KORE – Fitness in their Genes

Five Saudi women, one goal, to build a health boutique that will inspire ladies in Riyadh to be fitter, stronger and better.

Sara Almodaimigh, Reem Alkhayyal, Noura Almodaimigh, Riham Alawaji and Aljohara Almodaimigh were having lunch one sunny Riyadh afternoon when the idea to create a fitness boutique came about. The reason to their impromptu rhyme? Each of them gets a kick out of a good workout session.

“We were tired and bored of the traditional gym, we all had the same sentiments, we wanted to jumpstart a community of people looking at fitness as a lifestyle rather than a luxury.”

It was fascinating to discover that as a family business, each of the founding members are actively pitching in their expertise to make their endeavor what it is today. Alkhayyal, described by the group as the Supermom, is detail-oriented and takes care of the Kids Programs. When it comes to giving credit to how beautiful their space is, praise goes to Alawaji, the architect and designer. She is currently working on the second address of Kore.

The three sisters, Sara, Noura and Aljohara also have their sleeves rolled up. Sara is the business go-to boss, while Aljohara takes care of all things related to marketing and also a Barre instructor. Noura has taken charge of the center’s latest initiative—Kore Academy (affiliated by Active IQ and Faster Academy in the UK), aimed at creating a league of highly qualified fitness trainers needed in the city.

Kore is the first certified CrossFit box for women in Riyadh, an achievement the team attributes to Jill Calvert, their fitness manager. It’s a high intensity, high functional movement training program that has taken the fitness world by storm. You’ll even find CrossFit competitions on cable these days. It has been called the Sport of fitness.

While this may scare off some people but as Aljohara said, “There’s a misperception that CrossFit is very challenging and muscular, however, it’s not. It is constantly varied and workouts are constantly changing and can be altered to your fitness goals and and level. A Crossfit WOD (Workout of the Day) could range from a strength, endurance to purely cardio.”

For those who are more on the holistic side of things, Kore is also the first fitness center in Riyadh to introduce Barre classes – a ballet inspired low impact fusion class that includes components of Pilates, yoga and orthopedic exercises.

Kore stands out for being that health club for individuals who want to be part of a intimate and focused fitness community. It envelopes you with so much energy and positivity – which is exactly what the women had in mind while they were having lunch one day, not long ago, in the heart of Riyadh.