Korean Job Discussion Forums

[thurst]

i know more people that have gained a little weight than lost it in korea. personally, my weight has stayed the same.

[DIsbell]

In my experience, a lot of girls report putting on a few pounds while guys tend to lose some. I wonder if it's a mentality thing like "This year is special, I'm gonna make a change" or just how people deal with stress (perhaps more guys use exercise and girls seek comfort food? I've definitely dabbled in a bit of both, haha). Personally I just maintain.

[wishfullthinkng]

[Jotun_Symph]

I slimmed down considerably, both on muscle and fat. I was eating a lot every day but still remained fairly slim, probably because of all the walking. Also, the stress of living in a foreign environment tends to put people's minds into a hyper-active learning state, in which the intake of constant new information and experiences raises metabolism. The brain is a good source of calorie-burning.

[alljokingaside]

I've actually gained weight here.

But that's due in part to
-lack of me-friendly exercise options (eg running in dimly lit sidewalks and streets, road biking as commuting and recreation, etc)

-having enough money to buy food on a regular basis/not having to wait to go home for bank acct-friendly meals/not having to subsist on a $1 sausage mcmuffin for the day

-health care/insurance availability

ah, and to think I used to work in a medical clinic...

[Illysook]

Lifestyle changes mean that your weight will change but it's unlikely to be a dramatic change unless you work at it.

[Weigookin74]

I gained weight when I first got here. Have been fighting it on and off, since getting over here. Sometimes, going up and sometimes going down. I think in the west, based on my experience, it was easier to stay slim, when I wanted to. There are more healthy options available. If you hate to cook or are in a hurry, you can buy healthy low fat meals, you can eat healthy subs and wraps, etc. The gyms are large and spacious with lots of fancy equipment. I personally loved the elliptical machines in the west. Here they are cheap pieces of crap, you have to manually adjust and are ergonomically not well designed. Lots of equipment to work every part of the body without setting things up. Here the gyms are tiny and scant on using the air con even when they have it. If you want quick food and don't want to eat at gimbap nara, it's chicken, pizza, hamburgers.

It is easier to adopt a fit lifestyle in the west because it's designed for convenience. Doesn't mean it's perfect. But here, gyms are tiny. Summers way too hot; you want to stay inside with air con only. Not really a quick fodd market (though it's changing). Also, my first year, I had no Korean knowledge so I couldn't go to gimbap nara. Also, tiny kitchen in a small one room that wasn't good for cooking.

I found out my second year, you could buy decent mountain bikes. Spring and fall use to be nice here (ie not so much rain). So, I started biking a lot during that time of yesr. Got the weight under control. Bought this book outlining effective exercise options and rep sets. Means a small gym can do the trick for me. No longer machines. I bought warm insulated clothing in Canada and go hiking in winter and not feel cold. (Korean treadmills are ok, but I intensly dislike their other cardio equipment. Cheap quality.) But I definately had to adjust myself to Korean style. I think most Koreans who stay slim use cheap methods. They use skipping rope instead of fancy machines, eat lots of kimchi, instead of watching their fat or portions.

Us westerners don't live a simplistic lifestyle and really seem to have a hard time adjusting down when we get here. Though these rules doesn't apply to everyone. I think I'm in decent shape now. But, it took a lot of frustration and trial and error to get like this.

[r122925]

I gained over 15 kg during my first year in Korea. I think for me it was coming from being a poor univeristy student with an extremely limited food budget to suddenly being able to afford to eat/drink whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. That was the first time in my life I had had such a luxury.

Now it's six years later and I'm still trying to lose this weight.

[cj1976]

You should lose weight when you come to Korea - if you stick to a Korean diet. However, it seems that a lot of the Americans on here just can't live without their cheap Tex-Mex or pizzas. I came here from England, where my diet was pretty awful (lots of pies, fish and chips, pasties etc). I just ate the local food and my weight dropped pretty rapidly. I lost 5kg in 2-3 months.
Be grateful for the respite from the junk food - your body most likely is.

[No_hite_pls]

Most people gain weight here. There is huge lack of FRESH vegetables here and little variety.

[NYC_Gal 2.0]

I used to eat a lot of Arabic and Indian food before I moved here, so was pretty tiny. I'm now heavier, though I've been losing it slowly since finding ways to order chick peas, olives, and certain spices and oils to make my own at home.

[methdxman]

[Modernist]

[cj1976]

[No_hite_pls]

Back home I ran 5 miles a day and lifted weights at a beautiful gym with great pool (five of seven days a week), here I hike a mountain about three days a week. I ate at least one FRESH green vegetable a day back home green beans, asparagus, spinach. Here the quality of vegetables is lacking and they are crazy expensive.

When I go to the gym here people stare at me working out, touch my muscles, wander why am I sweating. It's just not that comfortable working out in Korea.

There are many things I love about Korea but I wouldn't call this place healthy. Sure on average Koreans eat a lot less fat than Americans but North Americans can chose to eat very very healthy if they want too. In Korea it is much more difficult to get really healthy foods than in North America. If you never left your car and were obese back home you will probably lose weight. Average westerners or unversity educated westerns will not fine Korea that healthy. There are a lot meals that consist of pickled vegetables, bleached white rice and low protein fatty meats in Korea.