Self.
