Local
- Long Island Health Collaborative
- NCOA: Falls Free Long Island
VIRTUAL Tai Chi for Arthritis and Falls Prevention
There are 3 Levels of the program offered, each level is a 10-week workshop.
Participants will learn balance skills, proper body alignment, and coordinated tai chi movements.
Workshops are free and open to anyone, but you must register in advance.
Fall registration is OPEN for workshops October 13 - December 18, 2026
TCA Level One:
Mondays and Thursdays, 3-4 pm — register here
Wednesdays and Fridays, 10-11 am — register here
TCA Level Two:
Mondays and Thursdays, 1:30-2:30 pm — register here
Tuesdays and Fridays, 11 am-12 pm — register here
Full Form Practice/Review
Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays, 3-3:30 pm — register here
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9-10 am — register here
To be added to the contact list for future workshops, please join the FallsFree Long Island Contact List
Participants will practice exercises to increase strength and balance, discuss topics to improve home safety, and speak with guest experts about how to reduce fall risks.
Upcoming Workshops:
Tuesdays, November 3 - December 15, 2026, 1-3 pm — register here or email FallsFree@StonyBrookMedicine.edu
Participants will learn to view falls as controllable, set goals for increasing activity, make changes to reduce fall risks at home, and exercise to increase strength and balance.
Workshops are free and open to anyone, but you must register in advance.
Upcoming Workshops:
October 7 - November 4; Wednesdays and Fridays, 12:30 - 2:30 pm
October 26 - November 23; Mondays and Wednesdays, 10:30 am - 12:30 pm
Workshops are being hosted by the YMCA. To register, please visit the link here.
- YMCA
- YMCA branches are equipped for health and fitness activities, childcare and education, swimming, and water fitness, and more. The Y does not just strengthen bodies, it also strengthens community through programs that focus on youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility.
- Suffolk Y Jewish community center, Commack
- Provides a lot of fitness activities including gyms, classes for adults and elderly, as well as water aerobics
- Suffolk County Fitness Nutrition Resource
- A compilation of fitness and nutrition resources in Suffolk County, including Parks with Hiking Trails, Guided Trail outings offered, Town Parks and Recreation Departments, YMCA locations, Healthy Lifestyle phone apps, and online resources for nutrition and physical activity.
- Gyms - silver sneakers program
- Available for no cost for adults 65+ through Medicare plans, the Silver Sneakers program provides in-person classes designed for seniors as well as live online classes and workshops and on-demand video workouts.
- Senior centers Brookhaven Town
- A list of locations of senior citizen clubs for the Town of Brookhaven (must be a taxpaying resident of the town to join). Many offer exercise, yoga, and Tai Chi classes.
- Libraries offer yoga, tai chi and other fall prevention and exercise classes
- Call your local library or check their website!
- Suffolk County hiking and biking
- Long Island trails and hiking paths from beaches to woodlands, this website provides several of the breath-taking state parks in Suffolk County designed specifically for hiking and off-road biking. If you do not have access to a bike, there are locations to find a rental.
- Avalon Nature Preserve
- A 216-acre preserve in Stony Brook with scenic trails, woodlands, meadows, and waterfront views. The preserve offers year-round opportunities for walking, hiking, and connecting with nature, supporting both physical activity and mindfulness in a natural setting.
- Mall Walkers Club
- Enjoy a morning of exercise, complimentary snack, blood pressure screening and an informative health lecture by a Stony Brook Medicine expert. Walking is a low-impact, low-risk and easy aerobic exercise that conditions your heart and lungs while engaging your whole body. And Stony Brook Medicine's Mall Walkers Club at the Smith Haven Mall offers the perfect weatherproof environment for walking — with a safe climate-controlled temperature, good lighting, a clean flat surface to walk on, convenient restrooms and of course, lots of great stores to window shop.
- Use mall entrance by the food court.
- One Wednesday a month at 10 am. Presentations begin at 10:30 am.
- For more information: Community Relations, (631) 632-6275.
