Pump Up the Healthy Love Episode 5: Mi-ran Battles Carbs and Cameras

Pump Up the Healthy Love Episode 5 opens with a dramatic moment as a small boy enters the gym and calls out to Hyeon-joong as “Daddy.” The situation quickly clarifies when his mother, Hye-bin, rushes in, exhausted and nearly collapsing. Hyeon-joong makes her rest and tells her she urgently needs to exercise. Since she has no one to care for her son Ji-ho, he agrees to babysit while she trains.

At the office, Ye-jin returns from her Hawaiian honeymoon with gifts—sweets for most, and a tiny Hawaiian doll for Mi-ran. Soon after, Joon-bae informs Mi-ran that the PR team has selected her to present the new Hawaii travel package on the Live Market show, due to her expertise. Ye-jin tries to snatch the opportunity but Joon-bae stands by Mi-ran. Later, Ye-jin slyly warns Mi-ran that the TV camera adds weight, planting seeds of doubt.

Determined to look good on-screen, Mi-ran decides to quit eating flour. She tells Hyeon-joong about it, and he doubts she can last. They strike a deal—if she succeeds, he must eat tteokbokki; if she fails, she’ll have to dance on TV. Hye-bin drops Ji-ho off again, and Hyeon-joong juggles babysitting while training her. Though he encourages her to return regularly, he finds childcare draining.

Mi-ran dramatically bids farewell to her flour-filled past, warning her sister Ji-ran and Kang Dan not to bring any into their home. At work, she argues with the lone piece of bread in her salad. Meanwhile, Hyeon-joong tries passing Ji-ho to Alex, but the boy cries uncontrollably. Roy arrives to mock Hyeon-joong, and the stress finally causes him to collapse from exhaustion.

Mi-ran shows up at the gym, visibly irritated by her carb-free struggle. In the locker room, she’s tempted by Korean pancakes left by three older gym members. She vents to Hyeon-joong, accusing him of being cranky due to babysitting. He fires back, blaming her mood on her no-flour diet. At home, things get worse when she finds Ji-ran and Kang Dan eating jjajangmyeon and receives a blunt text from Hyeon-joong—“it’s your fault.”

That night, Hyeon-joong dreams of Director Dong chastising him for not being mentally strong enough to manage Ji-ho or the gym. In the morning, he fakes illness to skip training Hye-bin.

Mi-ran meets the Live Market host over breakfast, only to be distracted by her bagel. The temptation throws her off. Later, Hyeon-joong tries to escape his stress by visiting an outdoor gym but ends up bumping into Hye-bin and Ji-ho. He hides in a photo booth occupied by Ji-ran and Kang Dan, who promptly kick him out and charge him for the photo. Hye-bin ends up paying for him and gives him porridge, confessing that she won’t return to the gym.

Later, Rosa tells Hyeon-joong she spotted Hye-bin and Ji-ho at the store. He rushes over and finds Hye-bin overwhelmed. Taking Ji-ho in his arms, he calms the boy down with lunges, encouraging Hye-bin to come back. At the gym, she confesses how much she valued having time to herself. Hyeon-joong reassures her, calling Ji-ho a particularly energetic child. Inspired, the gym opens a kid-friendly fitness area.

The day before the Live Market show, Ye-jin hands out bagels at the office—except to Mi-ran. Starving, Mi-ran hallucinates Joon-bae offering her his bagel. She accepts it, but outside, a thief snatches it from her hand. She chases the thief, and Hyeon-joong helps catch him. When he realizes she ran for a bagel, not money, he laughs. Mi-ran cries about her struggle with carbs, but Hyeon-joong tells her to eat it—she’s earned it.

The next day, Mi-ran nails her appearance on Live Market. Both Hyeon-joong and Joon-seok watch, clearly impressed. Hyeon-joong finally admits he’s exhausted and takes time to rest.

That night, Mi-ran is thrilled about her successful TV debut—until she receives a text from Joon-seok. However, he deletes it before she can read it.

Pump Up the Healthy Love Episode 5 ends with an epilogue revealing the truth behind Hyeon-joong’s earlier text. He had actually intended to apologize for snapping at Mi-ran but fell asleep midway through typing it. What she received was an incomplete and misunderstood message.