Olivia Munn covers the August issue of Good Housekeeping on newsstands July 21.
The X-MEN star talks about life with Aaron Rodgers and their adopted Cavalier King Charles Spaniel pup, Chance, coping with her anxiety, why she’ll never settle for being ‘somebody else’s something’ and making a name for herself.
She also dishes on playing Psylocke in Marvel’s X-MEN: Apocalypse, her childhood karate training, and how a hypnotist got her to start exercising.and her favorite junk food cravings.
Olivia on her mom’s best advice to be your own person and never settle: “The best advice my mother ever gave me was ‘Never marry a guy and just become somebody’s wife.’ She went to college, and even though she got her degrees, she got married early and never really had the opportunity to find her identity. [She’s a great mom], but she always wanted to do other things, and was never able to. So growing up, my mom always told my sisters and me that you have to be your own person and make a name for yourself. Never settle for being somebody else’s something.”
Olivia on her boyfriend, Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers: “My boyfriend’s healthiness inspires me. Aaron is different than every other man I’ve ever met…there’s so much I could say. Everything a good person can be, he is. He’s in such great shape, and especially lately, he’s been eating so well and working out. Having somebody in your life like that is so motivating.”
Olivia on their puppy Chance, adopted from Fox Network’s Cause for Paws special: “I wasn’t looking for a dog at all, and then I saw this little guy and was like, ‘I have to have him.’ [Chance’s good behavior] around Aaron is a direct reflection of how Aaron has been training him – how much respect Aaron has for Chance, and how much respect Chance has for him. I’m like ‘You’re my baby. You can do whatever you want!’ I realize now how important it is for me to be a good parent to him, because it’s a direct reflection of me. Chance made us a family…he and Aaron have changed my life in every way. My world has become so much brighter, sweeter and lovelier. I feel grounded with them in my life.”
Olivia on what she learned from her childhood karate training (she’s a black belt!): “I’m the fourth of five children. All of us started karate at around age 5 and studied it until we were about 16 – and we weren’t allowed to stop practicing until we had achieved black belts. The things that stayed with me the most from that training were the discipline not to give up when something feels too hard and the confidence that comes from knowing that if I keep working hard, I’ll achieve my goal, even if it feels impossible.”
How a hypnotist got her to start exercising—and how it’s changed her life: “I was going to a hypnotist to help me with my OCD and trichotillomania. One day I told him I didn’t work out, and he said, ‘What do you mean?’ I replied ‘I don’t know. I just kind of don’t. I yo-yo.’ He said, ‘You have to! It’s good for your anxiety and depression.’ So during one of our sessions, he hypnotized me. I’m not exaggerating: That was on a Friday, and by Monday I was working out every day at 6 A.M. If I missed a session, I’d double up and do it the next day. Now I feel so much stronger. I remember running up the steps one day and thinking, This is strange. I could do this a hundred times and be totally OK.”
Olivia’s near brush with death, and how Long Island Medium Theresa Caputo helped her move past it: “About four years ago, I was almost in a plane crash. Everybody on the plane thought we were going to die…even the flight attendants were crying and screaming. It made me question everything. After that, Theresa helped me open up. Now I believe in God, or whatever you want to call it. I believe that our souls exist past this – and that as long as we’re good to each other, that’s all that really matters.”
Olivia on her junk food cravings: “Sometimes I wish I had more self-control. I’ll give myself a bunch of excuses, like I’m tired, I’m shooting or I need this cookie. There was a tray of Rice Krispies Treats [at the shoot today]. I’ve had two bags of sour-cream-and-onion chips. Last night, I had creamed corn and mac’n’cheese and two and a half pretzel breadsticks before my meal came! I’m not someone who can eat whatever she wants and have it not affect her. [After I splurge] I think to myself, I’m going to regret this – not because I’m going to put on weight, but because I can actually feel a difference when I’m eating poorly. When you’re trying to be healthy, you can feel the difference if you eat something bad.”
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/entertainment/a33394/olivia-munn-feature-profile/