Why are Koreans so slim? (from a Korean's perspective)
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- Опубліковано 22 тра 2024
- People in Korea are statistically one of the least overweight/obese people on the planet, and I'm here to give my opinion on why that may be.
Please don't watch this video if you're triggered by the topic of weight loss/body shaming! I just wanted to share with you all what the culture is like here in Korea...
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you re just talkin about kpop idols here they re the only ones who re slim and therefore just a minority the reality the majority of koreans are overweight
using Wedny's pic from the time when she was clearly suffering is disgusting , shame on you
@@basic.yousra2914 is called sarcopenia, the majority of Asian population are "skinny fat" with unhealthy body composition of high body fat percentage, and low skeletal muscle mass plus bone density. They can still have low or normal body mass index (BMI) for a slim or skinny built, but not muscular, strong, powerful, or anything indicated for a high basal metabolic rate.
@@DomFortress I'm surprised you didn't talk about genetics. Asians on the average are smaller built and shorter than westerners.
European countries also have healthier diets than Americans but they are generally bigger than Asians.
After visitng the Korean countryside, I noticed no fast food, less bread, more fresh fruits like peaches, less sugary snacks. Also, the people were more active. Seeing a woman in her 70s perform hand stances in the park really was impressive, all her friends were cheering her on, so physical activity is increased. Elders climbing mountains was impressive too. Walking is a must and Korea has lots of steep hills.
Exactly
So many buildings on hillside, especially schools and universities
While in Turkey people eat healthy (at least the older Generation) there's no physical activity. Many drive everywhere with the car, similar to America. But this is the case for the countryside. People in the cities walk way more and don't necessarily even have a car.
I've had the exact opposite experience. I actually see more overweight people in the countryside. Seeing overweight people in Korea is more rare than in other parts of the world, however, when I see them, they are usaully in small countryside towns, and it's in the bigger cities where I don't really see it. I've been trying to figure out why that is. I don't really know, but i'm starting to think it has something to do (just a theory) with the pressure Anna mentioned?
In the country side , people work in farms and small town businesses etc and , I think people feel like because these jobs are not big time careers that you seek in the cities, there is maybe less incentive to play up the appearance, so maybe there is less incentive to diet overall? Whereas the cities have everyone competing for the same jobs and their is this social expecation to look a certain way?
It's just a theory, but this is something that has had me curious fora while .
It seems to be very common in Asian countries for elderly to do daily exercise in the park. It's very wholesome and also means they won't spend their older years in solitude
@@softerhaze true
I had a Korean exchange student for 9 months. She gained about 15 lbs. even though we tried to eat a lot of Korean food. Like you said, in the US we tend to eat a lot more unhealthy food and huge portion sizes. She lost the weight as soon as she was back in Korea and it isn't like she is starving herself, the girl can eat! It is just healthier.
We also don’t walk much in America unlike Korea because America is built to drive everywhere. That’s coded into law by single use zoning regulations separating homes from shops.
There’s also the fact we use seed oils in America in all the food, but in Korea they use more animals fats (butter, lard, tallow, ghee) or healthy Sat. Fat oils like avocado and coconut oils.
Food is a lot more processed here as well, so you have to be a lot more aware and conscious of the quality of food you are purchasing and what all of the ingredients and components are in our food.
This right here proves that it’s not about how much you eat. It’s just in American FDA allows all sort of terrible ingredients in foods. Like someone above mentioned seed oils. If you try stations away from seed oils you will quickly learn how it’s in everything. Even in “healthy foods.” The easiest was for Americans to lose weight is to go abroad for a time.
it's a little bit of a misconception that eating "healthier food" vs "unhealthy food" will make you gain/lose weight... it really just boils down to calories eaten VS calories burned. I read a research paper done some years ago by a uni professor who ate nothing but junk food (as I recall things like Twinkies, donuts, cookies, etc) and vitamins to make up for the lack of nutrition in the junk, but kept his daily calories mathematically low enough to lose weight. He consistently lost weight over months of the test just as expected, despite only eating complete junk food.
Fun fact: I lost over 15 kg in my 2 months in Seoul just because of eating only Korean food like Gimbap there. I was quite (positive) shocked, because I just changed my eating style and not much more. Since I'm back home I mostly cook korean food, care more about sports and already lost 25 kg before my time there. Friends couldn't believe that because I'm like a new person. Awesome! :)
Dammmmmmnnnn
As a Korean teenager,I do think its something a lot of people should recommend trying. Our eating styles/habits are actually very easy if you are willing to put commitment into it.
If you like to eat things related to vegetables, I recommend you come to Vietnam to try it once. Here we have a lot of dishes related to vegetables. Just a bowl of normal noodles that you often see in Korea is enough to eat a whole basket of all kinds of green vegetables. It can be seen that celebrities like Rosé really like Vietnamese food
losing 15kg in 2 months is not healthy..... that is too much too fast. not something to be proud of!
@@GorgieClarissa Everyone's body is different sweetheart!
loved that she got straight to the point instead of an annoying little intro in the beginning. idk why youtubers think we have endless hours in the day to be listening to their little rambles at the start of every video. anyway this was very informative so thank u ma'am
Your observations are spot on. 100% correct. Personally, I don’t think the portions in Korea are that small but I find Korean food very filling and full of natural ingredients without the heaviness of butter, cream, etc. When I lived there, one day a school girl was going home and said she was so excited. I asked why and she replied that she was going to eat an orange! I cannot imagine an American child being as thrilled to go home because there were oranges there.
That little girl sounds so cute
@@chrystianaw8256 she was! This happened nearly 20 years ago but really left an impression on me. I guess it wasn’t all that long in the past that we could only eat more locally and seasonally. Not like these days where we can eat whatever we want year round like it’s nothing special.
I'm not saying that the girl wasn't cute or anything, but literally today I was so excited to go home, because I had bought strawberries and I love strawberries haha. I'm from Germany and an adult lol.
@@anna-5104 haha 😂 you are cute, too! It’s not a competition. 😛🏆 Strawberries are delicious, indeed! My daughter loves them so much, she could probably eat her weight in strawberries.
@@anna-5104 I love strawberries too💕
I livedd in Korea for 7 years, I ate only Korean food and I slimmed down without trying from 63 kilos to 53 kilos. I ate 3 meals a day and my diet was heavenly
Да в Корее в такой жаре вы не съедите много
Wow!
I had like an older blonder version of her in the bed. She went hard on me and never spoke about anything you said in life . 😊
Really? I was in korea for 3 weeks and gained 8 kgs from the food.
@@happyjolly77able maybe you ate takeaway/unhealthy food?
I teach English in Korea. I did an English cooking camp this week where we made Rice Crispy Treats. They were excited to eat it, but also nervous. When I was explaining to students that we butter the pan before we put the treats in, they got really worried. My students said the word "calories" 15 times. They are 3rd and 4th grade kids. My co-teacher finally got them to quiet down when he explained why the butter was necessary.
We also explained to the students, multiple times. This is not a treat that you eat alone. This is a treat you share. You can keep this treat in the refrigerator for many days. You don't eat it all at once.
I think Koreans are aware of the health benefits of food from a much younger age too.
Бред какой-то. Меньше есть чипсов, фаст-фуда, газировки. Едят вредную еду типа рамён. И зачем есть так много, полных мужиков в Корее полно,но хангуки следят только за женщинами. Их в Корее и без этого мало. Мне повезло, я родилась в другой стране, хоть и кореянка. И вполне могу себе позволить не быть идеальной.
