Saturday with Jennifer Zamparelli: I’m a morning person — if I sleep in I’m two steps behind

TV and radio personality Jennifer Zamparelli shares her Saturday routine

Comedian Jennifer Zamparelli is known for appearing on 2FM's Breakfast Republic and a number of Irish TV shows including Dancing with the Stars

Fri, 25 Sep, 2026 - 01:00

08.00

I like to be the first one up. I am a morning person. If I sleep in, I feel like I’m two steps behind everyone for the rest of the day. I like to come downstairs when everyone is asleep, have my coffee and some peace and quiet. I’ll write for our podcast Middle Rage with Jen, Sharon & Norma and recently for our live show.

09.00

My son Enzo plays football every Saturday so we’ll all have breakfast before we head off to watch him play. Saturday is the one day that we can all sit down together for a good breakfast that probably involves eggs.

During Dancing with the Stars, my Saturdays look very different. Saturday is rehearsal day so I’m up and I’m out the door to the studio, where I’ll spend most of the day script-writing and reading, rehearsing for the live show, and sorting out my looks for the live show.

09.30

Enzo could have a home match or an away match and we will all go and bring our dog Snoop Dog. He never misses a match no matter what the weather is like. It’s one of the reasons I wanted to support the Reboot campaign with Aviva Ireland and the FAI.

The cost of sports gear can build up and it can be a challenge for parents. It’s great from a sustainability perspective but also for helping raise awareness among the kids so they can keep their boots in good condition to be passed on to other young players. I hope lots of schools and clubs sign up for this scheme so it becomes the norm, almost like the deposit return scheme.

Fitness and sport is so important to us. My daughter Florence is getting to that age when so many young girls drop out of sport. I don’t want to berate her so I try to lead by example. This summer she came to the gym with me, we did circuits together, and I tried to make it fun for her.

I tend to latch on to Mark at Movement Fitness in Dublin, who gives me great accountability, especially in the run-up to Dancing with the Stars. I feel fitter now than I’ve ever felt in my life. I hate putting on the gym gear and getting in the car to go to the gym but I love how I feel when I come out and I love feeling strong.

12.30

We try to keep things fairly active because that’s what we enjoy and we try to instill that in the kids. We like to go to Happy Out for lunch because we can take the dog and there are a few cafes in Wicklow that we love. We’ll have a bite to eat with friends and then go for a little hike in the mountains.

17.30

We like to get the kids involved in the cooking. The goal is to get them to the point where each of them can make an evening meal once a week.

Enzo is only nine but he can make a really great curry from scratch and Florence is a fantastic baker.

My husband Lau might make homemade meatballs and spaghetti, Enzo will make a curry, or I’ll make something really healthy that nobody will like.

Florence will make a cake that we will eat throughout the weekend and we will try to do it all together.

19.00

After dinner, it’s movie night. At the moment, we’re going through all the classics. Lau recently found a bunch of old DVDs so we’re going through the Rocky movies and Jaws. Last week, we watched Rocky III — we did well to get there as Rocky I is not an easy watch for kids.

The things that we thought were OK for kids years ago can seem somewhat dated now but that iconic tune certainly gets him out the door to his training.

21.00

When the kids go to bed, myself and Lauterio might go have a sauna in the back garden. We bought it just before covid and we use it all the time. It’s great because we leave our phones behind and can chat and reconnect with each other.

23.00

Lau is a night owl so he’ll stay up watching something on Netflix and I’ll head upstairs to read. At the moment, I’m reading Wrong Women: Selling Sex in Monto, Dublin’s Forgotten Red Light District by Caroline West. It’s a fascinating read.

My night-time routine is really simple. I’ll cleanse, use retinol, and sometimes a face mask, and I’m happy out.

Jennifer Zamparelli was recently on hand to help launch Reboot with Aviva, a national community initiative from Aviva Ireland and the FAI designed to help reduce the cost of grassroots football and to keep more children involved in the game. Through football clubs and schools across Ireland, families can donate outgrown football boots that are still in good condition and pick up a pre-loved pair in the size they need, free of charge.