Indonesia - CK Fitness Centre and Cafe, Bukattinggi, Sumatra

Location: CK Fitness Centre and Cafe, Bukattinggi, Sumatra, Indonesia 

Review: Bukattinggi is a wonderful, crazy and seriously intense place to visit as a western tourist. It is clear from the warm reception that we got from everyone we met, that they do not get many westerners in this city. A lot of the children, teenagers and even adults that we saw stopped us to talk to us and practice their English or just ask for photos with us.

Having searched, “gym in Bukattinggi,” google returned some somewhat confusing results for place called “CK Fitness Centre and Cafe.” Google promised me that this place was both a gym and a restaurant but I couldn't find much other information on it. Researching anything in Indonesia on the internet is a bit hit or miss, so I decided to take my chances and just turn up. 

Having walked there from my hotel, CK Fitness Centre and Cafe, did indeed turn out to be both a gym and a restaurant as promised. 

The gym itself consisted of a small cardio room, with a few adjourning rooms with weights. The layout of the gym suggests to me that it used to be a house which has now been converted into a gym.

The gym had a day pass for 40,000 rps (approx £2) and also sold weekly or monthly passes. The gym also sells water and other drinks as well as weight gainer by the bag, in 250g, 500g or 1kg bags and tubs of amino acids and creatine. I bought 250g of weight gainer for 70,000 rps, (approx £4). The gym also also sells gym gear, such as Underarmour or myprotein, lifting belts, amino acids etc. However, it doesn't sell shakers, so you will need to bring one.  

The equipment in the gym is kind of old but functional, and includes:

• Cables 
• Bench 
• Incline bench Barbell 
• Dumbbells up to 20kg 
• Cardio
• Lat pull-down 
• Seated row 
• Preacher curl 
• Smith machine 
• Leg extension 
• Leg press 
• Leg curl 
• Dumb bells (adjustable)
• Pull up / dips bar 

The gym was busy with Indonesians of all levels of ability, including two guys who looked like pro-bodybuilders. The Indonesian women training in the gym had full length training clothing, with their hair covered in accordance with muslim culture of the region. Whilst I did get some strange looks, everyone was friendly and I was made to feel welcome. The free weights in the gym are somewhat dusty, so don’t make the mistake I made and wear white. 

I trained with two absolute monsters when I was there. These guys were the biggest Indonesians I met by a long way. They even stopped to take a photo with me. (See below) 

Who is this for? The gym was full of friendly locals and guys and girls. Whilst I did get some strange looks, I would have no reservations about training there again. I would think that lone female travellers would likely to a lot of attention here, but I wouldn't go as far as recommending that they avoid this place. 

Tip: My advice would be that if you are female and you want to train here, you should be respectful of the local culture. Women should have their shoulders and legs covered whilst training. I would advise that you avoid body tight lycra or compression wear . A baggy T-shirt and tracksuit are likely to be suitable. Whilst any westerner training here is likely to attract some attention, most Indonesians are very friendly and actually very shy once you engage them in conversation.