That's not being aware of the health benefits. That's an ingrained eating disorder.
I view calories like money. So if a small non filling meal is high in calories, to me that’s like buying a Tshirt for 300 dollars. So I have a daily budget that matches with my daily activities. I make sure to not go over my budget and still remain full
Had the same thing happened when I made smores with the kids.
to be honest i think it is sad that kids as young as 3rd and 4th grade are worried about calories. there is absolutely such a thing as too health conscious, and i think it should be their parents worrying about what their kids eat not the kids - children should be able to enjoy food and enjoy their childhood without such worries. if i heard a child as young as 3rd grade saying they were nervous to eat a treat because of the calories in the butter it was cooked in, i would be worried about them developing an eating disorder when they are older
My Korean husband uses our oven to store pots and pans. I don't use our oven often, but being of French origin, I like to bake a good cake or bread once in a while. I have to empty out the oven first.
In Latin America we do the same 😅
@@gloriosounicornioescwas going to comment the same thing xD I thought it was something only done in Latino homes
I eat MUCH more when I visit Korea, yet bec of the walking, dragging luggage, climbing hills & stairs.. i always come home lighter than when i just arrived. The unintentional "exercise" is what affects my weight and calorie intake. totally agree with you, Anna. I've visited at least 5x, and each time has been the case with weight loss.
Interesting.
I agree, I always eat alot when I visit Korea or Japan (it's basically food heaven, you want to try everything), but because of the sheer amount of walking I do in their cities, I never gain weight after my holidays there.
if you don't take taxis there and rely entirely on their subways or buses (as many locals do), it's easily 10 - 12 hours of walking everyday.
and you see them have many small/medium portions of lots of different food, it appears as though they eat more than westerners, but I think they're just less sedentary and places are more walkable.
@@Ste4247 you walk all over in Japan because it’s built to walk. America is built to drive because it has strict single use zoning that separates homes and shops making use drive everywhere.
I find that even though you eat more in terms of volume, the food often has far less calories and is far less processed which can make it easier to burn off as a source of fuel, rather than your body trying to figure out wtf to do with transaturated fats or flavour E751 lol 😂
Every Korean and Chinese female friend I have is utterly obsessed with their weight. Their families will constantly point out they are bloated or have put on weight (like, a kilo!) and the fat shaming is extreme. Young women's weight is way more monitored by family, friends, lovers, and society in general. Being slim/physical appearance is included in competitive conservative culture, like income etc.
that is basically the only reason.
As a Chinese woman I totally agree. I’m 30 My mom would still comment on my choice of clothes like: you shouldn’t wear sleeveless stuff because you arms are big. Don’t show your armpits because you have supernumerary breast. It’s not that she’s controlling me, those comments are just not offensive and crossing the lines for her to speak out. Same goes to my calves, I grow up hearing lots of people suggesting me to get botox in my calves because they are too big. 😅
@@yifangong2331 totally can relate, im chinese too and it's just i feel like in the culture
@@yifangong2331not me going to the gym 5 times a week to GROW my calves 😅
But Japanese are really slim. 😂😂( from a Chinese)
its funny you mention the baking, for me personally I never used the oven, BUT learning to use the oven for roasting vegetables has been a huge help in lowering my waistline! It's so easy to toss veggies in a lot of seasonings an throw them in the oven to roast. I hate to cook but since it's easy, now I eat so many more types of veggies, carrots, broccoli, squash, brussels sprouts, and more since I learned to use the oven.
Hi!! Could you share some roast veges recipes if you don't mind? I am starting to learn how to do that, and I hope to learn from you! Thank you!
Please put recipes, I dont think baking is bad, but most of the time for baking wheat or other flour used and consuming much of those is bad.. Cakes and cookies are high in calories , so basically its not baking but what you bake is bad.
I changed my diet when I married into a Korean family. There was no drastic change in my weight because I come from another slim country, France. But the Korean diet still worked wonders for my health. Rice repaced bread. My intake of vegetables went way up. I don't kow why western countries can't figure out yummy vegetable dishes. The variety and flavor of the vegetable side dishes on a Korean table is out of this world. The fresh produce section at a Korean grocery store is glorious. I used to have a lot of digestive issues in my youth and early adulthood. That's gone. My intake of dairy went down (also partly because having immigrated to the US, I can't find good, affordable cheese anymore).
wow
wow you married a whole family!
@@margotmargot4426 When you get married that's how it goes. You get in-laws.
Just drink a lot of water I’m from Korea and we walk a lot
western countries do figure out how to do yummy vegetables dishes, but it is less spread. Try some Vegan or Vegetarian restaurants and there you have plenty of choices. It is more proeminent in cities rather than the coutryside, that is still way more of a meat oriented cutlure
When I visited Korea for a week, I came back home 10lbs lighter. Between the walking every day and how meals are broken up into side dishes instead of one large plate, really makes a huge difference. The quality of the food is also a lot better. Not a lot of added ingredients or chemicals compared to American foods.
When I travel to Europe, I see instantaneously the difference in food quality....plus they still indulge in pastries/wine and are healthier than most Americans, they also walk more, yes the weather helps but still, the approach to health is a breath of fresh air compared to, in my opinion, the cheap and lazy way in America..and if you want to eat healthy, it is very pricey
SAME thing happened to me. I travelled to Seoul for four weeks and came back 15lbs lighter. I walked in the city often and the food was so filling but just overall healthier. Even when we ate out, which was quite often since we stayed at an airbnb.
american food is poisoned ong
same!
A weird thing about certain places in the US is that a lot of people will shame others for healthy habits. I live in Florida, if you see someone walking to a grocery store or using public transportation people will look down on them because they think youre poor. Having a car is a status symbol in a lot of places in the US. If you eat healthy out a restaurant with friends people will sometimes look at you weird for having a salad or choosing veggies instead of fries. You look like youre trying to be better than everyone else when you choose to eat healthy or say no to dessert. 99% of my friends are like this, it sucks because it does not make you want to live healthy, it makes you want to live like the people around you so you don’t get judged :-/ i’m 26 by the way i’m not sure if older Americans experience the same thing.
Nobody is responsible for your health but you. So forget what other people think. If they are not supportive of you eating healthier and making better life choices they should not be your friends in the first place. Friends need to build up not tear down. Love you pfp btw.
Omg the shame for healthier choices is so true. I am a thinner person who works out. I like to eat healthy because I feel it's good for my body. But people love to make comments about how I don't indulge enough in pastries and desserts. I've had older women make rude comments about how thin I am (I'm not unhealthy, so it's weird)
yeah one of my friends helped pushed me into a downward spiral with my health tbh. I used to have more self control and now I'm eating more and more after they kept having me buy them food and trying to split it so we'd both pay less on food. I used to rarely drink soda but they kept wanting to meet up for coffees and smoothies and asking why I didn't want to drink at restaurants. Now I'm having soda a lot more often and constantly looking for different desserts every day. Not entirely blaming my friend, but with my mental health just worsening and all this stress I've been facing and food manages to make me a little happier, it's become hard to say no.
I'm around the same age as you and I have the same issue. Even at work people will make comments about how healthy I eat or how little I eat. It's annoying as hell. I'm not trying to be better than anyone. I'm just trying take care of myself and live a healthy life.
@@stina51093you beat me to this comment! I’m so tired of people commenting on my healthy lunches as work as if I’m trying to be better than them. Not even close…
lets be real.. everyone knows the social pressure of staying thin and attractive is the reason. Just say what it really is. Theres a much darker side to this than just clean eating/living.
