Jamie Heaslip has claimed that he was "clinically obese" at the age of 17.

The Leinster captain and Ireland international was speaking to Off The Ball tonight and while speaking about nutritional techniques that have helped him, he admitted that things were not always this way.

"If you'd seen pictures of me at 17, I weighed 116 kilos and that wasn't a good weight. You could probably say I was clinically obese," he said, adding that cycling around Dublin helped the weight fall off when he first moved up to the city to join the Leinster academy.

The 30-year-old has also proved to be a robust player who has been relatively injury-free during a career that has taken him through Lions tours, World Cups and European club rugby. 

"I've had two injuries in my career. I shattered my left eye socket and I had syndesmosis in my left ankle. I've been knocked and I get bruises and stuff but I think it's a blend of luck and the [lack of] wear and tear, a lot of it has to do with investing in looking after myself off the field," said Heaslip, who also touched on the impact of his genes.

The Ireland back row also turned his attention to the season so far and the big games to come for Leinster.