Tadhg Furlong says he's confident the calf and ankle injuries that disrupted his campaign last season won't be an issue ahead of the Rugby World Cup.
The Ireland and Leinster tighthead's season was peppered with a persistent calf and ankle problem, which limited him to just 12 games for both province and country.
"At the minute - touch wood - I'm fit and raring to go," Furlong told the RTÉ Rugby podcast as part of the Tackle Your Feelings Schools programme.
An often times frustrating season for the prop was summed up in the Champions Cup final against La Rochelle in May where he carried an injury into the game, but rehabbing the injury over the summer, he's returned to full training with the Irish squad in recent weeks.
And the 30-year-old says he's put that disappointment behind him as he looks to hit the ground running in the RWC warm-up games, which begin on 5 August against Italy (live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player).
"I was half in rehab, half in training camp, but in the last two weeks I was fully back in the team.
"I feel good, in pre-season you tend to feel good anyway because there's not a whole lot of contact to ding you up.
"I had a good few issues around the calf/ankle, and we cleared up all those, I came back in midway through the Six Nations and then I had a completely different one at the end of the season.
"It was just one of those things, it feels like you're playing whack-a-mole at times, but it's the job we do, it's just the way it is. I've been very fortunate in my career not to have a big injury, like blowing out an ACL or required surgery on one of your major joints.
"Sometimes it's just the price you play, a few niggly ones that hang around."
While Furlong was forced to miss the first three games of Ireland's Six Nations campaign, the Wexford man's place was impressively filled by both Finlay Bealham and Tom O'Toole, with Bealham's performances seeing him earn a place in the team of the tournament.
Their strong showing in the tournament eased worries among Irish fans around the depth Andy Farrell's side had at tighthead.
"It's no surprise," Furlong added.
"I don't think it's any surprise for anyone in the squad to see the boys doing well. They put a lot of work into it, they train very hard and sometimes it takes one or two moments, or big moments. The nuts and bolts of the boys are incredible and the way they work on it is incredible."
Ireland come into the World Cup with a large target on their backs after their wins against New Zealand, South Africa and Australia were followed up with a Six Nations Grand Slam in the spring.
And Furlong says they have to welcome that pressure ahead of a long World Cup camp.
"I was very new to international scene [in 2015], so I'd like to think in 2019 and hopefully if selected for this one that I'd have just a better understanding on how it all works, international rugby-wise. That comes with experience.
"The biggest thing is you have to enjoy it, enjoy it for what it is, embrace the pressure of it, and be able to switch off, because it can be all-consuming if you let it be.
"When I'm playing with Leinster and Ireland I can get down to Wexford and see grass, see family, and that's me relaxing. Rugby is gone, I can chill out, but when you're at a World Cup you don't have that. You're in boarding school with the Leaving Cert every day. It's just about being able to find those windows to get away from rugby and chill out."
Watch live coverage of Ireland's Rugby World Cup warm-up games v Italy (5 August), England (19 August) and Samoa (26 August) live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1 or follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie and the RTÉ News app.