Yeah. Being a fatty is a norm in the USA especially South where most people eat corn to get obese. If they ate animal fats, they were not hungry all the time so it's silly food pyramid and idiotic health advice. Nobody is that crazy as American doctors who recommend what companies ask without thinking it through. Juu
Yeah. Being a fatty is a norm in the USA especially South where most people eat corn to get obese. If they ate animal fats, they were not hungry all the time so it's silly food pyramid and idiotic health advice. Nobody is that crazy as American doctors who recommend what companies ask without thinking it through.
@lll9409 you're absolutely correct. Not sure why you brought up the USA, but I agree.
영어로 진행하는 한인 유튜버들이 (교포와 본토인 모두), 한국문화에 대해 정확히 모르면서 개인적인 식견으로 막 한국문화를 다 알고 대표하는것마냥 말하는걸 많이 봐서 경계했었는데,
이 채널 운영자님은 분석력이 상당하시네요!
이런분이 더 영향력을 끼쳐야 마땅힙니다
인정.. 부정적인 모습도 제가 말하고 싶었던 것까지 다 말해버렸네요
그리고 외모지상주의 사회에서 살찐 사람은 집 밖으로 잘 나오지도 않는다는 점도 있습니다
it’s not just diet and healthy food culture, but HUGE social pressure. I now live in California and people consider me skinny and fit, (i do love active lifestyle and delicious “real” food) and I have almost zero pressure on my weight. but back in Korea growing up I constantly heard (almost weekly basis) to “lose weight” “you are big” “why did you gain weight” “you better lose that extra puffiness” from acquaintances, friends family and even strangers. Not just weight but same for skin and just general appearance. Idk why Koreans care SO MUCH about it. yes it matters but only to the extent you are taking good care of yourself. Honestly I cannot be happier now that I left Korean living in Cali as a young woman just having less pressure in my daily life about appearances. Now I have way less stress and pressure on that part.
The main difference I felt is Koreans think “smaller” is prettier and that’s something you “should” strive to get it, no matter what you do. But here at least in Cali, it’s about you “look” healthy than just being small. And it matters if you use your physical body as your job, but if your job is mainly using brainpower, who cares?
I guess it's "vanity" because of the culture. Most of the time they have to care like for example their need for double eyelids, picture included for resume etc. Personal opinion of looking at BMI as a standard, Korean certainly doesn't look healthy just because they're skinny. The girls are taller but they culturally expect and want to be below 50kg or they feel ashamed. Same with Japanese girls. You see the girls like that chopsticks leg kind of look. Looking at the BMI, most of them are underweight. 🥲
I totally agree, the Korean beauty standards and culture are very toxic, especially for women. And if you are a little different the treatment from the society is very harsh and can lead to many mental issues. That’s not enough talked about in my opinion, unfortunately.
Thank you for sharing your experience. I worry about the toxicity that being thin can be.
yea she mentioned that
I'm so used to that so when my parents call me round face or piggy, It doesn't really faze me. But instead I look at the mirror and do see how skinny fat I look. I'm no where near obese, I'm just average weight even in korea. But the way I eat, and not exercise, it resulted me being skinny fat and bloated looking. Honestly, if no one is there to criticize my current condition and the way I eat, I would probably be unhealthy and die early. I already have abnormally high cholesterol for my age because of the way I eat and not exercise. I think instead of just thinking your family and close ones are shit talking you, it's better to think that they're saying it for your own good.
As a bodybuilder, I rarely ever eat fast food and am on top of my diet 99% of the time, however, In my short time living in Korea I found it was so easy to stay lean with how walkable everything is and how much better the quality of food is, even the fast food.
Legit, make exercise part of your day without thinkin
You explained that very well! Thank you for clearing that out and helping change views into more of a realistic way.
i'm originally from America and been living in Seoul for a year and a half now and wow, this video totally hits the nail on the head about everything I've observed here and also stuff I've really been trying to figure out about the average body weight here. because as someone who never lived in places with great Korean food, there's such an abundance of amazing Korean (and non-Korean) food here that you can easily go overboard with due to delivery convenience (chicken, pizza, dakgalbi, budae jjigae, etc.) and I certainly gained weight while I've been living here. but i realized that it was about the actual amounts people are used to eating that makes the difference. basically the average "stomach size" tends to be smaller. that and the abundance of diet culture, and all the other reasons you mentioned. anyways I've learned to enjoy these things in balanced way now. i'm basically just gonna send this video to anyone asking me this very question in the future 😂
Not only are you intelligent, bubbly and fun…you’re honest! I think this is what I appreciate the most about your input! Keep being transparent and your awesome self👏🏾
I lived in Seoul for almost a year. That was the lowest weight I've been in my adult life. As soon as I got back home, my weight went up. It's the food and lifestyle for sure.
Shes so right about how the lifestyle affects your body type. Im half korean and have practiced martial arts my entire life, so i always had the very good looking bruce lee style physique for most of my life, albeit not near as lean as bruce but the same general shape, abs, smaller frame, defined muscle. But after moving to the american south, experiencing the lockdowns, and, getting an office job, sitting everyday and never walking due to car culture, i find it a challenge to make time to workout and stay healthy, let alone look shredded. Whereas the best shape of my life was in korea where i drank soju everynight and had ramen for lunch almost everyday. Having a lifestyle filled with walking, standing on public transport, access to healthy food, and of course taekwondo(for me and other tkd athletes in korea) really does make a difference when it comes to staying healthy.
Wow. Thanks so much. This is a great video. It explains the topic so well. It makes so much sense. You are the best.
I think it's because Koreans care more about how they look and want to stay slim. Of course people everywhere want to stay slim but I think image is a lot more obsessed over in Korea
Yup. Exactly like she said in many cultures too even in the United States being overweight isn't acceptable. Korean weight standards are a huge reason.
Yup, this is the ultimate answer! Like in Korean society, even if they eat burgers and junk food all day, I'm sure they will still find their way to stay thin (like eating just one burger a day or something). It's because of how their society stresses so much on looks that's why! It's actually pretty toxic.
@@kodzuken1016 : Burgers aren't the end all and be all of food. If you're used to a culture with a diversity of food and cuisine; it's easy to bore of redundant meals or basic foods. I myself hardly crave hamburgers and seldom eat them.
@@kodzuken1016 How would that be toxic? Sure, the normalization of crash diet is toxic, but thats the case everywhere. Lets also not forget that the world also existed before the internet, and even then Koreans in general were always pretty thin. Even the US didnt even have close to the amount of obesity they do now. Allowing yourself to eat a burger, but realizing it is unhealthy and VERY high in calories and instead opting for just 1 burger in the day is in no way ''toxic''. Its learning what your body needs, and stopping yourself from ruining your health. Research has even shown that in America atleast people have no idea how many calories are in food, and guess 3x less then the actual amount. People obviously have no idea what they are eating, combine that with how unhealthy many in the west eat, and you get a mess.
Koreans have healthier foods in general, a good balance of protein and carbs, and seems to more easily understand their caloric needs. The toxic part is the diet culture, which we have everywhere. I'd say its more toxic to normalize binging on food like people are doing in the west, then it is to maybe eat 1 burger in a day and know the limits.
Lets also not forget Americans have had trends of wanting to stay slim, like the 90's thinness where people were extremely thin. Yet they still had pretty high obesity rates in the country and overweight rates. This shows that it isnt as simple as a country wanting to ''stay slim'', its the normalization and ease to find junkfood, no education around healthy food, ignoring calories and somehow seeing them as evil, and in general foods that are just high in calories and often lack fiber and especially veggies. Vegetables and fruit add fiber to your diet, help your digestion and also bulk up a meal by a LOT whilst having low cals. Korean diets also use a lot of sauces which do have calories, but because everything else is mainly veggies with some protein mixed in, it still remains well below average american meals.
