Henry Cavill had ''fun'' getting fat ahead of his 'Man of Steel' role.

The actor portrays Superman in the rebooted superhero movie and loved the first stage of changing his physique in order to look convincing in the role.

He told Glamour magazine: ''The 'major bulking' phase came first and that was fun. That meant eating 5,000 calories a day.

''The best thing about that phase is that you're really strong and even though you don't look great, because you're carrying a lot of extra fat, you're always in a really good mood.''

However, having gained the weight, Henry then had to ''lean down'' and transform it into muscle, which he admits wasn't as easy.

He added: ''The leaning down phase is the hardest because although you're looking great, you're always in a bad mood because you're so hungry.''

Henry knows filmmakers can be very demanding with the way they ask their casts to change their appearances, and he thinks women have it particularly tough.

He said: ''When I got my first role, in 'The Count of Monte Cristo', I was told to lose a stone and a half (21lbs). It was a lot, but I was a chubby kid and if you have to play a physically attractive role in Hollywood then maybe you have to pull your socks up.

''Still, I'm aware that women are sometimes horribly mistreated in terms of weight. They mistreat themselves too, though, because they often think they're overweight when they're not. I hate it when women starve themselves.''