Al Wathba residents with an island job: five questions first

Al Wathba is a district on the mainland, and the route box describes the drive from there to RPM, on Level 4 of AD HUB Sports Complex in Al Manhal, as a mainland commute. That framing decides a lot. Leaving home a second time in the evening to make the drive rarely lasts. If your job already brings you onto the island, though, the club can sit at the work end of the day, and a session costs you the training time and a later drive home instead of a separate round trip. For a general view of how the club's location plays against a working week, read what RPM's one club means for someone who works across the bridges.

On days off and at weekends, a gym in your own area will usually be the easier choice. This page is about the island days.

1. Is your workplace on the island, and are you there on at least two days in most weeks? If not, train in your own area and keep RPM for an occasional visit.
2. Can you leave work at a predictable time on those days? If not, test the other end of the shift: arrive early and train before you start, still on the island side.
3. Is there somewhere for a kit bag all week, such as the car boot or a desk drawer? If not, the plan hangs on remembering the bag every morning, which is where routines tend to slip.
4. Can the household manage on the evenings you get home later? If not, keep it to one evening and agree which one.
5. Would you keep going through the hot months and Ramadan, when working hours may change? If you doubt it, plan a lighter version for those weeks instead of stopping.

Yes to all five, and RPM fits your week at the work end. Three or four yeses mean you should try it before committing. Fewer than that, and a gym in your area is the more sensible choice for now. The guide on choosing a gym by your workplace covers the same decision from the office side.

The work end of the day has something home does not: the people you work with. A few habits from the office side keep the routine going.

• Put the session in your work calendar as a fixed appointment, so meetings get booked around it.
• Find a colleague who also lives off the island. Training on the same evening means one of you can drive, and neither of you skips as easily.
• Ask HR whether your organisation has, or would consider, an arrangement for staff. Corporate arrangements at RPM are tailored to each organisation and confirmed on enquiry.
• Women colleagues who prefer to train away from men can use the Ladies section, with its own equipment and the Pilates studio, while men use the Mixed section.

If you train before work, the keypad lockers and the grooming hub's vanity area, with hairdryers and products, let you get ready for the office at the club. Ask about showers and whether towels are provided before you plan a morning around them.

The mapped route from Al Wathba follows Al Ain Road and then Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Street (Airport Road) into AD HUB. Its figures start from one mapped point for the district, so on a work-end day they are not the leg you drive, because that leg starts at your office. Time the office-to-club drive at your leaving hour, then the drive home from Al Manhal. AD HUB has free on-site parking, and a lift takes you up to Level 4.

For a first look, book the free guided tour straight after a workday, so you test the real leg from your desk. The tour is a walk-through with the team, not a training session.