Lets also not ignore that almost all asian countries, including west asia, south asia, east asian and south east asia ALL have on average pretty low obesity rates. Most of these countries have diets where a good balance is provided of protein, vegetables and carbs, and clearly it works. Its not just Korea, and research even has shown that east-asians in specific have naturally lower BMI's.
To lump all of these up under ''korean society stresses too much about looks and thats why they are skinny and toxic!" is not only ignorant but also factually incorrect. Y'all need to stop throwing everything under ''korean society toxic'', its getting absurd. Especially if your only example is a burger one, that just proves how koreans seem to know their food limits.
Yup, many have eating disorders. I don’t know she didn’t include this.
Me and my daughter had a Korean friend staying with us during the summer last year in London. He cooked us Korean food every day and I lost weight so I am not surprised by what you are saying.
Did you eat less than before bcz it didnt fit you??
As a Hispanic saw my entire family struggle with being over weight and your statement “eat less, burn more” is the mentality I had bc I didn’t want to be overweight like them and it led me to a ED. It sounds simple but it not that simple especially when no one around you eats “healthy whole food” but I do think all your points are valid
Hey, hope you’re feeling better today ❤️
I agree with you this is video is toxic and why young girls have eating disorders.
I,m so sorry, hope you feel more confident about your body.❤
Of course it's never that simple, which is why she's speaking on Koreans being slim, since we do tend to eat more healthy whole foods as a family.
Don't place your standards and life experiences next to different cultures if it leads to anything detrimental as everyone has different life experiences and cultural values, and I hope you can overcome and heal from your past trauma. Best of luck.
@@estherkang that’s exactly why I clarified our culture differences, and said I do think all her points are valid. From my experience when I was struggling, I would have just heard that part and the rest would have went in one ear and out the other. So I wanted to clarify that part for the random person who maybe needed to read that and take a breather and re watch her video and understand her points. Once again I still think all her points.
I absolutely LOVED this video. I was born in the US and live in the US. I've struggled with obesity my entire life. Literally since I was 13 years old. When I began having health issues in my early 30's, I started looking into what I was eating and my activity. We Americans have horrible diets. That has been the most difficult thing to overcome. It's not necessarily my own mentality. I want to eat healthy and be active. However, everyone around me thinks I'm crazy for eating the way that I do. The other factor is that so many think that just because it's on the shelf it's okay to eat. I'm hoping that one day this changes. Whole foods are the way to go in my opinion. Perhaps I should adopt a Korean diet.
Go for it! Start with the basic, simple, recipes first. Admittedly, depending on where you are in the U.S., some of the ingredients for Korean dishes can be hard to find, but it's worth it once you do (*cough*Amazon*cough* - fair warning, it can be pricey, to start - especially the traditional sauces/mixes, but it's not like you'll use a whole tub/bottle/packet of something for one serving). It's so good and so filling, yet you can actually eat quite a lot without worrying about the calories as much. Just remember to get active. Join a gym, buy a bicycle, or just walk...whatever works best for you. YOU GOT THIS!!!
This topic is very controversial in the US but in my opinion it does have a lot to do with the diverse cultures and the availability of so many options for people. Genetics also play a role. I have 3 daughters who are all active and we’re raised the same. 2 of them have to watch what they consume and work a little harder to maintain their figures. Plus, one used to be a fitness competitor who competed in 3 competitions so working out and eating healthy she is aware of. My other daughter who is a model has always been thin and can eat whatever she wants and not gain weight. She has to purposefully eat more to gain to not look thin. It’s the same for my 2 sons , one is built stocky and the other is skinny. But both are over six feet. The same goes for me and my husband. Genetics has a big role here. There is so much diversity in our genetics.
“Naturally” skinny don’t eat much, as far as I’ve seen.
@@icingcake Exactly. The diversity isn't in the metabolism, but in how hungry you are and how much you move/jiggle.
@@megand6233 agreed 💯!
Genetics. They are not only skinny. They are short. I worked with Asian people. My boss was a half of head smaller than me. His wife was in the measures like my daughter ih primary school. Very short people.
And by the way, Somalians are the one of most tolliest and skinny nation on the World. What they eat?
Duh 🙄
I was shocked when i saw kids eating Poptarts as breakfast in the state very first time. As a Korean I couldn’t imagine myself giving my kids these things. She’s so right. we would definitely call this child abusing..
Because it really is it's just not as outwardly and obvious...
I’m American and from Mexican descent and would never serve this to my son either. I wasn’t brought up this way as well. 😢
But Koreans aren't actually doing that well. More than 36% of Korean men are obese and more than 27% of Korean women are obese. According to the WHO Asians tend toward being skinny fat, so you hit overweight at a BMI of 23 and obesity at a BMI of 25, whereas the figures for "Europids" are 25 and 30 respectively. Your obesity rate is actually twice that of my own country of Denmark.
Sure, you may look skinnier, but you're actually not.
@@samvittighedsfuld7586interesting. Could you share the source article, please?
@@justmeagain7 search for "the Asian Pacific perspective: redefining obesity and its treatment". Also search for "Asia-Pacific bmi classification".
Simple, Short, On point, Just as I needed. I like this video, thanks alot
This was really informative! Thank you for this video. Made my day ❤
I think population density is also a big thing, too. I know especially in the US we can’t really walk anywhere. The closest convenience store to me is a 30 minute walk through a large residential area and across a highway. Going to an actual grocery store or downtown would take an hour of walking, which just doesn’t work when we have little free time as it is. In Korea, Taiwan, and Japan, I walked so much more because everything was right there and I didn’t even need a car. I always lose so much weight in Asian countries even when I eat really well.
Depends on where you live in America, in my current neighborhood I only drive to the store once a week, to the surf spot since I don't have a rack for my bike, or the rare times I have to leave the neighborhood. However I've also lived places where I had to drive pretty much everywhere, so it varies.
I don't know about population density. I think it's more a matter of the way our cities and communities are designed. Americans valorize space and size. They often build their houses outside the city in satellite communities (suburbs). They prefer to drive their own cars rather than take the public transportation system. Because some often choose to live in suburbs or rural communities, there is a need to drive your car from place to place.
In many other countries (Asian come to mind), people live in small apartments located in the city. Instead of having satellite communities, the city just spreads out. Public transportation is convenient and necessary. One of the advantages of this style of life is that, like you said, everything is right there--within walking distance or a public transportation line.
I agree with a lot of this but I do appreciate that you admit that a part of the diet culture in Korea is importance on appearance rather just diet.
Don’t they have like the most cases of ano or something ?
@Kanaphan from what I see but the data is a bit old a lot of south east Asian countries tank in the top 5. SK being I think 4th but Japan 1st. Hong Kong and Singapore also make the list.
yess 100% people called my girlfriend fat when i went to korea it was crazy because she is 50kg and 5'0, she's a little overweight but shes been recovering from a very severe case of anorexia and i thought it was so rude for people to be rude about her weight without knowing anything about her.
Yes, there's diet culture, but lifestyle helps, such as walking (most people don't have cars) and healthier meals. Same reasons why Europeans tend to be skinnier than Americans.
