
The life of a kdrama star may seem charmed but there is a downside to it. Maintaining those long lean frames and sharp cheekbones means you always have to watch what you eat and how much you exercise. And that's true for both actresses and actors.
However, some actors seem to have more sensible plans than others.
For example, So Ji Sub, the star of "The Master's Sun," knows that he gains weight quickly, so he avoids certain foods and works out.
"Exercise is important, so I wake up at a set time," said the actor. "I regularly exercise two to three hours daily. If I break this pattern for even a day, I gain weight." He does not eat anything special, just skips calorie-rich foods. "I just eat small amounts of the food that I eat normally," he said. "It's better to not eat something than to be distressed after eating it."
Song Hye Kyo, star of "That Winter The Wind Blows" also takes a sensible approach. She doesn't eat fast food or drink soft drinks. She prefers fish and vegetables to meat. A favorite dish is pumpkin soup, which is rich in vitamins and has diuretic properties. She also exercises.
"I stay in shape by regularly hitting the gym," said Song. "I've adhered to a workout routine since my debut. I exercise more than 4 days a week. What I like most is the 20-minute stretching exercises before and after the workout." Also she drinks lots of water.
It took Seo In Guk a while to find a healthy way to lose weight. At his initial audition for JYP Entertainment, they told him to slim down. "From that point onward, I became obsessed with weight loss," said Seo. "After every meal, I'd vomit so that I could lose weight." It was not a smart plan as he developed bulimia and damaged his vocal chords. Since then, he has learned more about healthy eating and the benefits of working out. For his role in "The Master's Sun," he easily lost weight with a healthy approach. "I worked out with a trainer, and I adjusted my diet. I lost 22 lbs. over three months."
It took Seo In Guk a while to find a healthy way to lose weight. At his initial audition for JYP Entertainment, they told him to slim down. "From that point onward, I became obsessed with weight loss," said Seo. "After every meal, I'd vomit so that I could lose weight." It was not a smart plan as he developed bulimia and damaged his vocal chords. Since then, he has learned more about healthy eating and the benefits of working out. For his role in "The Master's Sun," he easily lost weight with a healthy approach. "I worked out with a trainer, and I adjusted my diet. I lost 22 lbs. over three months."
Stars have different approaches and some must get awfully hungry. For example, IU, who starred in "You're The Best Lee Soon Shin, diets by eating as little as possible. "I eat an apple in the morning, some sweet potato and water during the day, and I drink protein in the evening," she said. It does not seem like a lot of food for someone who has such a grueling acting and singing schedule.
Kim Yoo Mi lost weight for her drama "Cruel City" by having detox juice for breakfast, rice for lunch and no dinner. If she became hungry she ate a banana.
Kim Sun Ah, who can soon be seen in the film "The Five," once had to lose a lot of weight for a role. She only ate rice once a day but that's because she was playing a dying woman in "Scent of a Woman." When people asked her the secret of her weight loss, she was reluctant to say anything. "It was painful and intolerable," she said of her diet. "More than anything I was afraid of people following me because the diet was not a healthy one."
Before starting a weight loss plan, it's always smart to discuss your approach with a doctor. A healthier approach will deliver better results in the long term.

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Date: 2013-12-11 06:46 pm (UTC)i didn't know seo in guk was bulimic, that's incredibly sad and such an emotional and physical toll on yourself. most of these diets aren't really diets, just restrictive eating but that's what it's like being in the public eye for some esp whose bodies aren't naturally skinny. i've struggle with an ed since i was 15 and it's hard. lol i wanted to be an actor for a bit but that's part of the reason i realized i'm better off behind a camera than in front.
honestly, i almost wish people would keep these diets to themselves. it's better than lying and saying it's natural but these tips are destructive and useless.
i COMPLETELY missed sun ah's part, wow. i respect her so much and this is part of the reason why because she is totally correct. it makes you miserable and unhappy and it's very unhealthy and can be a start to incredibly destructive patterns.
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Date: 2013-12-11 06:49 pm (UTC)I do try to eat healthy food though, use olive oil rather than butter and stuff but I won't say no to chocolate or a big fat hamburger
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:32 pm (UTC)Also, home made bread and good olive oil is awesome.
I'm hungry.
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Date: 2013-12-11 06:52 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:02 pm (UTC)after that diet i completely changed my eating habits and started to work out more... it was for good. people don't recognise me anymore, i lost a lot of my baby fat (yay).
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:18 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:04 pm (UTC)umm... no? skipping a work out session won't make you gain weight
just like skipping a meal won't make you skinnier
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Date: 2013-12-13 03:13 pm (UTC)But I fear that is the price people in his profession have to pay. Anything from preventing ppl to call you 'fat'.
His first public appearence after Master' Sun was a fan signing and lots of fans started to write about how 'much' weight he gained and that he were 'losing his jaw line'. That's just ridiculous. This man is as thin as a stick, he got a perfectly trained body. It was just, that he didn't have any longer the emaciated face of an actor under a grueling shooting schedule.
