Irina Shayk on Why She 'Never Understood the Term "Co-Parenting" ': It's Just 'Parenting'

Chris Colls for ELLE Irina Shayk for ELLE

Irina Shayk has a simple term for when two people take care of their child, regardless of whether they're together romantically: parenting.

ELLE's March digital cover star chatted with the magazine about how she and ex Bradley Cooper raise their 3½-year-old daughter Lea De Seine, revealing that they parent equally and don't really have a special term for their situation.

"I never understood the term co-parenting," said the Russian model, 35. "When I'm with my daughter, I'm 100 percent a mother, and when she's with her dad, he's 100 percent her dad."

"Co-parenting is parenting," she added, also calling Cooper, 46, "the most amazing dad."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Chris Colls for ELLE Irina Shayk for ELLE

RELATED GALLERY: Co-Parenting Confessions: How Celebrity Exes Make It Work for the Kids Post-Breakup

Shayk — who split from Cooper in 2019 after four years together — says that any story about their "past relationship" is "something that belongs to me, and it's private."

"It's just a piece of my inner self that I don't want to give away," she added.

The mother of one also admitted she doesn't read stories about her, as she's "too busy raising a child" and isn't bothered.

"If they want to write articles [about me], they're doing their job," Shayk said. "I'm concentrating on my life and my friends. The rest is just noise."

Chris Colls for ELLE Irina Shayk for ELLE

RELATED VIDEO: Irina Shayk Opens Up About Ex Bradley Cooper and Life as a Single Mom in Rare Candid Interview

Irina Shayk Opens Up About Ex Bradley Cooper and Life as a Single Mom in Rare Candid Interview

The notoriously private supermodel reflected on her four-year long relationship with Bradley Cooper— and navigating life without him

Shayk rarely talked about the A Star Is Born actor even while they were together; in February 2019, she told Glamour UK she preferred to keep their romance out of the spotlight.

But she got surprisingly candid with British Vogue for the fashion magazine's March 2020 cover story, admitting that some days are harder than others as a single mother.

"It's hard to find a balance between being a single mom and being a working woman and provider," Shayk shared. "Trust me, there are days I wake up and I'm like, 'Oh my God, I don't know what to do, I'm falling apart.' "

Of her relationship with Cooper, she said, "I think we've been very lucky to experience what we had with each other. ... Life without B is new ground."