@SK-fy8dl true but just came back from Korea and there a lot of walking and many meals are healthy but I noticed a lot of smokers which isn't healthy and there's access to a lot of street food and many drink alcohol. This was said to me by many native Koreans so I wouldn't say their lifestyle is the best and same for some parts of Europe. Americans can do better but those that care about health and appearance will and those that don't will not. That's my opinion though so we can disagree. Plus loving in the US some states are vast and big and is easier to walk everywhere if you have a good metro system or things are close but that's not feasible in all areas. I prefer metro and public transportation but hard to have where I live.
Fascinating and so well researched. Thank you for sharing.
I'm Japanese and I agree with everything what she described. I moved to the US recently, and I find it hard to stay active the whole day. When I was in Japan, when you have plan with friends or family, you typically commute about over an hour or sometimes 2 hours walking, transporting, just so that you can see them, but I never thought that is something hard because everyone is doing the same thing and I'm used to grow up in that kind of environment. In fact, it made me stay more active because your phone tells (I believe most of the smartphones nowadays have health app, I just put it on my home screen at all time) you how much you walked for the day which encouraged me to skip few stations so I can get more steps and such. Also agree with girls talk about diet and health a lot more often in Asia. You literally see when your friends struggling to lose weight here and there and often see the progress pretty fast, that encourages you to stay active as well.
Yes girl as an African living in Korea, I was shocked when I went to the States for the first time and was shocked by their portions especially in Texas. I had to always ask for a to go box! Also Korean parents teach their kids early about how bad fast foods are. I am always shocked at how kids be saying that “pizza and burgers are yucky and carrots and broccoli is yummy”. By the way you said it all ha ha!! Americano , body profiles, walking, THE PRESSURE!!
what's it like? i've been thinking about visiting korea one day when i travel but i always hear about the racism there
@@wxndaz Youll be fine just be chill😀
@@wxndaz It’s okay. As a tourist you will definitely have fun. I live here and it has its ups and downs. Racism is everywhere don’t let it prevent you from seeing the world💗
As a texan...yes our resturants are insane. But thats why I started a garden. nothing like a tomato fresh off the vine.
@@belisebibi2399 You make an excellent point, its usually the attitude that ones have that can determine how the experience would be, one should be willing to go out of the comfort zone when they travel to a new country and keep an open mind
Spliting or sharing the food isn't that common in UK or US is a new fact to me.
As an asian I grew up ALWAYS sharing food with my friends during lunch time so that we all can taste and have everything, and it also helped not only with our nutrition diet but also taught us the value of sharing.
Yep. It sounds silly but I do believe use of chopsticks and smaller bowls for servings also has a big impact. The one thing we do talk about is serving sizes here in Euro-America, but it has also been pointed out that eating slower gives your body time to catch up and realise it's full. I have no doubt using chopsticks slows down your eating rate, no matter how good you are with them, because you simply can't shovel food into your mouth the way you can with a fork or spoon.
Same, but maybe she meant it happens less in the UK/US compared to Korea? In those countries most restaurants assume you are getting your own plate unless you tell them. (Or do it on the down low when the restaurant does not allow sharing)
My family and friends share all the time. We would even consult with each other to make sure we are not ordering the same thing. But there is always one guy in our group (usually dad) that say no don't touch my plate and make fun of us for sharing. 😆
@Carol I think it depends on where you live and the type of restaurant. I'm American and not Asian. All of my friends and family share, but if you look at our table you may not notice. Sometimes only 2 or 3 of us want to share out of the group and sometimes we have divide the food on our own plate and put it on each other's plate. It doesn't look like we are sharing unless you saw us do that.
@@IshtarNike Absolutely agree that eating slowly is effective in preventing overweight.
But, when was in military, I used chopsticks but always ate much faster than my US colleagues who used forks.
Even if use chopsticks, people with rush temper like me eat fast anyway. I almost „drink“ foods.
That is true. As an American caucasian male, what's on my plate is mine and I always finish my plate. If someone took food off my plate, it would be like someone trying to kiss my wife in front of me. There would be a problem.
I lived in Korea years ago. Because the food is so healthy (fish, vegetables, rice, etc.) and the portions reasonable, I could eat what I wanted and not gain weight. Coming back to North America was a challenge in terms of maintaining good weight because of the portions, cheeses, fatty meats, etc. Having said that, here in the U.S.A. nobody comments on your weight or appearance. When I lived in Korea, I was constantly (on a daily basis) getting some sort of critical comment even though I felt I was in quite good shape. It was odd.
There are many, many things I like about Korea, but this facet -a sort of obsession with appearance, was not one of them.
Your observation on the differences between what and how much we eat is spot on. Activity level also plays a huge role. I have been slim for most of my life, with weight fluctuation directly related to the types of food (processed vs whole), drinks and activities I was engaging. I have a nutritionist now since my cancer diagnosis (cancer free currently) that is Japanese. He put me back on a whole foods diet, cut out all sugar and dairy and anything processed. So far I have lost 40 lbs and am feeling great. Inflammation is gone and movement is back.
Big Pharma has really been behind the unhealthy trend in the US. They make big money when the population is sick. Obesity is the leading cause of most health problems in the US. And it is a recent trend, began in the '70's.
I’m from Europe and I grew up living back and forth between the US and my home country, and I find that a lot of what you said about Korean diet holds true for a lot of countries outside of the US. I think western food culture is accepted as the “default” but in my country, we have similar food habits to yours and we don’t really consume a lot of calories. I think something else REALLY important to consider is GENETICS. I think Asian people do have some genetic predisposition to higher metabolisms. A lot of the time, people’s default weights can be a consequence of their genetics, and not necessarily their environment/diet. I do feel bad for people struggling with the social norm of their bodies in Korea, and really do hope they experience self-love and acceptance as part of their journeys.
I also think Korean people have smaller bone structures, as someone who's pretty slim and looks up to the K-beauty standard and body ideal, I find that a lot of, at least models and Idols, have smaller bone structures than mine, so that likely contributes :)
Metabolisms is a key factor and China, Korea and Japan take a lot of green tea, wich is great to faster metabolism and also some seaweeds as nori are very good to improve your metabolism.
I don't think obesity is self-love
@@user-jx5ex1kr6l no matter the journey you’re currently on regarding your body and health, you should *always* love yourself no matter what ❤️
@@user-jx5ex1kr6l and what about underweight 😉
와 한국인으로서 이 영상의 모든 내용에 동의합니다. 균형있는 시각으로 치우침 없이 잘 설명해주셨네요!!
I think this was a really great video. As a personal trainer and nutrition coach I enjoyed just seeing what kind of lifestyle choices Koreans are more likely to make and why. You did a great job at explaining & pointing out the differences.
So eloquent! I totally agree with you! Such a nice content! I just subscribed to your channel.
Seoul is by far one of my favourite cities I've ever visited! The food is so delicious and healthy, and the small portions are all so well-flavoured and diverse, it's easy to be satisfied quite quickly. Such a clean and organized city as well, very convenient for walking with its underpasses rather than typical crosswalks. I was mesmerized by the efficiency and the flow of seemingly all aspects of city life. I can see how this kind of environment could be so conducive to self-discipline, activity, and productivity. Between the two of us my husband and I saw less than ten people who were overweight, and even then, they were less than 8 or so kilos overweight. It was fascinating. Great video!
