Shape I’m In: Bernard Dunne, world boxing champion

THOUGH it’s four years since world boxing champion Bernard Dunne retired, his fighting spirit is as strong as ever.

These days he is fighting on behalf of young people, insisting they too can live the dream.

“I don’t believe in sitting there, waiting for something to come to you. Sometimes you need to get up off your ass and go out and get something your self... I truly believe life has no limits. If you want to be something why not go out and try and be it,” says Dunne, 34.

The will to achieve, to win, is rooted in his geography. “I’m born and bread in Neilstone, Clondalkin, if I’d believed everything that was written about Neilstown or what was said about people from Neilstown when I was growing up, I would have accepted my fate — that I was going to be some sort of crook, or some sort of vandal.

“Sometime we can let other people’s opinions affect us, characterise us, and make us believe we are destined to be something. You are never destined to be anything.”

He travels the country talking to young people, sometimes as young as 11 years of age. “I tell them it doesn’t matter what someone else thinks of you, it only matters what you believe and what you want to be. Only you can control your destiny.”

He is also “living out his ambition”, working for the senior Dublin football team as performance and lifestyle coach, but his “main focus above all” is his family.

Married to Pamela — “also known as the boss” — the couple live in Palmerstown, with their children Caoimhe, seven, and son is Finnian, six.

* Bernard Dunne is an ambassador for Youth2Work, developed by Microsoft and FIT, as a response to youth unemployment

What shape are you in?

Pretty good shape. I look after myself. I don’t go to gyms. I train myself. I go running or I do exercise at home. Not everyday but quite often. I’d be an early morning riser — I get up at 6.30 most mornings. I wish I could break the habit.

Do you have any health concerns?

None. I had bells palsy seven or eight months ago. I just work up one morning — I didn’t look pretty. It affected my speech, my eating habits. I had no control over one side of my face. It took six months to clear up. I tried everything, including physio and bio energy. The electro therapy really helped.

What are your healthiest eating habits?

We eat quite healthily in our house. My daughter is a coeliac. We eat a lot of fish, a lot of chicken. I wouldn’t fry food. I have a lot of healthy habits from when I boxed. It’s very hard to change.

What’s your guiltiest pleasure?

Go to mammy’s — she spoils me. I live close enough that I actually get to see her most days. We’d be a close family. She makes a lovely cod and potatoes and a soup around it. And I like a nice coddle.

What would keep you awake at night?

My brain. I tend to think an awful lot. I constantly have ideas in my head. I’d be quite inquisitive.

How do you relax?

March it out with my kids or walk the dogs. We generally have nieces or nephews around — we’d all meet up in my mam’s. I wish I never left.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?

Paul McGrath, Packie Bonner, actor Laurence Kinlan, singer Ryan Sheridan and the Coronas. And then there are all my mates. We’d all have a ball.

What’s your favourite smell?

Fresh herbs and lavender.

What would you change about your appearance?

To get rid of all the scar tissue on my face and straighten up my nose a wee bit.

When did you last cry?

When I watched a programme about Triona Priestly who passed away recently. Ed Sheeran sang to her over the phone. Her mother and brother gave interviews. I thought it was an amazing story.

What trait do you least like in others?

Fakeness. I like people who are ordinary, honest,

What trait do you least like in yourself?

I kinda like myself. I’d be quite direct about something. I can get my head in to something and fixate on it and want to get there. I’d be very stubborn when I set my mind to something. I don’t even know if I dislike that.

Do you pray?

I don’t go to church but I do, from time to time, talk to somebody. I’d like to believe there is something else out there.

What would cheer up your day?

I tend to start my day by smiling. I like to end it that way. Life should be fun. I try to make sure that everything I do in life is something I enjoy.