How Much Did Actress Lee Sung Kyung Actually Weigh During Her “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo” Era?

Ever since her K-Drama debut in 2014, actress Lee Sung Kyung has been a fan favorite: Viewers celebrate her career change from modeling to acting, much thanks to her most successful roles in hit shows like Cheese In The Trap and Doctors.

Actress Lee Sung Kyung | @heybiblee/Instagram

Coming from a modeling background, though, Lee has kept her figure slim and elegant for most of her K-Dramas. In fact, during a recent press conference for her latest work with SBS‘s long-running series Dr. Romantic 3, her sunbae co-star Han Suk Kyu even commented on how “thin” Lee is.

Actress Lee Sung Kyung Is Called “Very Thin” By Her Senior Who Wants Her To Be Healthy

Sung Kyung is a really cool person. She’s very thin. I want her to be a bit more healthy.

— Han Suk Kyu

But when did Lee weigh a lot more than her usual?

Pre-acting Lee Sung Kyung modeling for GUESS | Sports Seoul

In an interview with Allure Korea, the actress revealed that she weighed a lot more than what the viewers believed her to weigh during her Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo era.

The 2016 MBC K-Drama, for which Lee took on the female lead role, captured the friendships and the relationships of collegiate weightlifters—making viewers laugh and cry over the confusing and intricate connections made in a person’s 20s.

Lee Sung Kyung in “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo” | MBC

And to best portray the character Kim Bok Joo, a natural-born lifter based on the actual South Korean weightlifter Jang Mi Ran, Lee worked on gaining weight and muscle throughout the shoot!

According to the interview, Lee had gained at least 28 pounds (about 13 kilograms) more than what she weighs now to pull off the character. Based on her current weight of 111 pounds (50.5 kilograms) mentioned on her Korean profile page, Lee must have weighed about 140 pounds (63 kilograms) for the show!

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At first, while learning how to lift weights, the actress ended up losing a lot of weight. So she focused on eating more and “bulking up.” Lee also explained that she had trouble keeping the weight on because the shoot involved so much shouting, running, and lifting—that made it feel like she was “always working out on set.” 

Your browser does not support video.| @sevea77/Naver Blog 

Regardless, Lee was able to keep the 28 pounds on and complete the shoot!

While at first, K-Drama fans worried about casting a former model for the role of a weightlifter, Lee turned all concerns into praise. From putting on the kilograms to changing her stride, and even pulling off an entirely different style of makeup and fashion, Lee gave her 100% and more to the K-Drama—and, rightfully, Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo remains a must-watch for a lot of fans!

| MBC

Watch the full Allure interview here.