Winter in Abu Dhabi: training outside, lifting inside

From May to September most people in Abu Dhabi move their cardio indoors, and the summer running guide covers that half of the year. When the weather turns, the promenades, parks, cycle paths and beaches fill again. The risk is swinging too far: dropping the gym for months of runs and rides, then starting strength work from scratch next summer.

WHO's 2020 guidelines set adults two targets: a weekly total of aerobic activity, at least 150 moderate or 75 vigorous minutes, and muscle-strengthening work for the major muscle groups on at least two days. Outdoor sessions meet the first target easily in winter. The second still needs weights you can add to in small steps, which is the job of an indoor floor such as RPM Gym in Al Manhal.

Sand earns its place. A 2014 review found that sand gives a higher energy cost and lower impact than grass at the same exercise, and that it may limit muscle soreness after hard training. The review focused on team sports and asked for more research, so read it as a reason to try a weekly beach session, not a rule. If you are weighing a coached group against a gym, an indoor gym or an outdoor bootcamp compares the two.

People worry that running or cycling will cancel out their lifting. A 2022 meta-analysis of 43 studies compared strength training alone with the same strength training plus aerobic work. The combined programmes did not compromise muscle growth or maximal strength. Explosive strength gained less, and that effect was clearer when both were done in the same session than when the sessions were at least three hours apart. Running and cycling did not differ.

• Do strength and endurance on separate days where you can, or at least three hours apart.
• If they must share a session, do the one you care about more first.
• Keep heavy leg work away from the day before your longest run or ride.
• Count your outdoor minutes, so you can see when the week is already full.

Cooler does not mean predictable. The National Center of Meteorology's website carries a weather forecast, a warnings map and a downloadable weather bulletin, so check them before a long ride or run, and move the session indoors when a warning covers your area.

• Evenings get dark early, so wear something bright and use lights on a bike.
• Carry water on long sessions, even when it feels mild.
• On dusty or hazy days, take the session to the treadmill or bike indoors.
• As spring warms up, move the long sessions earlier, then indoors.

If you have a heart or lung condition, or asthma, ask your doctor how weather and air quality should change your outdoor plans.

A summer of treadmill running does not carry straight to the road. Effort and pace feel different on the ground, which machine or outdoor cardio explains from two reviews. Give yourself two or three weeks of shorter outdoor runs before the long ones, keep one treadmill session if you like structure, and judge the early runs by effort, not by your summer pace.

RPM is an indoor club and runs no outdoor sessions. It sits on Level 4 of AD HUB Sports Complex in Al Manhal, with free on-site parking at AD HUB and a lift to Level 4. The training floor covers the two strength days with plate-loaded machines, benches, dumbbells, a squat rack and cable towers. Kettlebells and a sled on a turf lane sit in the functional area, and the cardio row has treadmills and bikes for days when the weather says no.

Women can also use the women-only Ladies section, depending on the tier, and men train in the Mixed section. Engine adds coached programming, so a coach can write the gym days around your outdoor plan. Book a free guided tour at the hour you would lift.