The Crystal Lodge Whistler has become one of our favourite shoulder season family destinations.  It has much to recommend it including pool, sauna and hot tub.  The hotel gym however leaves something to be desired.  There are worse gyms mind you.  It has several pieces of cardio equipment, dumbbells up to 45lbs and a small mat area with a couple benches.  We’ve improvised several decent workouts there. 

Realizing, however, that fitness facility is not their strong suit, the Crystal Lodge has partnered with a neighbouring gym offering guests free gym vouchers to workout at the Core which is only steps away from the hotel.  HeeHee and I last worked out at the Core in 2014 so it was a delight go come back to visit during our stay in Whistler a decade later.   

If you haven’t been before, the Core is an eclectic gym.  One third of it is a climbing gym featuring both bouldering and top rope.  This is not included in your hotel voucher but having done top rope at the Core in 2014, this time we enjoyed bouldering with the kids as a fun family activity.  Yes, we were the only folks over 50 there.  Perhaps the only ones over 40.  But isn’t that the amazing thing about being fit.  We can go out to play.  Even if we haven’t climbed in years.  We’re not experienced climbers but both HeeHee and I were able to get ourselves to the top of the easier routes. 

The remaining gym training space is broken up into two upstairs rooms and a large downstairs space that contains power cages and Olympic Lifting platforms on one side and dumbbells and body building machines on the other effectively separating the powerlifters from the bodybuilders.  Upstairs, one room is more dedicated to stretching and plyometrics with the other room having some functional fitness feel plus a few machines.  And yes, there is a cardio equipment strip overlooking the lower level.  The result is a very interesting culture that mixes bodybuilders with indoor climbers and powerlifters with outdoor sports enthusiasts plus a sprinkling of folks who just want to do cardio.  Certainly not your typical gym.

Between these four fitness rooms the Core boasts most everything you would find at Empower and more.  Apart from the obvious fitness machines, there were cool pieces of equipment such as the Rogue Rhino belt squat, the Rogue Nordic Curl platform and the Assault Air Runner. 

Essentially, the Core has pretty much everything you would need to complete a CrossFit workout.  The catch, not all of it will be in the same room or on the same level.  A bit of creativity was required but it was fun looking around to try to find the best spot and most appropriate equipment.  A couple good workouts were had.

A few downsides: the personal trainers did not demonstrate awareness of all the points of performance for basic lifts or an understanding of what constitutes an effective fitness program.  I felt badly for the personal training clients who were directed to perform seemingly random tasks without much correction or oversight.  A lot of the equipment is also old and mismatched.  A mix of plates in imperial and metric made loading challenging and the barbells were low quality, old and slippery with poor knurling and no chalk. Sometimes I take for granted the premium equipment we train with daily at Empower. 

Those few critiques notwithstanding, personally, I enjoy the Core and look forward to working out there again the next time I have the pleasure of a Whistler getaway.  If you’re in Whistler and looking to squeeze in a workout, I recommend checking them out:)

1) Empower Reset #48
1 min Belly Breathing
30/30 sec Head Nods/Rotations

5 mins:
20 Crosstouch Deadbugs
20 Windshield Wipers
20 Shoulder Bridges

5 mins:

20 Crosstouch Bird Dogs
10 Sit Throughs
10 Elevated Rolls

5 mins:
10 Full Body Rocks
10 Back Ext
10 Cossack Squats

2 Rounds:
1 min Bear Crawl
1 min Bar Hang
1 min Leopard Crawl
1 min Squat Hold
1 min Lizard Crawl
1 min Ring Support
1 min Monkey Crawl
1 min Tripod Hold

3 rounds
30 sec GHD Hold (partner spot)


2) 21-15-9 reps for time of:
Power snatches
Strict handstand push-ups

3) 3 rounds for time of:
35 GHD sit-ups
70 double-unders
400-meter run