- Rock Steady Boxing
- Commack for patients with Parkinson’s, locations available on LI
- Enter your ZIP code to find a location near you at this link
- Up ENDing Parkinson’s Rock Climbing Program @ Island Rock (Plainview)
- Island Rock Climbing Gym has partnered with Up ENDing Parkinson’s, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating climbing programs for people living with Parkinson’s disease. This program provides a safe, supportive, and empowering environment for individuals with Parkinson’s, their caregivers, and loved ones to experience the physical and social benefits of climbing.
- When: First Tuesday of every month, 10:00–11:30 AM
- Where: Island Rock Climbing Gym, 60 Skyline Drive, Plainview, NY 11803
- Cost: $14 per participant (grants available to reduce cost)
- Includes: Harnesses, climbing shoes, and instruction for all levels—no experience required
- Register: www.islandrock.com
- Research has shown that climbing can improve strength, posture, balance, and well-being in people with Parkinson’s disease.
- Learn more at Up ENDing Parkinson’s
- Island Rock Climbing Gym has partnered with Up ENDing Parkinson’s, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating climbing programs for people living with Parkinson’s disease. This program provides a safe, supportive, and empowering environment for individuals with Parkinson’s, their caregivers, and loved ones to experience the physical and social benefits of climbing.
- CLIMB: Concerned Long Island Mountain Bicyclists
- Water Aerobics/Aqua Fit Classes
- Water aerobics are very useful for seniors with arthritis as an exercise. Check the following links for classes near you, but inquire at your local gyms as well.
- YMCA water aerobics
- Gold's Gym
- LA Fitness Aqua Fit Class
- Peggy Kraus Coaching
- A plant-based exercise physiologist and diabetes educator offering remote coaching for sustainable lifestyle change through movement and nutrition.
- Creator of the "Diabetes Rescue" 12-week program, which emphasizes short post-meal walks, strength training, and bursts of daily activity to improve blood sugar and metabolic health.
- JP Verdisco Exercise Health & Fitness
- Offers science-based personal training and rehabilitation services at two Long Island locations: Selden and Garden City, NY.
- Led by exercise physiologist James Verdisco, the facility specializes in clinical exercise programs tailored for general fitness, injury recovery, and athletic performance.
- Services include physiological personal training, rehabilitation, athlete training, fitness evaluations, and home-care training sessions.
- Strength Class in Manhasset, NY
- Strength Class is a fitness company founded by physical therapists, offering small-group strength training with a highly educated, therapeutic approach to building muscle.
- Their programs prioritize safe, biomechanically sound movement patterns that enhance strength while protecting vulnerable areas of the body.
- Classes are designed for everyone! Level 1 classes require no prior experience. Level 2 classes are more advanced.
Resources for Cancer Patients
- Strength For Life
- Strength For Life offers free exercise classes for individuals with any type of cancer, during or after treatment. Classes are led by certified cancer exercise instructors and are adapted to each participant's fitness level, treatment status, and treatment-related side effects. Classes are offered at several locations across Long Island, including Stony Brook Cancer Center.
- Livestrong at the YMCA
- LIVESTRONG at the YMCA is a cancer survivorship exercise program designed to help adults living with or beyond cancer improve their strength, endurance, flexibility, and overall well-being. Participants exercise in a supportive environment with YMCA instructors trained in cancer survivorship and supportive cancer care. The program is offered at participating YMCA locations, including locations on Long Island.
List of certified trainers and exercise physiologists
To find reliable trainers and/or exercise physiologists, check registry of exercise professionals US Registry of Exercise Professionals and look for those who belong to: NSCA National Strength and Conditioning Association and ACSM The American College of Sports Medicine and who have the following certifications: CSTS (Certified Strength Training Specialist), EP (exercise physiologist), CEP (Clinical exercise physiologists).
Exercise Physiologists (bachelor degree in exercise physiology or equivalent) and Clinical Exercise Physiologists (master degree in exercise physiology or equivalent) are trained to work with patients with injuries, chronic diseases, strokes and more complicated medical conditions. You can also look for them in the link of exercise physiologists certified by American College of Sports Medicine
