Eaden Project Fitness — EP to the people who train there — is a coach-led strength and conditioning gym in Christchurch's central city, built in 2014 by founder and head coach Chris Eaden after he completed his degree in Sport and Recreation at Lincoln University. What began as a passion project has grown into one of Christchurch's most loyal fitness communities, with a 5.0 Google rating across 87 reviews and members from the very first year still training on the floor today.
The gym's promise is simple: Look Better. Perform Better. EP is built for people who already train — or want to start properly — and want more than random circuits or commercial-gym guesswork. Every week follows a structured split, every session is coached rather than merely supervised, and every member is scaled to the right level. The culture is deliberately high standard, low ego: you'll be noticed, coached and challenged, but never made to feel like you have to prove yourself on day one.
Beyond adult training, EP runs Jr.EP for ages 7–15, one-on-one personal training, and a seven-day free trial so new people can try every class before committing. There's even a gym dog, Beauden, who greets people at the door. It's a gym that takes training seriously and itself lightly.
Eaden Project Fitness — EP to its members — has been part of Christchurch's fitness fabric since 2014, when founder Chris Eaden took a degree in Sport and Recreation from Lincoln University and a background in strength and conditioning, and built something more deliberate than the average gym. Operating from 205a Wordsworth Street in the central city, EP has grown into one of Christchurch's most loved training communities, a claim backed by a 5.0 Google rating from 87 reviews and members who joined in the first year and never left.
The gym's tagline says a lot about its approach: Look Better. Perform Better. EP is unapologetically aimed at people who already train — or want to start properly — and it pairs a high standard with a low ego. Nobody is thrown in the deep end, and nobody drifts through a week of random training.
What sets EP apart is structure. The week follows a deliberate split: Monday, Wednesday and Friday are flagship EP Train days, delivering high-impact functional strength and conditioning at 6:00am, 5:30pm and 6:30pm, plus a 9:00am session. Tuesday and Thursday split into EP Strong and EP Engine, so strength, muscle and aerobic capacity get their own dedicated, low-impact sessions rather than competing for space in one exhausting workout.
Underneath the weekly rhythm sit structured training cycles. As the coaches put it: every week has a purpose, every session has a reason, every member is coached. Progression is measured — stronger this block than last, fitter this year than last — and every session is led, not just supervised. There are no prerequisites to joining: no base fitness, no experience, no right body type.
EP Train is the flagship: functional training that builds strength, conditioning and a body that performs. EP Strong is low-impact strength and aesthetics — muscle, positions and confidence without unnecessary impact. EP Engine is conditioning with a plan, using machines, pacing and repeatability to build real aerobic capacity. For time-poor members, EP Lunch Train condenses the EP Train stimulus into 30 minutes at 12:35pm.
Beyond classes, Chris offers one-on-one personal training for injury rehab, performance, body recomposition and anyone who needs problem-solving coaching rather than a template. The EP 360 Coaching option combines full membership with a weekly 1-on-1, designed to bridge people back into class training with confidence. Members on the EP Complete plan also get open gym access.
The gym's youth arm, Jr.EP, runs Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4:45pm for ages 7–15, covering fundamental movement, strength, aerobic fitness, speed, power and — perhaps most importantly — confidence.
The culture at EP is the product. Members bring their partners, their kids, their friends. Coaches know your goals, and people know each other's names. You'll be greeted at the door by Beauden, the gym dog and self-appointed head of welcoming. For those who like to test themselves, members have taken on Hyrox events, with the results to prove the training transfers.
Getting started is deliberately unthreatening: reach out, have a quick chat with Chris or a coach about your goals, come in and be introduced to the crew, then train free for seven days. No joining fees, no automated sales funnels, no hard sell — just structured coaching in a room full of people who show up.
EP is open Monday to Thursday from 6:00am to 9:00pm, Friday from 6:00am to 6:30pm and Saturday from 9:00am to 10:30am. Enquiries go to [email protected] or +64 27 312 4049.