In Outlander, Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser is big and burly, taking charge and killing enemies like they are mere flies.
He is the epitome of strength and good health.
Heughan also maintains a healthy lifestyle outside of acting. On his official Instagram account, he regularly posts about his fitness program called My Peak Challenge, which started out as a charitable exercise by the celebrity and soon turned into something more.
He has also not only recently completed a ninety-six-mile trek across Scotland but wrote about it as well.
However, the actor recently revealed that his strapping physique was not always this strong and that he struggled when he first started acting.
In fact, the celebrity admits that he suffered from a low-level eating disorder.
Sam Heughan reveals his battle
During a recent interview on Today, Heughan opened up about the struggles involved with being a young actor when he first started out and before he was cast as Jamie Fraser in Outlander.
This included developing an eating disorder, which he referred to as being “low-level.”
“I think, you know, as a young actor, quite green, not really much experience, there were a lot of pressures starting off in the industry that I didn’t really understand,” Heughan said.
“I think there was a certain body type that we were expected to have.”
Sam Heughan reveals eating disorders affect men too
Along with revealing he had an eating disorder during his early acting days, he also discussed how men don’t often open up about such issues.
“I think women talk about it a lot. A lot of actresses have talked about the pressures they face, but I don’t think men do, and so I wanted to mention it,” Heughan revealed.
Today host Sheinelle Jones was quick to thank Sam for openly discussing the topic as it is one that is often pushed under the rug when it comes to men.
Heughan discussed this battle in Waypoints, which is the autobiographical book he recently wrote after making his West Highland Way hike in Scotland.
During this trek, Heughan turned inward as he made the journey and discovered much about himself, which he then shared with his readers in Waypoints.
Part of overcoming the eating disorder had to do with creating a healthy lifestyle rather than trying to fit into the stereotypes often wanted within the acting profession. This then led to the creation of his My Peak Challenge program and it appears that the actor has not looked back since then.
Outlander has been renewed for Season 7, but the premiere date has not yet been advised.