Today's beauty standards are totally crazy!
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:07 pm (UTC)breaking a pattern for just a day doesn't make you gain weight!! i think weight just naturally fluctuates innit? as long as you stay within range it should be fine
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-12 01:34 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 07:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 07:14 pm (UTC)I try to eat as healthy as I can through the week so I can eat junk and fatty stuff on the weekends. I drink a lot of water and I work out when I feel like it? (I'm lazy)
I only gain weight in my upper body so I will always look a bit bigger because boobs. So I accepted my faith and stopped worrying and I'm mostly watching out what I eat because I want to live forever.
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:38 pm (UTC)Ugh, I wish I could bring myself to work out again but I just can't. I used to jog a little but now ... maybe that could be a New Year's resolution (harharhar). ;D
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:18 pm (UTC)The pressure to diet messes everyone up. It doesn't just affect the celebrities going through it, because people look at them and believe that they also have to look that way to be considered beautiful. IU was gorgeous before she lost weight. It wasn't necessary, and if that's all she's eating....it makes me sad. Really sad.
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:35 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:35 pm (UTC)I lost about 40 pounds over a period of 3 years, and I must say it's best to do it slowly b/c you are adjusting mentally and physically to a new way of living. But the industry is all about quick fixes/results, I am concerned about the future health of some of these people :/
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 07:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 07:45 pm (UTC)The only person I am not cringing about here is Song Hye Kyo. I know people who don't drink soft drinks (soda) and I don't even eat fast food much anymore--and think it's probably better if you don't eat it at all (not like it's hard to make your own burger). I know someone who doesn't eat meat as well. So her eating habits seem OK with me as well as her exercising (thought more than 4 days a week. I am tired thinking about that but I guess it's not that different from a gym class in high school).
Glad for Kim Sun Ah for not sharing her dieting strategy. Yeah, just because someone does it for a movie doesn't mean it's the best thing to do so I am happy she didn't disclose it out of fear of people following her.
I don't have nay specific diet. I should probably eat more veggies and drink more water though. And exercise.
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:45 pm (UTC)i didnt know seo in guk was buliemic :S
wish korea would recognize it as an actual disorder instead of a 'diet' ¬____¬
my diet?
just avoid eating junk. proportioning calorie intake as to how much energy i need. learn to love veggies. healthy cooking CAN BE MADE tasty too. if u cant, then ur a shit cook.
and diets dont work. LIFESTYLE CHANGES DO. they dont need to be monumental, small steps towards the goal are better.
and grow a pair and stop with junk food. ur not a kid anymore that u turn ur nose at healthy non tasty food. just shutup and eat it.
AND ABOVE ALL, people are of all shapes and sizes. being healthy>>>>being thin. if ur healthy, but still chubby, then u just have to accept it as that.
(sorry, but this topic is kinda my sensitive point. im the youngest im my entire extended family, and they are all a bunch of overweight unhealthy eaters and i cant seem to stop them ;_____; )
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:48 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2013-12-11 07:45 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2013-12-11 08:23 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 08:46 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2013-12-11 09:13 pm (UTC)Currently: I just avoid junk food and if I want a coke I have a coke because one isn't going to kill me. Everything in moderation. And I workout at home 4-5 days a week even if it's something like a dance party. 5 songs, pump it up and start dancing preferably in your underwear with a significant amount of flailing limbs.... that counts as a workout right?
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Date: 2013-12-11 09:26 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2013-12-12 01:45 am (UTC)I mean, I don't drink pop, and I don't eat dessert unless I've finished the rest of my dinner and I'm still hungry and I don't buy snacks like bags of chips that I'll eat in one sitting - I generally have apples or carrots to munch on - but that's not a diet, that's just the way I like to eat.
But speaking as someone who used to be skinny/sedentary and is now getting pretty athletic, changing your activity level is the best thing ever.
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Date: 2013-12-11 09:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 10:14 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2013-12-11 09:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 10:09 pm (UTC)those aren't diets smh, korea. the only "diet" that sounds legit is song hye kyo's...tbh I cut soft drinks from my diet as well and when I did that the first time I dropped 10 lbs in a month without really trying. everything in moderation...you can have your favorite foods without gaining weight you know..just have to be smart about it.
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Date: 2013-12-11 10:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-12-11 10:14 pm (UTC)But anyways since this became a diet post, I'm pretty damn depressed, because I managed to lose about 10 kg soem time ago, but then it just stopped. No matter what I did, I couldn't lose more even if I still had extra weight. The the weight started creeping back and I've gained almsot everything back. :( and no, I really didn't just let myself go and stop baying attention on my diet and exercise. I do have hypothyroidism so my metabolism is not working as its hould be, even thouht my medication is fine.
I'm trying to lose the weight again, but I hate it that it's like four times harder for me. Anyone have experience with losing weight and having hypothyroidism?
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Date: 2013-12-11 11:03 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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