Meet Your Newest Sweat Trainer, Ruba Ali

Picture this. You’re a globally renowned personal trainer. You’ve built an epic career spanning two continents. You’re strong, successful and at the top of your game. But something’s missing. You’re in survival mode and it just doesn’t feel like you’re truly thriving. So what do you do when your online life doesn’t reflect how you’re really feeling? And what does it take to step into your truth, vulnerability and lead a more authentic life? 

For our newest Sweat trainer Ruba Ali, hitting pause on her career and the routine that caused her to burn out was exactly what she needed. To recharge. To feel empowered and energised. And to step into the most authentic version of herself so that she could truly Thrive. 

She’s writing the next chapter of her story with Sweat. We can’t wait for you to get to know Ruba and bring her brand-new programs to life in 2025.

The start of an epic journey 

Ruba was raised in the United States by her mother alongside her four older siblings and twin sister. Growing up in New Jersey, she first turned to fitness in her early teens as a way to feel physically strong and mentally tough in the face of a challenging childhood which saw her navigating experiences of bullying. 

“I went to Arabic school up until fourth grade and then I went to my first public school,” Ruba shared. “I didn’t speak English so that was a big challenge for me. I used to get picked on all the time for how I looked and not being able to speak the language, but I feel that really helped me toughen up and was one of the reasons I went to the gym at 14.” 

After her love of movement was ignited in the gym, Ruba went on to gain her personal training certifications at 17 before starting her own fitness studio in college and later moving to Miami to start her own brand. As she slowly grew her profile in the United States and online, Ruba began collaborating with global brands and reaching a much larger audience, with career opportunities ultimately taking her to Dubai in 2020. 

While she didn’t originally plan on moving, she says Dubai is a city where she feels truly at home, in touch with her faith and cultural heritage and connected to her inner self. 

Her fitness philosophy 

Since she first stepped into that gym in New Jersey, fitness has been a constant in Ruba’s life even as her philosophy has evolved.  

“Whenever I think of fitness, it’s my space to work on my emotions, my mindset, my physical strength - that hasn’t changed,” she says.” I think something that has changed is definitely my fitness philosophy, which is now about feeling good, not just looking good.”

Throughout her career, Ruba has tried everything from heavy weight lifting to intense workouts, something that she now knows wasn’t serving her. 

“For those that have known me from before, I used to share these really intense, crazy workouts, and I really was training like that,” she says, saying that during that time fitness wasn’t just part of her life, but her whole life. “I rarely rested and that took a toll on my health. Sometimes life forces you to rest the hard way.” 

“I looked the part to so many people, and so many people were inspired. But I felt inauthentic. I think people thought I was really healthy but I was living such an intense, unsustainable lifestyle to live up to that image and it was really affecting my health.”

Alongside completely reimagining what her fitness routine should look like, she now includes multiple rest days in her week, focuses on mindfulness and prioritises time spent in nature. Her routine today is all about nourishing her mind, body and soul. 

“I began doing things that I enjoyed, not even following a program, just doing the movements that made me feel challenged while still enjoying it, and it brought me back to functional training,” says Ruba, with a powerful reminder for the Sweat Community: “You don’t need to follow a program that you don’t enjoy.”

Now, she prioritises consistency over intensity with a focus on her emotional wellbeing over the aesthetic goals she used to chase. Her advice? 

“Try to enjoy the journey now, not when you hit the goal or lose the weight or build the muscle. Your journey is going to constantly evolve. Why wait to be happy? Why wait to feel excited? Embrace where you are and the journey you’re on and don’t chase a destination. Chase the journey. It’s going to take you in different directions with ups and downs, but it’s your journey and you have to own it.”

The next chapter: it’s time to Thrive

As she embraces her new fitness and wellbeing philosophy, showing up authentically and connecting with her faith and spirituality drives Ruba forward. Her desire to share her true self with her community and ensure her digital content aligns with her belief system ultimately drove her to wipe all of her content from social media.

“I used to have this huge stimulus from people on social media, and then I totally removed it,” she said, going on to share that it was during Ramadan that she made the decision to delete her Instagram posts.

“For 30 days I wasn’t focused on my image, my title, my career, my status,” she said. “I was really able to understand who I was and my purpose and the Ruba that I wanted to show the world.” 

Today, taking the time to focus on her faith, relationships, wellbeing and personal growth keeps her grounded and constantly moving forward in every aspect of her life.

“I’ve been so focused on my career for so long that I overlooked my emotional and mental wellbeing, so this past year I have been studying more, spending time with family, researching and trying to understand a way to incorporate the mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical components of wellbeing with my community.” 

“The next chapter for me is taking everything I applied in those breaks and sharing it with women who have faced similar things and who feel like they might feel lost or that all the doors are hitting them in the face and they need a mentor, a voice or something to get them going again. If I can use my experience, tools and resources to share with women to regain their power and keep going, that is definitely on my to-do list for my next chapter.”

Ruba says that when she was following her old routine, she was existing in survival mode. Her new Sweat program is all about fitness that fits into your life. Because she doesn’t just want you to survive, she wants you to Thrive. So, what’s the difference? 

“When you’re in survival mode you’re feeling drained, unenergised, disconnected, you’re not passionate, you’re negative and down. When you’re in Thrive mode you feel energised, you feel passionate, you feel grounded, you feel very empowered. You have this renewed energy to move in a direction. You have clarity, you have focus. That’s what it feels like to Thrive.” 

Feel-good fitness starts here 

Ruba’s first Sweat program, Thrive, will be released on 6 January 2025. This 6-week program takes Ruba’s ultimate recipe for feel-good fitness to help you embrace a holistic, functional strength training program designed to help you Thrive. Alongside three weekly workouts, Ruba encourages 1-2 walks in nature and any personal wellbeing rituals that recharge and elevate your energy.

Then, in February, her Ramadan Reset program will land in the Sweat app. Ruba knows just how important it is to adjust your approach to fitness during Ramadan. This program isn’t about hitting PBs or setting unrealistic goals, but nourishing your mind, body and soul.