Same. I feel like their transportation system is an urban planner's dream come true!
this was so interesting to watch and learn about! as someone who has only been and grew up in america, i always noticed the amounts people ate and though it was normalized, i always thought it was too much. if i didn’t finish a huge portion, there was always shame for wasting. and when i did, there was internal shame because i felt awful but my family would congratulate me for finishing it. i grew up in a junk food household and always envied my friends at school who came with a lunch with fruits and vegetables or spoke of having those at their house. as i’ve reached near my adult years, i’ve had the privilege to begin buying my own things and making my own meals. even so, i am now viewed from my family as having an eating disorder because i don’t eat the fattening foods they eat all the time. my family is overweight and always complaining about it, but it is normalized. when i see korean food or meals on youtube, it is simply seen as daily meals, but when i see those meals here, it is seen as dietary. i am aware majority of these issues are in my family and household, but my family became this way because of how it is normalized and not seen as shameful here. i feel bad for them but they don’t see the moral issue, and it is prevalent every time they go grocery shopping. they can’t walk up the stairs due to poor health but they insist on getting junk food delivered to their door. i hope this does not seem weird, but i felt a great amount of relief when i discovered the portions and culture surrounding asia with their diet because i was relieved to find some justification and normalcy with healthy dietary.
내용이 너무 좋아서 구독했어요 ! ❤
컨텐츠가 흥미롭고 다양한 관점에서 소개해줘서 재미있어요!
I love this kind of contents !
Hope i can see more here !
You worded all of this so well, love, love, love!!
Yes part of what you said is true as an American we tend to favor fast ways of preparing meals by buying foods that are already prepared foods laden with salt, sugar and fat. I watched my Great grandmother growing up she would make our meals from scratch. Meals were healthier and tasted so much better. I continued to do the same with my family only buying fast foods as a weekend treat. But Anna Americans tend to be a lot larger than most Asians height wise, muscle mass, etc. we are built way different. I am for example part African and European. I definitely would not fit your one size fit all sizing.
Africans literally have more genetic diversity than the rest of the world combined. Bone sizes are vastly different. You get the shortest people and the tallest people in the world in Africa.
I assume you're African-American.
My lazy American fast food is a salad, lol. That's why I've stayed thin into my 30's.
When I went to Korea my diet felt so much better, I came home to the UK and raved about how healthy I felt and how clean and organic the food in Korea was - and cheap too! I wish there was more opportunity and convenience to eat like that here.
rice and beans are cheap everywhere, I think
I needed to see this video, I just looked up Korean restaurants in my area and we have plenty, the food looks so good and I've always loved seeing all the different dishes come out when it's time to eat, I didn't realize they were healthier veggie plates with sauces/flavoring. I really need to eat less pastas and breads for sure!
👏🏾👏🏾 I have to say, you did a very excellent job of stating things & facts without a lot of prejudice or favoritism. Watching Korean media shows & documentaries, there's clearly a decent amount of very overweight people there. But not nearly like other countries. I really like that you mentioned the social and societal mindset and attitude towards the citizens to stay lean and be self conscious about one's looks. And how it has pros and cons. This was so well done 💯
You can understand that not only Koreans but also Asians such as Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, and others tend to be thin. This is because Asian diets differ from those in the Western world, with Asians consuming less sugar and oily foods, focusing more on vegetarian options, and having smaller meal portions...
Asia is bigger than that ... Have you seen Indian food? Malay, Indonesian food are all extremely unhealthy - fatty, oily, greasy
Not to mention a lot of asians are open when it comes to talking about weight to a fault. There will always be that one aunt who often comments about your weight during family gatherings lmao
From my experience, talking about diet and weight loss is less taboo here compared to talking ab the same topic to westerners.
@@celineaureliaNo it isn't. Indian food isn't just butter chicken or tikka masala. No one here eats those on a regular basis. Our everyday diet consists of lots of veggies, pulses, legumes & grains/whole grains.
@@AB-ip2ct sure, your curries say otherwise
@@AB-ip2ct if not, why are indians generally fat after they get married?
아나님 영상 처음 봤는데 목소리랑 악센트가 너무 너무 매력적이시네요... 민감할 수 있는 주제를 다양하지만 너무 멀리가지 않으며 다뤄주셔서 즐겁게 감상했습니다!
Very, very thorough and well explained. Thank you
진짜 말씀 잘하시고 한국을 존중하면서 폭넓게 설명한 점 리스펙해요! 우연히 유입되서 보게된 영상인데 너무너무 감동받고 유익해서 구독하고 갑니다. :)
I’m someone who was very slim growing up and into my young adulthood. Then, in the last few years or so I went from being on the low-end of BMI for my height to the high-end, approaching “overweight”. I’ve really wondered why that is, because despite our metabolisms slowing down in our adulthood it still seemed strange to gain that much so quickly while eating a similar diet, especially as I’m only in my mid-twenties. I realized that this change in weight coincided pretty directly with acquiring a car. I went from walking, biking, and taking public transit everywhere, to being able to drive anywhere I wanted to go. A 20 minute walk to a store turned into a 5 minute drive in pretty much every aspect of my life. Realizing just how much activity I cut out of my life was truly eye opening. I’ve been working on ways to try and add that activity back into my life, even if now I need to go on purposeful walks instead of just getting movement in by walking to the store.
We have a rule in my family, anything 30 minutes away does not need the car. We’ve always taken nature and park walks for fun as kids (8-10 mile walks). Encouraged to have active hobbies or to have some form of exercise you like to do.
Literally Anna!!
Your videos are the best source when it comes to knowledge.
Thank you for the detailed explanations and comparisons with other countries.
I absolutely love the idea of sharing food
You addressed a couple of structural issues, like poor school lunches and a lack of public transport but there are also many more in the US that are barriers to a healthier lifestyle:
- there are huge gaps between classes, which affects your education, and how much time & money you have to spend on your health
- Related to the US being a car dependent culture; healthy food is perishable, so you can't store it for long, and it's more expensive. grocery stores are often hard to get to, so people buy a lot of processed and shelf stable food at once so they have one less chore to do for a while. It's also much cheaper to buy in bulk which def contributes to overeating
- in many american households, both parents work so meal prep is hard to do
- There are places in the US that are called "food desserts" and the only accessible food is pretty much fast food
- food lobbying is something that occurs in the govt. I'm simplifying this grossly, but large processed food corporations will entice officials to modify or create laws that make their food easier to create, sell. etc. Healthy food doesn't have this kind of power in the halls of govt in the US. They also have more money to advertise directly to kids
- medical care is not easy to come by and there's not a lot of support for people who do end up pre-diabetic or with high cholesterol etc. You have to be educated and pursue things on your own, and that's IF you have healthcare!
With all these structural issues, it's no wonder people don't eat well. The US is individualistic so we like to blame individuals for their shortcomings, but they have a lot to work against
this is said really well
@@nikkinnom thank you kindly
Agreed! Perfectly said!
@@tazwee7223 Thank you very much
Perfectly put!
I'd like to point out that ovens are used for so much more than baking sweets in the US. As much as I love baking desserts, that amounts to about 10% of my oven usage. A lot of the foods you cook on a stovetop can also be baked/broiled/air fryed in an oven, and at least for me, it tends to be healthier if I'm using an oven (I use less oil since I don't worry about it sticking). My favorite healthy snack is just baked veggies. I'm also going to agree with another person who mentioned that the reason Americans tend to eat less healthy has a lot to do with the fact that junk food is cheap. It costs so much less to buy fast food or junk food at a market than to eat a nutritious meal. We also have uneducated preconceptions of what "healthy food" looks like, as well as "healthy" equates to "unappetizing".
It's an example she's talking about God, and junk food is all over the world that's no excuse because your American, all Americans are the biggest in the world .
@@JulieIelasi-lt7yp We’re actually not. Several island nations have the highest rates of obesity in the world. America is number 10 on the list followed by the UK.
