Arnold Schwarzenegger reveals he got a pacemaker

The former Governor of California hopes his story will give others the courage to face their health battles and feel less alone.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is opening up about getting a pacemaker.

The former Governor of California and once-pro bodybuilder shared the news in his latest podcast episode that dropped Monday.

"Last Monday, I had surgery for a pacemaker and became a little bit more of a machine," he said on "Arnold's Pump Club." "I have to tell you, just saying this to all of you goes against so much of my upbringing in Austria, where nobody ever talked about medical issues. Everything related to health care was kept to yourself."

Schwarzenegger, 76, was born with a bicuspid aortic valve, which is a type of abnormality in the aortic valve in the heart, according to John Hopkins Medicine. In the case of a bicuspid aortic valve, the valve has only two small parts instead of the normal three.

Schwarzenegger said he was advised by doctors that it was time for a pacemaker after years of heart monitoring and checkups. He had scar tissue from a previous surgery that made his heart beat irregular.