Henry VIII was actually described to be quite attractive in
his youth. Because he was originally the “spare heir” he had a bit more freedom
than his elder brother Arthur, Prince of Wales. Henry enjoyed jousting and
fencing, both of which are very physical. He was taller than Arthur and his
father. His shoulders were broad and his physique was athletic. Because he was
an athlete, he naturally had a big appetite which was kept under control
through his daily exercises. When he unexpectedly became heir to the throne due
to the untimely death of Arthur, he was sheltered from harsh physical
activities that could have doomed consequences. When he became king he
practiced jousting in public tournaments. This went on for a while, Catherine,
his wife had Mary already. But then he was in a jousting accident where his
physicians actually thought he was dead. I think he was really unconscious but
due to the armor and leather, they couldn’t tell if Henry was alive. He woke up
with an injured leg that ended up causing him much pain throughout the rest of
his life due to it never fully able to heal. Henry could not joust again. Since
he naturally had a big appetite, he was used to eating a lot. It was also
recorded that Henry started to binge eat due to stress; he was obsessed with going
to war with France, looking for any opportunity to invade. Big appetite + Binge
eating = Obesity. His weight was a huge factor to his unhealthy state.
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