Maintaining a healthy weight in Korea isn’t always as easy as it seems. Sure, most Koreans are really thin, but that doesn’t always mean they are healthy. Korea has tempting, high-calorie food on every corner and it can be easy to fall into dangerous diets. Here are five wonderful tips to maintain weight the healthy way.
Follow Bali Bbali Culture!
Koreans are always in a rush. They run to their jobs, hurry to restaurants, and zoom out to meet with friends. They are constantly moving around. This phenomenon is known as the “pali pali culture” which means “fast fast” or “hurry hurry”. Although this constant movement can be a bit stressful at times, it actually results in lots of calories being burned and passive exercise.
Moving around Korea’s major cities means using public transportation. Subway systems are full of stairs, and transferring buses often means treks up hills and mountains. According to my phone, I walk an average of 9 km (5.5 miles) and go up 7 flights of stairs every day.
That is a lot of exercise I do every day without even noticing. I just live a standard busy life in Seoul and I get more exercise than I would going to the gym. In fact, Seoul’s transportation system is basically a treadmill and Stairmaster in one.
Good, healthy and cheap food.
Of course, other than exercise, another factor in maintaining a healthy weight is the food you eat. In Korea, healthy food is actually pretty cheap and convenient. It is way easier for you to stick to a balanced diet if your budget is short.
Usually, fast food such as burgers, pizza, fried chicken, pancakes, etc is way more expensive than traditional Korean food sets which always include lots of vegetables, rice, and meat. You can get a traditional Korean meal for around 7,000 won. Whereas, a typical burger set would cost you at least 10,000 won.
But of course, it is definitely cheaper to cook at home. I usually make a rice bowl and eat it with a variety of banchan, better known as Korean side dishes. Banchan can be spicy vegetables, radish, tofu, some salty fish, and of course kimchi. Finally, I add a warm tofu or bean stew to my meal. Making your own Korean-style meals is super cheap, pretty easy, and really balanced.
If you are just traveling, or you simply don’t like to cook, I would suggest you go to basic places that sell traditional dishes, such as “Kimbap Heaven” (김밥천국). You can order a warm stew, which usually comes with rice, kimchi, radish, and fishcake for about 7,000 won.
Maintaining a Healthy Weight With Korean Breakfast
Breakfast was probably one of the things that shocked me the most about Korea. I was raised having cereal, pancakes, yogurt, or french toast for breakfast. But for Koreans, the first meal of the day is completely different.
They start their day with balanced meals that usually include rice, soups, lots of vegetables, kimchi, and meat. An average Korean person would start the day with rice and some pork or kimchi stew from the previous night. Maybe they’ll also have a fried egg or some fermented vegetables on the side.
Water and Teas
It is not very common for Koreans to drink soda or juice with their meals. Water or tea are the preferred beverages served with most meals. Even though Coke is pretty common here, is mostly seen as a snack in and of itself. It’s more of the main event or paired with certain things, rather than something that goes along with every meal.
Water is the best thing you can give to your body since it helps to purify it. As you know, humans are supposed to drink at least 8 glasses per day and most people in Korea do so. I personally believe this plays a big role in maintaining health.
PS. Beer and soju are also popular beverages but are part of social culture. I would say that in most scenarios where you would drink alcohol, soda could be a substitute. In my opinion, it is mostly the influence of western cultures and a decrease in alcoholism that is leading to the rise in soda’s popularity.
Avoid Snacks
Even if Korean sweet snacks such as Chocopies are world-famous these days I feel people don’t generally eat sweet snacks during the day. They are so busy and in a rush, they don’t have time to snack. People usually bring those small pies, cookies, or cake snacks while traveling or taking a long drive. But most Koreans don’t really have them in their daily life.
And I have noticed that especially that Korean kids barely eat sweets. Parents usually feed them healthy snacks from a young age. They give children fruits, vegetables, or nuts as snacks if they ask for them.
Keeping away from snacks, especially sugary ones can really aid in maintaining your health in Korea. But of course you can always treat yourself once or twice a week.
Sugar and cream for your coffee? No thanks…
Something that I love so much about Korea is that basic beverages are usually unsweetened. I always struggled when getting an americano, or a latte in my home country because of the sweetness. However, in Korea, people don’t usually add any sweetness to basic beverages such as americanos or green tea unless you directly ask for it. But I must admit that when they do decide to add sweetness, they really go crazy with it. So I always try to stay away from Vanilla Lattes, Caramel Macchiatos, or even my beloved Green Tea Latte.
Conclusion
Basically, if you live in Korea, you can easily follow these simple steps to maintain the weight that suits you best. Remember, everyone is beautiful and you don’t need to go to extremes to fit in with Korean beauty standards.
If you want to learn more about Korean beauty standards and a post-pandemic trend that reinforces extreme body image, Click Here.