Thank you, great video filled with good information.
어쩜 이로케 말을 조목조목 잘 하시죠!>< 많은 부분에서 공감하면서 재미있게 들었어요! 알고리즘으로 갑자기 뜬 영상이라 처음에는 다 볼 생각이 없었는데(?)ㅋㅋ듣다보니 홀려서 다 보고 갑니당ㅋㅋㅋ 저도 하루에 두끼 먹어요. 습관이 되니까 이렇게 먹는게 오히려 속이 편하고,,, 운동도 꾸준히 해서 가벼운 상태의 몸을 알기 때문에 많이 먹는다 싶으면 조절하는 것 같아요. 자기만족으로 하는거라 지속하는게 가능하고요- 다같이 건강하게 살아요 :) 플러스로 저는 영어표현도 많이 배워갑니당♡ 뭔가 표현하기 애매했던 내용들을 이런 단어로, 이런 문장으로 쓸 수 있구나 하고요>< 재밌당,,, 이 영상 몇번은 더 볼거 같아요! 감사합니당!
Also about sharing food, you stop eating when you’re full, but when you don’t share, you tend to empty your plate even if you’re full! It can even be considered disrespectful to not finish everything on your plate (at least that is how my parents raised me but now as an adult I think this mentality is changing)
This is very true. I would add that eating disorders are common and overlooked as normal behaviour. Moreover, genetic plays a huge role in maintening your weight. Abby Sharp, a Canadian dietitian, explained how she has the same weight since she was 17. Some people are like that as some people are naturally a little bit chubbier.
안나님! 영어로 유창하게 자신의 이야기를 전달하는 모습이 참 인상적이에요! 저도 부족하지만 영어로 제가 전하고 싶은 이야기를 유투브로 하나씩 만들어가고 있어요!
안나님 영상보면서 많은 동기부여를 받고 갑니다!
응원합니다! 👍🌼
Very thorough and insightful…good work. Your English is perfect…
this was extremely interesting. I'm Italian and lived for 5 years in the USA. I recently moved to Seoul and in 1 moth I lost 4.5 kg without even trying. so yes, the life style and the food really really do a lot! plus the rest of course
But no one was forcing you in the US to over eat or eat what was not healthy.. or stop exercising. I'm a petite American...I've never been overweight...born and raised here....I have chosen not to make unhealthy choices...and we do have plenty of wonderful choices....Including fattening food ....once in a while! All things in moderation.
hi anna, thanks for making this video. i used to live in Korea when i was a dispatcher and i was losing around 6-8kg during my 1 year stay just because i eat lots of korean food and walk a lot during commuting. i think those 2 are the factors. u tend to walk a lot because u used the public transportation a lot and it was like a culture too i guess, u guys walk a lot and that contributes to like minimum 6K steps / day :)
I grew up in a mixed Korean-American household in America. I grew up really skinny until I developed hormone issues in my teenagehood, then people, especially like my 엄마 and 이모s, started telling me I was fat and to lose weight, etc. I ended up developing an eating disorder because of it. I love my Korean culture and I definitely miss being in Korea for so many reasons, but I get so overwhelmed by the “skinny culture.” My dad is 6’5” (196cm), so when I have a tall and bigger dad and then my mom who is so skinny and shorter, I just kinda got a mixed body type. And then throw in my autoimmune disease. But honestly, I think I would be healthier in Korea, less because of the pressure but more because of the walking and whatnot. I live in Alaska, so everything is a bit too far apart to walk places, unless you live somewhere like Anchorage. And public transport isn’t big here either, which sucks. Anyway, I think your observations are spot on!
You write so nice and open. I come from parents if mixed body types too. You can overcome any thing or way that you want too! Something as food can create a loneliness prison. Korean woman body builder shows here in You Tube is show amazing. They have such fortitude and strength and stamina and missions. They cutest eyes beautiful natural hair. If men can be women? ...yeah what a dream. And you know the language from childhood. I wish I have a Korean mom. 돔 사 함 니 다! Thank you 🙏 in Hanguel. Rex Harrisen. 할 ㅣ 석. Sorry I messed this up in writing but I tried.
You can still live a healthy life in Alaska. You just have to find what works for you. I exercise and eat healthy, and I can’t even go anywhere without a car either.
Interesting! Thank you, and Merry Christmas!🎄🎄🎄
Some Korean girls become scarily skinny. Nothing wrong with being thin but there's limits to everything
You must be a potato :)
exactly, most people do not naturally think someone who looks sceletal is good-looking, it's simply not in our dna since due to evolution people would pick a love interest according to their healthiness (which would more likely produce a healthy offspring) and being extremely thin or overweight is simply not healthy. I mean weighing just over 40 kg as an adult female is far from healthy, that's losing your period and becoming infertile territory unless you're extremely short. actually scientific research has proven that the healthiest people are around 2 kgs overweight, so their body has enough energy stored away in cases of emergency.
thus the beauty standards in SK are all based on social conditioning, not some innate appreciation for looking almost scary thin. although genetics definitely do factor in because most Korean women, let's face it, are very flat: barely any boobs or ass, and the hips and waist are almost the same width. this means that unlike women from other ethnicities who naturally have more of an hourglass shape, they would just get chubby all over, forming a sort of a barrel shaped body rather than nice feminine curves. so they'd understandably rather be thin and pencil-shaped because this also gives a certain excuse for the lack of curves.
here in Northern Europe we still have somewhat of a 00s 'heroin chic' thinness standard too, which has never been truly shaken by the Western Kim Kardashian curvy influence. that's why I used to be ashamed of my 98-64-98 hourglass figure. this also means that my clothing sizes are all over the place because clothes these days are made only for the straight-up-and-down figures. my top is usually a size M, waist a size XS or S and bottoms size M to L, pretty impossible to find something that fits lol.
however I've come to realize that everyone is shaped differently due to genetics and despite hating my thick thighs etc, I am actually glad to have an hourglass figure now and also prefer it on other women. a small-to-medium hourglass-shaped woman will always be the hottest to me ngl, whatever the beauty standards. that's why I can find a lot of these kpop girls beautiful, but hardly any of them attractive in a more mature sense iykyk. I can see how being model-thin would be considered pretty in an almost ethereal way but I personally don't get it how anyone sane and normal can look at someone shaped like a preteen girl and consider that 'hot' 😬. let's also not forgret that many of them have to wear padding on the chest and hips to make it look like they have any curves.
the issue is that it's very rare for women to be slim yet have curves in 'all the right places' simultaneously, since these curves are in a large part just fatty deposits. this is why women especially struggle with body image a lot since there is too much emphasis placed onto our looks, not just by a patriarchal society but also each other, women care too much to follow the lookist trends set by other women. whereas it's more linear for men who just need to not be overweight and grow muscles a little.
I know I'd never want to live in SK because I'd be told I'm fat right to my face despite being average-size/ slim in Europe. and as someone who's struggled with an eating disorder that would be quite traumatizing personally. despite knowing I don't agree with korean thin-worshipping standards, I'd probably still subconciously be pressured to follow them to some extent and that could provoke disordered eating again.
PS: the thinness standards are even worse in China, where even slim toned muscle don't seem to be appreciated, certainly not on women. and the same standards are applied to men, no muscle mass, just be as tall as possible while looking emanciated in an XL T-shirt which looks like a dress on you. these appearance standards are so weird, we should all just strive to be of a normal healthy average weight for our height and stop making body types into trends 🙄
and 42% of adults in usa are obese.. so..
