Eminem Reveals Battle With Weight Issues While Out Of The Public Eye

Eminem recently opened up about his battle with painkillers and getting sober while promoting his new album, “Relapse.” But in a new interview with British chat show host Jonathan Ross, the superstar rapper revealed he also struggled with a weight problem during his years away from the public eye.

“Did you put on a lot of weight?” Ross asked during an interview, which aired May 15 on “Friday Night with Jonathan Ross” in Britain.

“Yeah, I put on a few pounds,” Eminem said. “I think I probably tipped the scales at a little over 200.”

The hip-hop star said his weight ballooned due to a host of factors including his addiction to pain pills.

“It was eating, it was taking pills that I had no business taking, doing things… I just wasn’t taking care of myself. I wasn’t taking care of my body,” he revealed. “It kind of felt like, you know, there were times when I just wanted to give it up. I was in a pretty dark place. “

In order to get back to his Slim Shady shape and stay there, Eminem said he hit the road.

“I run a lot. I run quite a bit. I get up in the morning,” he said. “I was running twice a day for a little while.”

In fact, running became more than just a way to get fit.

“There was one point where I was running like… It was a little too much, it was a little extreme. It was a total of 17 miles,” he said. “It’s like you kind of go from one addiction to the next and I’m an addict, so I guess [I’m] an extremist, like one extreme to the next.”