Lindsay Lohan has a new BFF, and he might just be more interesting than the enigmatic actress herself. On Monday, gossip columns exploded with rumors that Lohan was dating Je-Yong Ha, a South Korean bodybuilder and professional arm wrestler known as the "Korean Hulk."
Lohan's manager told Bustle that the pair are "only friends," and based on his Instagram feed, Ha is a good friend to have. He's a jet-setting businessman who regularly dines on caviar and truffles, and splits his time between Seoul, Moscow, and Dubai. Men's Health chatted with Ha over Instagram DM about life, lifting, and his absolutely enormous dog. While a source close to Lohan also confirmed that the couple were not dating, Ha himself wouldn't give a yes or a no. When asked how they met and whether they were together, he replied: "I can't answer that question, sorry."
The Lifts
Ha told Men's Health that he started arm wrestling over 10 years ago. According to Vulture and this video, he's ranked ninth in the country. "I will be world champion on the open category soon," Ha told Men's Health. "I am sure." Arm wrestling made him train his forearms extensively, something he says a lot of people skip. (From his photos, it appears Ha is also a master of the outangle, the gym move that makes you look as big as possible in photos.)
Ha says he trains his arms once a week, biceps and triceps together. His triceps, he says, are his weak point, but his biceps are "huge" and "powerful."
"I usually train with heavy weight," Ha told Men's Health. "If you want to get huge arms (more than 20 inches), use the heavy weight dumbell and barbell. That really works!!!"
Ha particurly excels at the bench press: Vulture found a video of him winning a bench press competition by lifting over 440 pounds, and he told Men's Health his personal best is 270 kilograms, over 595 pounds. His squat is 320 kg (705 lbs), and his deadlift is 340kg (749lbs), which is pretty impressive for a guy who's 5'6" and 264 pounds.
The Diet
Amazingly, Ha claims he doesn't adhere to a specific diet. "I just eat a lot for being huge," Ha said. "Burgers, pizza, noodles, don't care. I just eat a lot. Any food includes protein, so I just eat a lot!!"
He says he loves to eat garlic, ginseng, abalone and oysters, "like from nature," because he claimed "it's good for testosterone" (oyster extract has high levels of zinc, which some studies have linked to an increase in testosterone, but the relationship is far from conclusive). On Instagram, his diet is even more outrageous. Truffles and caviar are daily staples. "Of course, caviar and truffles are also from nature," he said. "So I love them!"
(See also: how eating like a professional bodybuilder can make you fat.)
The Lifestyle
Ha's life in Moscow, Seoul and Dubai is wild. Weightlifting publications sometimes compare him to Dan Bilzerian, Instagram's king of macho-bro hedonism, but Ha's life seems a bit less testosterone-fueled and more just trying to live large and comfortably. His favorite car brand is Bugatti — Teslas may be faster, he said, but they're cheaper and less luxurious.
When he's not lifting, arm wrestling, or competing, he spends his time jetting around the world on lavish trips. The Vulture article notes that he likely met Lohan for the first time in Mykonos, a popular party destination in Greece for the rich and famous. (WhenMen's Healthasked him how he made his fortune, Ha was vague, saying he "does business related to gas, oil, and metal based in Russia and Dubai.")
Every part of Ha's brand is larger than life — including his dog. He owns a massive Caucasian Ovcharka, also known as a Russian Bear Dog, that he claims cost "more than 1 million euros," named Taeja. Purebred Ovcharka puppies usually sell for around $1500-2000, so that estimate might be a little bit of an exaggeration. Still, Taeja is an absolute monster. "He eats more protein than me," Ha said. "He eats 9 whole chickens every day!"
While his love life may be a mystery, his social media presence is definitely one for the record books.
