Lee Jong-min's extreme weight loss: walking 8 hours a day to lose 40kg

Lee Jong-min, the "fit doctor" who garnered attention for losing 40kg, is drawing eyes after revealing that he walked for eight hours every day during his weight loss journey. Doctor and creator Woo Chang-yoon diagnosed obesity as a social environmental issue that is difficult to explain through individual willpower alone, offering his views on modern dietary habits and obesity treatment.

On the 2nd, KBS released a preview for the KBS 2TV show "Problem Child in House" via its official YouTube channel. In this upcoming episode, Woo and Lee will appear to discuss obesity, dieting, and health management.

Woo pointed out, "The very life we live has changed into an environment that induces obesity." He explained that obesity is not merely a problem caused by an individual's self-control or lifestyle habits, but is closely linked to the environmental characteristics of modern society, where accessibility to high-calorie foods has increased and physical activity has decreased.

Mentioning preventable causes of death, he emphasized, "The second is obesity," and also touched upon medications that have recently gained attention in the field of obesity treatment. He explained that when using diet injections, "as if by magic, the craving for snacks also decreases," suggesting that appetite and the desire for food rewards have a significant impact on weight control.

In particular, he identified beverages containing liquid fructose as a major problem. Woo noted the impact of daily beverage consumption in modern society on health, stating, "If you ask what food kills people the most, it is liquid fructose beverages."

Lee shared his weight loss experience. Having reached a weight of 100kg in the past, he lost approximately 40kg, recalling that "I walked for 8 hours a day" during that process. This indicates that he did not stop at simply reducing food intake but maintained a significant level of physical activity.

Even after losing weight, Lee has continued his interest in exercise and body management. Known as the "fit doctor," he has maintained a toned physique and has even participated in bikini fitness competitions, balancing his professional image as a doctor with his activities as a fitness creator.

However, caution is needed when accepting such extreme amounts of exercise as a general weight loss method. Walking eight hours a day is Lee's personal experience and is not a standard weight loss method applicable to everyone. This is because weight loss is influenced by various factors, including the balance between calorie intake and expenditure, as well as sleep, stress, physical activity levels, and pre-existing conditions.

Recently, the medical perspective on obesity has also been moving away from being a simple "matter of willpower." Obesity is being treated as a chronic disease that must be managed over a long period, utilizing dietary and exercise therapies along with drug treatments when necessary. In particular, as treatments that regulate the physiological mechanisms involved in appetite and satiety advance, the paradigm of weight management is also changing.

The remarks of Woo and Lee look at the same problem from different directions. While Woo pointed out the food environment of modern society and the structural causes of obesity, Lee shows how much weight consistent lifestyle management carries through his actual weight loss experience.

Ultimately, it is difficult to reduce the problem of obesity to either individual willpower or the social environment alone. The stories of these two doctors symbolically show the recent changes in obesity discourse—requiring us to look at individual actions in choosing what to eat alongside the environment where high-calorie foods are consumed daily, the lifestyle structures that make physical activity difficult, and the advancement of medical treatments.

"Problem Child in House," featuring Woo and Lee, will air on the 8th at 8:30 PM.