How this 46-year-old Korean mum lost 20kg in 3 months

Korean fitness and diet guru Jung Da Yeon looks nothing like the hefty 70kg-heavy housewife she was a decade ago.

A far cry from her days as a dowdy housewife, she is now known throughout South Korea as the woman who launched the "momjjang" hot body fad.

The term "momjjang" refers to her nickname "momjjang ajumma" - which means a mom or older woman with a striking figure.

Forty-six years old and a mother of two, she sports an impressive set of abs and toned, firm legs that resemble that of a 20-year-old.

It's hard to believe that she used to weigh 70kg after having her two children. According to reports, she woke up one day in 2003 and suddenly decided to act on her dissatisfaction with her figure and weight.

In just three months, she lost 20kg by following a strict diet and exercise plan. According to her online profile, she stands 162cm tall, and now weighs a slender 50kg.

Following her dramatic weight loss, Ms Jung shot to stardome after she published her diet books, workout videos and photos of her before and after figure.

According to online reports, her inspirational story turned her into a nationwide sensation and motivated Korean housewives to go to fitness centres.

Asian housewives were motivated by Ms Jung's amazing transformation, and started working out too in a bid to achieve the momjjang look. This trend became known as the momjjang syndrome.

Next     Small meals and "figure-robics"

Small meals and "figure-robics"

Small meals and "figure-robics"

In 2004, she appeared on popular television programme NHK-TV and gained popularity in Japan as well. She expanded her fitness empire into Japan and released her DVDs and books there. She even had her own Nintendo Wii game released in Japan called 'Mom-chan Diet Wii: Figure-robics by Jung Da Yeon'.

"I tried to put in the second book my know-how and tips that I have accumulated over the past seven years," Jung told reporters at a book signing event in 2010.

According to a Korea Herald publication, her second book "Momjjang Diet Premium" sold 200,000 copis in just two weeks after publication in Japan.

In the book, Ms Jung writes about the steps she took to attain her chiselled body. "Over the millions of years of human history, it was only 10,000 years ago that people began eating three square meals a day," Jung wrote.

"Like animals living in the wild, we must eat often in order to stay slim." Hence, she advocates for the eating of several small meals in a day rather than three regular big meals.

In addition, she also introduced the concept of "figure-robics" in the book - an exercise she created for women in 2005. The exercises, consisting of light but rigorous arobics routines focuses on the aim of building up a woman's figure by concentrating on areas such as the waist and hips.

View pictures of her amazing body: