Throughout my three months in Korea, I've heard a lot about weight. Before I even left for Korea, people told me how "Koreans are so much healthier" and "You'll lose so much weight". Being in Korea, I've still heard tons about weight. It's constant. Koreans pride themselves on their weight and attribute it to the amount of vegetables they eat per meal - they believe themselves to eat more vegetables then anything else on the plate.
The picture to the left is what I typically eat everyday at school. As you can see there is a large portion of rice and soup (that green seaweed looking stuff to the right of the rice). We aren't given a drink at lunch so the soup is mainly broth to help you with eating your lunch. To the upper left corner is always some sort of vegetable usually given in a small amount. The top middle is usually a protein - I've had everything from fish to pork to squid to egg - while the upper right corner is reserved for the Almighty Kimchi. As you can see, rice takes up a decent percentage of the meal.
The picture to the right is a typical Korean meal at a restaurant. You are given several different side dishes that range from roots to gelatin acorns to strips of dried squid and everything in between.
Judging from my school lunches, I wouldn't say Koreans eat a lot of vegetables. However, when I take into account the amount of vegetable side dishes you receive when eating out then I can understand why they say this.
Now that I've given you an understanding of the Korean diet, allow me to continue!
Korea is one of the top nations for diet pill usage yet they pride themselves in eating healthy and being thin. Several people have commented that foreigners typically gain weight when they come to Korea and attribute it to the fact that rice in present in every meal. My Co-Teacher says that our body metabolisms are different as hers is set to digest more natural foods and more vegetables while mine is set to digest more carbs. I tried to explain to her that rice is a carb but she didn't quite get it. Koreans will eat rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Contrary to popular belief about Americans, eating this many carbs is something that my body isn't used to. I went from living on a diet of fruit, vegetables, and some meat to a diet of meat and rice with a little vegetables on the side. This has wrecked havoc on my stomach despite the fact that Korean diets consist of natural foods that are grown in nearby farms.
Honestly, I can see how easy it would be to gain weight - even if you hate rice. There are bakeries, dumplings, kimbap (featured to the left, this little roll has a whopping 500 calories packed in it), and fried food stations on every corner. Places where you can walk up to the window and walk away with a 500 calorie snack. Ramen is readily available everywhere as are sugared soda pops and coffees - "diet" drinks are deemed unnatural and are not as easy to find as one would think. My teacher didn't even know what Splenda was (or any of the variations such as Equal) and simply asked me why I would want something that was artificial in my body. A valid point but I like Splenda - I like knowing that my drinks don't have unnecessary calories. Although Korea is still a widely 'thin' country, recent reports have determined that the younger age is actually getting slightly fatter. *gasp*
I will admit that when we got here we went a little crazy. We exercise but the first two months were full of overindulgence of new cultural food and high caloric drinks. Over the course of the first two months, I gained a little weight - 5lbs (I know "OMG 5 whole pounds?!" haha). This is due to the excess consumption of alcohol, bakery, and random food that has been offered to me by everyone. The past month, I have adjusted to the lifestyle - not drinking as much and avoiding the street food - and I've lost some of the initially gained weight. I've also cut back on my rice consumption as I've gotten quite tired of the dish.
As for the flavor of the dishes, the tastes are different. Bananas, to me, taste entirely different here then they do in America - not in the good way. Sweet potatoes are another thing. They are smaller and taste absolutely fabulous - full of flavor. Everything here is sweeter as well. Forget finding salt & vinegar potato chips or spicy Cheetos - everything here is sweet. Even the garlic bread is sweet! It's insanity.
So my overall decision concerning food in Korea?
It's just like everywhere else. Aside from the fact that the food is more natural and not chock full of preservatives and added hormones - you still have to watch what you eat. Just like everywhere else, if you consistently eat crappy food that's been fried or eat all carbs or drink every night then you will gain weight. I myself have a pretty decent metabolism so for me to have gained 5lbs, you know I had to have been eating waaaaay too much and drinking too much as well.
Suffice to say, the key to not gaining the Korean 15 (get it, Freshman 15?) is to just eat well, have fun, stay active, and don't drink all the friggin' time. Fast food is in every country - everywhere. Junk food will always exist. Alcohol will always provide temptation. Bakeries forever smell delicious. Just stay active, eat, and enjoy the experience.
Tons of people showed for the Christmas party, hosted by the ever lovely Laurel & Jameson who opened their home to us wayward children. The picture to the right is almost everyone - Jameson and David are missing as they insisted of taking the photos. 
