Arnold Schwarzenegger revealed he had a pacemaker implanted and was back at work less than a week after the major procedure.
During an episode of his podcast Arnold's Pump Club, the 76-year-old Terminator actor and former governor of California said he went under the knife last Monday, after a routine checkup earlier this month indicated he needed to replace the medical device.
"First of all, I want you to know I'm doing great!", Schwarzenegger told his listeners. "I had my surgery on Monday, and by Friday, I was already at a big environmental event with my friend and fellow fitness crusader Jane Fonda. Nobody would ever have thought I started the week with a surgery."
"I want to thank my whole team at the Cleveland Clinic. All of the doctors and nurses took amazing care of me and made the surgery as painless as possible," he added.
The FUBAR star suffers from a genetic heart condition. He previously underwent surgeries in 1997, 2018, and 2020 to replace his pulmonic and aortic valves. His mother died from the same condition in 1998 when she failed to get heart surgery.
"I stayed in touch with my medical team and visited in person at least once a year to get a full check-up and see how my heart was doing," explained Schwarzenegger. "That's life with a genetic heart issue. But you won't hear me complaining."
"I can't do my serious training in the gym for a while, but I will be 100% ready for FUBAR next month," he reassured his fans, alluding to the shooting of season 2 of the Netflix action series.
Schwarzenegger has been candid about his health in hopes that he inspires others to prioritize their well-being.
"I could have kept it a secret," the star admitted. "But I know that we have more than 750,000 subscribers now - the village is a city now - and a lot of you are probably dealing with your own health challenges."
Added Schwarzenegger, "I want you to know you aren't alone. And if you're putting something off out of fear, I hope I inspire you to listen to your doctors and take care of yourself."
Schwarzenegger was previously married to Maria Shriver for more than 30 years. The pair divorced in 2021, following reports he fathered a child with the family's housekeeper.
Shriver and Schwarzenegger share four adult children: Katherine, 34, Christina, 31, Patrick, 30, and Christopher, 26.
Schwarzenegger is also father to Joseph Baena, 26.