“Pop tarts would be considered child abuse in Korea” - I think that’s the essence of it. Koreans cherish quality food and clearly understand the difference between quality and junk. Can’t wait to visit your beautiful country.
You brought up great points!
Dear Anna since I followed you , it's simply great experience to know about Korean people their good food habits and how much they are decipline.Thank you so much for sharing these valuable information
If you eat real organically grown fruits and vegetables, including meat free if hormones and antibiotics as opposed to ( i.e. in the U.S.) that is enough on its own to be healthy . Anna , the secret to health is of course, be active ! But, eating good quality of food vs artificial one makes all of the difference in the world . Thank you for bringing this topic. As far as public transportation is concern , S. Korea and the U.S . are totally different as day and night !
SO TRUE what you said about walking inclines in Korea! Shortly after I arrived, I went on a trip to Namhae, and it was so incredibly steep (at least, compared to what I was used to) that I got a hell of a workout just walking around and visiting where I wanted to go
After living in Korea I would say its a myth that the average person is thin. Most I saw were overweight or normal. There's a huge diet culture, and a lot of the food in unhealthy. I gained weight in Korea as did the majority of my friends who were there. The refined carbs and added sugar in everything were off the charts.
Thank you!
They made it for you lot who need sugar.
Great Video Anna Lee 🤍😊🤍😊🤍😊🤍
The difference between US and Korean portion sizes must be gigantic. Never been to the US but I'm from The Netherlands and everyone I know who has been to the US told me even their small portions are huge compared to Dutch portion sizes. And when I went to Korea I found the portion sizes a bit small. So we sometimes ordered extra. Like ordering for 4 people when we where with 3 and such. I felt I ate a lot during my trip to Korea but I also lost weight because I was active all day. Walking up and down hills, many stairs etc etc.
I'm asian and I live in the US. Whenever I go out to eat I usualy ask for a to-go box and split the meal into two, so I can have the second half the next day or something. So the portion size is like 2 meals combined into 1.
When I was studying in US, me and my roommate from Japan had a habit of always splitting food, because it felt like a bucket-size half the time.
@@kodzuken1016 Yup, same here.
Stop eating so much.
I’m American and have lived in the U.S. my whole life. I’m a small woman and find our portion sizes to be RIDICULOUS. I can literally get 3 meals from one restaurant meal. It is just nuts! And if you ask for a child’s meal or a half portion they get an attitude with you. I’m like okay, better order something I love because I’m going to be eating it for the next 3 days.
I’ll be in Korea in 1month! Your content is so informative, interesting and helpful. Thank youu 🤍
I do agree with your perspective here ..very nice ..can you do segment on Korean traditional meals
Your video was amazing! I've been in Korea for two weeks and I've lost weight a lot faster than I have in the US! I've been working on losing weight and it's been much faster here! Lol There's a lot of pretty people here and I love how it's not toxic to want to be in shape.
Very informative! And makes sense as I think on the points you made.
I laughed a bit on the Itaewon part, I once took an offbeat path and man it felt like a hike.
I feel like I didn't need to watch this since I already knew the reasons, but I ended up watching it because I wanted to see how you would present it in a non-offensive way to westerners. And you did a great job!! From scrolling through the comments, it looks like nobody was offended. As an Asian-American, I constantly wish we had better public transportation. I think eating whole foods and working out is trending (at least in California, you don't see people feeding their kids pop-tarts for breakfast), but the fact that we just have to drive everywhere and nothing is really within walking distance, plus it doesn't feel safe to be on public transportation in many of our cities doesn't help with the staying active part.
와 댓글 잘 안 다는데 말씀을 굉장히 조리있게 하시네요! 멋져요!!
Insightful video shedding light on the Korean perspective on maintaining a healthy, slim lifestyle. Eye-opening cultural perspective!
I remember once visiting Japan with my parents, we went to a Starbucks (we wanted to try it out because we didn't have any starbucks in Finland yet). We didn't think much about the sizes of the drinks being "too small" or anything but there was an American tourist complaining to the workers that they have too small portions and how much bigger and better they were in US. Makes me not want to go to an american Starbucks 😂
Audcity of some Americans complaining about normal stuffs while in a foreign country. The stupid entitlement is in their viens.
so long as it’s cheaper in proportion i’d agree, but if it’s the same price i’d want more! 😂
An American was complaining about the portion sizes? How embarrassing
@@chrystianaw8256 you know that very “classy” french ppl also complain? Complaining is not exclusive from those horrible “americans”
@@chrystianaw8256 that’s what I was thinking. Of course it would be the American to do that 🤦♀️
Yes I’ve definitely have taken notes from Koreans and you’re food is sooooo good and I don’t feel guilty eating it ever. Also I absolutely love how you all share your food! I always want to try the whole menu too 😆
Thanks for this perspective, low carber here in England, so many nuances fit in with my lifestyle, apart from the rice, by the way, I'm addicted to Korean Dramas TV Series, so good
They just don’t eat. Same here in Japan. Every time I went home and asked my gf what she had for the day, she either told nothing or “soup”. They earned it.
As an Italian American, I am often asked the same question-how do Italians stay so slim and eat pasta? You touched on it beautifully when you talked about portions. Unfortunately, the US coined the phrase "All You Can Eat," as a sales pitch but it has become a way of life or a way of bad health. I grew up in an urban environment and we walked a lot. I still cook but I don't make too much food for us since it's just the two of us now. We also take daily walks and work out moderately. Thank you for the great video; glad I discovered your channel.
Thanks for the great video. It was easy to understand and fun to watch. I stayed in Korea for two weeks and my friends and I walked at least 14,000 steps every day. We lived close to Namsan Tower, so one morning, we decided to walk up to the top.
We saw all kinds of people walking up too, like students - we found them completing homework too, older people working out at a park gym while you walk up, and even some folks dressed like they were going to work after. It made me think - if they can make time to walk, I can too. When we got to the top, it felt really good to have made it. To celebrate, we ate two boiled eggs we bought from eMart. This whole experience reminded me not to be lazy and to make time for myself. 💕
This video is very informative. Thank you for making a video like this as I wondered why myself on how Koreans staying thin and why the sizes vary from US sizes. Also great health tips and on foods to eat to stay healthy. I love Gimbap and I always do feel better eating that than a combo meal. More of that and watching calories. Love K-Pop and K-Dramas too so i just subscribed to your channel. Thank you.
It was really a very informative video ma’am. I always had this question so as to why Koreans are so thin. U answered my questions very well. Inspires me to eat healthy and work out. Thanks for the video. Bye 👋🏻.
Thank you so much for having the Korean subtitles. I am learning Korean and it’s nice to try and read it while listening to you. Obviously the speed is slower so I can read it lol but I just wanted to say thank you ❤️
Another well done vid! Your synopsis was absolute truth. The number of calories you consume vs the energy output will determine your weight. Eating slowly and mindfully isn't really much of a thing in America. People eat in their cars, or while watching TV and I don't think they pay attention to how much they consume in those moments. And for those who say "genetics", I am going to say that is such a small part of your weight. I drive everywhere. I live in suburbia in the western US so I make the commitment to go to the gym 6 days a week. It's always about choices. I am glad that we have a little less shaming here, I struggle in my own head enough. 🤦🏻♀
I agree
Great video Anna!! I actually watched the whole thing you are great with delivery and to-the-point info. I was surprised that Israel is just after France in the obesity rank. Guess our middle eastern diet and militarily mandatory culture is a part of it. South Korea is mandatory as well, isn't it? I wonder if it also has something to do with it.