Learning How To Ecchi Exercise With Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru?

Hello everyone and welcome to our shelter! 🙂

I’m actually wondering if the new trend of ecchi, fanservice centered Anime is to also be educational. If yesterday we learned how to survive if we ever end up in a desert Island with Sounan Desu Ka?, today we are going to learn how to exercise with Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? (How Many Kilograms are the Dumbbells You Lift? in English). And, when I say we are going to learn how to exercise, I’m saying that we are going to learn how to PROPERLY exercise… While also being sexy when doing it! Because, why not?

But, let me explain to you what is this Anime all about! And then, I can start to tell you everything that I disliked about it… Is that ok? Good!

So, yeah, spoiler alert, I was not so thrilled with this one as most people in the Anime community seem to be…

Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? Synopsis

Hibiki Sakura is your ordinary high school girl. However, due to her big appetite (and terrible diet), she has become bigger. One of her closest friends notices that and tells her that if she continues to put more weight, no guy will want to date her.

With this information, Hibiki decides it’s time to start going to the gym and she ends up going to one of the best in town, used by many professionals, such as bodybuilders and martial artists. There she finds the student council president who embodies the image of a perfect girl. However, she shortly gets to know that the perfect student council president, Akemi Souryuuin, has a hidden muscle fetish.

In the end, both decide to enroll in this gym. Akemi because of all the bodybuilders and Hibiki because of how handsome their personal trainer is (or at least, seems to be). Now, they both go to the same gym and I suppose we will be able to see a friendship starting.

On another note, the Anime takes the time to explain how to do different exercises in the proper manner, tips for people who are starting going to the gym with, of course, a lot of fanservice and comedy bits in the middle.

My Problems With Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru?

You Have To be Skinny to Have a Boyfriend

Don’t worry, I also will tell you what I enjoyed in the first episode of Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? However, I really need to speak my mind about some aspects of the Anime.

First, I don’t like the way how the show seems to imply that you need to be thin to get a boyfriend. It goes completely against the empowerment movement we have seen in the past few years. And, let me tell you when I say they imply the girl needs to be thin, it’s really thin, skinny type of body.

Hibiki herself is not fat, at all. Yeah, you can see she’s a little bit larger compared to the other characters in the show. However, it’s not something that would actually label you as fat. For me, she just has a normal body. Not too thin, not too fat… In fact, she weighs around 55 kgs. The show also gives you her height which is 160cm. So, if we take that into account and do the math, she has a BMI of 21,48. So, a perfectly normal and healthy body weight.

She does have 35% of body fat which is, in fact, unhealthy (the max you should have is 33). However, I find hard to believe that someone who has around 16 years old and has the measurements that I just told you will actually have 35% of body fat. But, well for the sake of the Anime’s argument I will let that one slide.

Nevertheless, the true story is that her joining the gym does not really have much to do with her body fat. The reason behind is, and it’s clear as crystal, that she is fat and won’t get a boyfriend with her body… I’m sorry, but this is a terrible premise. Especially when, again, she is NOT fat!

Hibiki Sakura “OverWeight”

But, there’s more. Hibiki’s design is not that good. Her body weight seems to change throughout the Anime just because… If in one minute she does seem chubbier compared to the other characters in the show, in the next one she seems fit as a… Horse? Sorry, I don’t know where that analogy came from.

Basically, depending on what the creators want to show, they will change her figure. That’s pretty much it. Are we in a fanservice scene, then let’s make her slimmer. Are we showing a scene that creates the “story” of her being fat? Then let’s make her bigger. God… It’s just stupid and confusing. Meaning, if she already does not seem fat when we see her chubbier if we actually get random parts where she just seems your random Anime character it implies even more than you need to be skin and bone to get a boyfriend.

By the way, this is NOT true! Man (as women) enjoy different body types and shape. So, unless it’s for you or for your health do NOT, and I say again, do NOT start going to the gym just a random guy likes your body. 

I normally don’t make these type of comments, but I’m guessing the creator is a guy… Let me check… And I was right!

I honestly despise what the show sells… And, even though we do get really good advice about exercising, I just can’t imagine what a teenage girl may feel while watching it.

Episodes Are Too Long

Do you know why I think Sounan Desu Ka? works so well? Because it’s 12 minutes per episode! It’s enough time to teach what the show wants us to learn, like drinking fish blood in order to fight dehydration. But, more than that, it makes the creators go right to the point. There is no beating around the bush! The creators have 12 minutes to have good survival lessons, add some fanservice and make some jokes. That’s it! There is no time to create a story, but that’s alright since that’s not the main point of the Anime, to begin with.

Well, in the case of Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? we have 20 minutes’ episodes. Aaaand, guess what, the show just starts dragging itself at some point. I mean, there is a limit to the number of jokes you can do about exercising and fanservice you can provide. Especially when you have to save those for later episodes.

Is There Any Good With Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru?

So, the rant is over! Thank you for reading what I had to say and for the opportunity to take all of that out of my chest. Let’s go and discuss what this show actually does correctly.

First of all the exercising tips and tricks are good, reliable and legit. The show explains to you how to do each exercise and it will teach you how to them properly. There was a time when I was going to the gym and the things they said in this first episode, are the same my personal trainer said to me when I joined.

The jokes are also well done. However, I believe you will only find them funny if you actually went to the gym at least one day in your life. Meaning, the jokes are funny because they are an accurate representation of reality. So, I guess if you never went to the gym you probably won’t understand why every guy sounds like he’s moaning when he is breathing while exercising. Guess what, almost every guy does that. Don’t ask me why though, but yeah, it’s hilarious to see in real life as well.

The same thing goes for the jokes regarding Hibiki being a “freshman” in the gym life. Let me tell you, on that, the show is completely relatable. From finding the bar too heavy (people normally put weights on top of that) to being sore in the next or just believing that doing squats is easy before trying it out.

Basically, everything that is about the gym life itself is well done and accurate. 

Besides that, I also enjoyed the voice acting, the opening and ending, as also the fanservice…  Seeing girls working out is not really my thing, but I know when t give praise when things are well done!

Dumbbell Nan Kilo Moteru? Overall First Impression

To be honest, this show could be good… The jokes are there, the accurate exercising tips are there, the fanservice is there. However, the premise they decided to go to get the ball rolling is just… Terrible. I’m sorry, but if you are going to say to the world that someone with 55kg is fat and that she is not going to get a boyfriend because of that, you will not have my approval.

You can argue that it’s cultural… Well, if it, it is still not correct. It is also cultural of us to have girls completely photoshopped in every type of media. In fact, this goes to the point that the ideal image body we have is not even real. What we are doing? Trying to change that cultural side of us. So, even if it’s cultural and my western mind cannot understand it… I just, can’t approve.

What about you? Have you watched the show? What do you think of it? Were you energized and just want to go to the gym, or, like me, you ended up a little salty? Tell me all in the comments!