Start with the lifts on your plan
A women-only gym can be a good place to lift or a cardio room with a corner of light dumbbells. The way to tell is to hold it up against your own plan. Write down the lifts you do each week, the heaviest weights you use and the hour you train, and take that list with you.
RPM's Ladies section page describes its women-only section in Al Manhal. For the wider decision about privacy, classes and the trip home at night, see what women should look for in a gym. This page stays on the weights.
Equipment to find inside the women-only space
| Kit | Why a lifter needs it | Check on the visit |
|---|---|---|
| A rack with safeties | Squats and heavy presses need somewhere to set the bar down and catch a missed rep | Is the rack in the women-only area itself, or only on the mixed floor? |
| Barbells | A lighter bar makes the lifts easier to learn, and a standard bar takes you further | Which bars are kept in the women-only area? |
| Plates | Small plates let you add load slowly once progress gets harder | What is the smallest plate, and are there enough for two women lifting at once? |
| Dumbbells | A rack that stops at moderate weights can cap steady progress on presses and rows | What is the heaviest pair kept in the section? |
| Cables and attachments | Rows, pulldowns and glute work rely on a cable station with the right handles and an ankle strap | Which attachments are there, and is there more than one station? |
| A bench with room around it | Hip thrusts and presses need a stable bench and clear floor space | Can you set up a hip thrust without blocking a walkway? |
| Leg machines | A leg press or hamstring machine lets you work your legs hard without a spotter | Which leg machines are in the section, and which are only on the mixed floor? |
Count stations at the hour you train. An equipment list cannot tell you how many women are waiting for the one rack.
When one rack serves the whole section
Women-only sections inside mixed clubs are often smaller than the main floor, so a single rack or cable station can become a queue at busy times. Visit at your hour on your heaviest day and watch how long people hold the rack, whether a class takes over part of the floor, and whether the dumbbells you need are where they should be.
Abu Dhabi routines shape those busy hours. The mid-morning after the school run, the hours after work and, in Ramadan, the time after iftar can all fill a women-only space. Ask staff when the section is quietest, then go and see for yourself.
Female coaches who coach lifting
A female coach matters to many women training in a women-only space, but ask what the coach actually does with a lifter. Can she teach you to squat and deadlift from scratch, write a plan that adds load over the weeks and keep a record of your progress? Will she review your technique on the days you train alone?
At RPM, female coaches on the roster work in the Ladies section. They include Coach Maria (strength and conditioning), Giana Suleiman Daqnoush (Pilates and aerobic) and Imen Hasnaoui (combat and self-defence). For one-to-one lifting, ask about Coach Maria or read about female personal training, and ask each coach about her background directly.
Is the mixed floor part of your plan?
Some women lift entirely in the women-only space. Others train there most days and go to the mixed floor for a heavier dumbbell, a second rack or a machine the section lacks. Decide which you are before you choose, because it changes the membership you need.
- Ask which sections each tier covers, and get the answer in writing.
- Ask to see the route between the two areas, and whether the women-only space can be seen from the mixed floor.
- Compare the equipment in each area against your plan. If everything you need is in the women-only space, you may not need mixed access at all.
At RPM, women can train in the Ladies section and also in the Mixed section if their tier covers it, while men train in the Mixed section. For programming and scheduling a strength plan, see choosing a gym for strength training.
Checking RPM's Ladies section as a lifter
The Ladies section at RPM has its own strength and cardio equipment, and the Pilates studio sits inside it. RPM does not publish a full equipment list for the section, so use the table above as your checklist and ask these on the visit.
- Which racks, barbells and plates are in the Ladies section itself?
- What is the heaviest pair of dumbbells there?
- Which cable attachments and leg machines can I use without leaving the section?
- When is the section busiest, and do any classes run on its floor?
- Which tier covers the Ladies section, and does it include the Mixed floor?
Book a free guided tour at your usual training hour and ask to see the section's strength equipment in use. If you would like a friend or relative with you, ask the team when you book.
Questions, answered.
Do women-only sections usually have less strength equipment?
Often, because they tend to be smaller than the main floor, though not always. Compare the section with your own plan rather than with the mixed floor, and count stations at your hour.
What if the rack is always taken at my hour?
Ask whether there is a quieter time you could use, plan dumbbell or machine swaps for busy days, or check whether your membership covers a mixed floor with more racks.
Can a female coach teach me to lift from scratch?
Many can. Ask how she would structure your first weeks, which lifts she would teach first and how she records progress. At RPM, ask which female coaches in the Ladies section take one-to-one strength sessions.
Is it worth paying for mixed-floor access too?
Only if your plan needs equipment the women-only space lacks, or you want somewhere to train when it is busy. Ask what difference it makes to the price before deciding.
Can I lift heavy in a women-only section?
That depends on the section's racks and bars and on its rules, not on it being women-only. Ask about the rack, the heaviest dumbbells and whether you may drop weights.