'I know my s**t now': Rio Ferdinand opens up about fitness, trauma and business

Suraj Radia

• Updated: 12 Feb 2026 15:08 CST
• 7 min read

News

Rio Ferdinand has opened up about his fitness regime and how he finds himself entering a new era after suffering through pain and mental trauma since his retirement.

The former England defender is best known for his 12-year stint with Manchester United where he won 14 trophies before retiring and becoming a pundit as well as launching his own media company.

Ferdinand told Men’s Health magazine about his motivations and the changes he has made in recent years, from AI to physicians to a new start as an independent business and content guru.

Having lost his wife to cancer in 2015, Ferdinand has since moved himself and his family to Dubai, while dabbling in boxing and speaking about his legacy in an in-depth interview.

Ferdinand on: his kids

“I’ve got kids that need to see a work ethic. My kids need to see me getting up and going to work. They need to see me and [my wife] Kate going to the gym. I want them to have a healthy lifestyle and to think that going to the gym or just moving is the norm. And I’m not about telling my kids that; they need to see it.

“But also, if I’m being honest, I have to go to work for my mental sanity as well. I like work; my mum and dad worked. They were grafters. That’s all I’ve known. When my kids talk about me, as much as it is, yeah, “Daddy loves me” and “Daddy’s done everything for me.” It’s “Daddy worked hard. He was a hustler.” You know what I mean?”

Ferdinand on: technology and the impact of business on his children

“I love tech, it’s so quick to change that you’ve got to be on the button. There are no days off, otherwise you get left behind. AI’s now here. We weren’t talking about it 18 months ago. But I’m all over it. I love it. How can it affect the businesses that I’m involved in? How can it upscale them?

“My kids need to see that and hear that. I send my kids, my older boys especially, so much shit about business investing. They’re conditioned to see that and hear that. And then what’s great for me is that people that my kids are around, they all say to me, “Your boys are asking questions about investing and stuff like that, asking about business.” And I’m sitting there going, “Well, that’s the pay-off for me.”’

Ferdinand on: dealing with the trauma of losing his wife and leading by example

“I’ve always been in the gym. I’ve always been around working out. So for me, it’s not a chore, it’s a way of life. When I retired, because of the trauma in our life, my kids needed to see positive actions as much as possible. So, getting up, “Yeah, we’re in a bad place, but Dad’s going to the gym every day. He’s still doing it.”

“My attitude was, “I ain’t telling you you’ve got to go to school. I’m not telling you you’ve got to do this and that. You’re going to see me get up, still go to work.” Externally, for my kids, I need to be the instigator of a positive mindset. And yes, I’m dealing with it. Yes, I can be emotional. Yes, I can be vulnerable when I’m with them, but at the same time, I’ve still got to keep ticking away.”

Ferdinand on: dieting

“In clothes, I looked really good,’ he says. ‘But without clothes on the beach, I’d look a bit flabby.

“My main thing was to try to maintain the weight and size, just clean up and cut to become a bit more chiselled. But I was never able to do it because the cut was such a strict cut, it just wasn’t realistic for my lifestyle. I have such a fast-paced lifestyle and I need energy to work and to get up and go. But the cuts I was doing were zero carbs and I just couldn’t maintain it.

“[Personal trainer] John [Clarke] was more like, “It’s not zero carbs, I’m just going to take your carbs down. And then sometimes I might substitute your carbs for fats, cheese or avocado”. So I still feel full. My problem is that I love food and you can’t tell me no carbs.

“I’m always on the move – I’m in hotels, I’m in airports, so I can’t always prep meals. He’s given me a good idea of what kind of alternatives I can have on the move. And it isn’t like if you have a day off or a bad day it’s the end of the world.’

Ferdinand on: chronic injury and ‘knowing his shit’

“I’ve had a bad back for a long time. I’ve got injuries that I had from my career… I was on tablets and injections for six years to play games. That’s affected me. I get some bad moments of back pain where I have to be in a hospital for a couple of days or in a wheelchair for a couple of days. It’s mad, but it just comes out of nowhere.

“Since I’ve been in Dubai, I’ve been seeing a physio for the first time since I retired. He’s been doing loads of manipulations and whatnot, and within his building there’s also my personal trainer, so he feeds him information about my training. There’s a holistic approach to what I’m doing now and hopefully that’s going to put me in good stead. Rather than fixing when it’s broken, you actually prevent [injuries].

“I know my shit now. But I’m 47 years old. It took me all that time.”

Ferdinand on: his mentality during his playing career

“I’m asking the chairman [at West Ham] “When are we going to start spending money? We’ve got the best kids in the country, Frank [Lampard], me, Joe Cole’s coming, [Michael] Carrick’s coming, [Jermain] Defoe, Anton [Ferdinand], Glen Johnson, these guys are all coming. I can see it. When are you going to spend some money?”

“And then Leeds made an offer and it was like, right, I’m gone… I said, “This is a new adventure. I’m not sitting around. I need to go.” I’m not a person who just sits and is comfortable.

“You can’t rest on your laurels at Manchester United. That was the best thing for me. A club striving for success. It doesn’t allow complacency because you get thrown out quick.”

Ferdinand on: leaving TNT to become independent

“I like being tested. I like pressure. I had it fine at TNT. I could have signed a new contract at TNT. Easily. But that ain’t who I am really. It’s time for something new. And with all due respect, I’d been trying to push [a new] side of things within the team and the group at TNT, and they weren’t really as receptive as I would’ve liked. So that was another big reason why I go, “Okay, if you’re not going to jump in two-footed with me and hold hands, then I move on. We’ll see how I do when I go on my own.”

“Because I saw the new world is that linear TV and live football are always going to be there, but there’s also another world outside the 90 minutes that intrigues me, which I look at like a fan. So I want to know what the fuck these guys are eating, how do they sleep, how do they recover? I want to get the public closer to that and I want to be at the forefront of that. But at the same time, this is just who I am. I’m not trying to be no one, I’m me. I do my own shit. I’ve always been in my own lane.”

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