Three things that decide it for most men
Men rarely leave a gym over the paint or the reception desk. They leave because the kit for their goal is missing or always taken, because nobody helps them progress, or because the floor at their hour feels wrong. So judge every gym on three things: equipment for your goal, coaching that plans your training rather than counting reps, and the culture at the time you will train.
RPM's Mixed section is the shared floor where men train at the club. The checklist below works for any gym on your list.
A checklist by goal
| Your goal | Equipment to check | Coaching to look for | Ask about the culture |
|---|---|---|---|
| Building muscle | Plate-loaded and pin machines, cable stations, dumbbells in small jumps up to heavy pairs | A coach with physique experience who tracks volume week to week | Can I hold two stations for a superset at peak time? |
| Getting stronger | Racks with safeties, good bars, small change plates, a place to deadlift | A written progression and regular technique checks | May I drop deadlifts, and is chalk allowed? |
| Losing fat and getting fitter | Cardio machines open at your hour, open floor, a sled, heavy bags | Strength plus conditioning, with diet questions passed to a dietitian | Do classes take over the open floor at my hour? |
| Boxing for fitness | Heavy bags, pads, room to move | A coach who teaches stance and guard first | Is sparring offered, and if so, how is it supervised? |
| HYROX-style racing | A sled on a turf lane plus ropes and bikes, and ask about rowers | A conditioning coach who plans the weeks to race day | Can I use the sled lane outside classes? |
| Three short sessions in a busy week | Machines grouped together, lockers, a quiet hour | A coach who writes a 45-minute plan you can repeat | When does the floor fill after offices close? |
| Coming back after years off | Machines, cardio, light dumbbells | A patient start and a plan for the first month | Will someone show me how to set up the machines? |
If you are returning after an injury or with a medical condition, speak to your doctor before starting and tell your coach what they advised.
A mixed club or a gym that admits only men?
Some men prefer a gym that admits only men. They like the atmosphere, they dress as they please, and they never think about who else is on the floor. Others prefer a mixed club because it usually carries more besides the weights, such as recovery rooms and coaching across more disciplines, and because they can train at the same club as their wife or sister.
Neither is better for lifting by default. The equipment, the rules and the crowd at your hour decide that. If a floor with no women is a must for you, RPM is not the right fit, and it is better to know that before a tour than after it.
Etiquette on a mixed floor in the UAE
- Dress for a shared floor. A T-shirt and shorts of a modest length are the norm. What to wear to the gym in Abu Dhabi covers the detail.
- Never film or photograph other people. If you record your own sets, keep others out of the frame. The guide to filming in UAE gyms explains why it matters here.
- Offer to share a station between sets at busy times, and put plates back on the rack.
- Keep advice to yourself unless someone asks for it, and give women training around you the same space you would want.
- Keep calls off the floor and music in your headphones.
Fitting training around the Abu Dhabi week
Most men train before work, after offices close or at the weekend, and the hours after work tend to be the busiest in many gyms. If that is your only slot, plan sessions that do not depend on one popular machine. Friday changes the picture, with Friday prayers in the middle of the day and many gyms opening for shorter hours. In Ramadan, many men train late in the evening after iftar and cut sessions shorter. In the summer months, an early or late session spares you the worst of the heat on the way in.
If you are a serious lifter with a fixed programme, what a serious lifter should look for goes deeper on racks and bars, then the house rules.
What RPM offers men, and what it does not
RPM is one club on Level 4 of AD HUB Sports Complex in Al Manhal, with free on-site parking. Men train in the Mixed section, which covers strength, cardio, functional training and fitness boxing. In the club's floor photos you can pick out a leg press and a pulldown among the plate-loaded machines, along with cable towers, benches and dumbbells, and a squat rack loaded with colour bumper plates. Conditioning happens in the functional area, where a sled runs on a turf lane and battle ropes and kettlebells sit by the heavy bags. That is where HYROX-style training takes place. RPM is independent, not an official HYROX partner or venue.
For men, the Mixed-section roster lists Issam Almasaalmeh for personal training and Amer Khalil for bodybuilding and strength, with Hamza Taher for kickboxing, Awab Elsheikh for physique work and fitness classes, and Taha Ragab for general fitness. Ask any of them about his background directly. The club also has a recovery suite, so ask which tiers include it.
- Men cannot use the Ladies section or the Pilates studio inside it.
- There is no area at RPM set aside for men alone. The Mixed section is shared with women.
- Memberships come in three tiers, Floor, Engine and Atelier, and prices are confirmed on enquiry.
- The free guided tour is a walk-through of the club, not a workout. Book it at the hour you would train.
| Days | Opening hours |
|---|---|
| Saturday to Thursday | 06:00–23:00 |
| Friday | 09:00–22:00 |
Hours can change, for example during Ramadan. Confirm with the team before a late or early visit.
Questions, answered.
Is there anything at RPM that men cannot use?
Yes. The Ladies section and the Pilates studio inside it are for women only. For mobility work, ask a Mixed-section coach what can be done on the main floor.
Will women be training on the same floor?
Yes. The Mixed section is shared by men and women. Women at RPM can also use the separate Ladies section.
Is a gym for men alone better for serious lifting?
Not in itself. The racks and plates decide that, along with the house rules, wherever you train.
How do I pick a coach at RPM?
Tell the team your goal and the hours you train, and ask which Mixed-section coach fits. The coaches page lists each coach's role.