Debi Mazar Talks Madonna, Workouts, and Beauty Sleep
The “Younger” and “Entourage” star on Madonna, the perfect workout song and finally getting a good night’s sleep.
Debi Mazar has a lot on her plate these days. She’s currently co-starring on a new TV Land series (Younger), hosts a cooking show (Extra Virgin) on the Cooking Channel with her husband, and is appearing in the upcoming feature film version of Entourage, which hits theaters in June. Juggling a hectic career and raising her family in Brooklyn keeps the actress very busy—and also awake at night. We caught up with Mazar at an event for the launch of Silenor, a new prescription sleeping medicine, and chatted about the importance of a good night’s sleep, her latest fitness regime and working out with Madonna.
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Let’s talk about sleep.
I really do have issues with sleep, so I’m really excited about this pill. I took it and in the morning, I was like, “Oh my God! I didn’t wake up and I don’t feel crappy today.”
So you just had a hard time falling asleep?
I would sleep and then wake up at like 3am to use the restroom or check on my kids or whatever, and I’d go back to bed and just wouldn’t fall back to sleep.
And then you start to panic that you’re never going to be able to get back to sleep.
Yeah, you panic. When you feel like you won’t be able to sleep, you get worked up and it ruins your day. I’d then worry about doing a bad job at auditions or memorizing four pages of dialogue, which is hard to do when you’re sleep deprived.
How do you feel now that you’re getting a full night’s sleep?
To be honest, I only tried this pill about a month ago. And I’ve only had to take it a couple of times. I’ve changed my lifestyle where I’m getting back into exercising more, which helps with my sleep. And I’ll relax with chamomile tea instead of wine, while I watch Empire. I love Cookie!
What’s a typical workout for you?
For me, I love my cardio. I get on the treadmill, then I get on the LifeCycle machine. I like a little bit of lifting. I like long, lean muscles, so I’ll use low weights. I have a gym in my basement, but there’s something empowering about getting out of the house. I have Prospect Park [in Brooklyn] a block away, so I’ll take my dog to the park. But I just started to go into the city a few times a week to take some classes.
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What’s your favorite workout song right now?
“Living for Love.” It’s a good new one. And also a song by Major Lazer. They have these really cool beats. Those are my two main songs right now. A lot of songs on Madonna’s new record, I’m waiting for the remixes for. But “Living for Love” is my absolute favorite. I like the church thing. Give me a choir with their hands to the sky. I’m an old disco girl. You know, I turned her onto the voguers. I’m a New York street girl.
And what’s your favorite kind of class?
I actually just started going to a class taught by one of Madonna’s trainers. I went with Madonna to train with her, and it was such a fun and energetic class. I’ll do it because I have to, and I generally do like to sweat, but I’ll get bored. So it’s good to find something that you really want to do. It’s fun to get back into it because over the past couple of years I’ve felt like I let myself go a little bit.
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But isn’t that what happens when you have a cooking show?
Yes, and children! It’s really the children. But it’s really important for me to be going forward into the future, I turn 50 this year, and I feel like you have to own your body and health. I keep going, “If I don’t get this together now, it’s only going to get worse.” I pride myself on my good energy and having stamina to deal with the world. It’s not just fitness, but getting good sleep and eating good food. You need to make yourself feel like a superhero.
