The city is offering free fitness events just in time for the spring.
Some options include walking in Central Park on Saturdays at 9:30 AM, cardio training in Prospect Park, Brooklyn, on Fridays at 12 PM and stretching and meditation at the Conference House Park in Staten Island on Saturdays at 8 AM.
The Rise, NYC, is a fitness group that holds morning exercises in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, Monday through Friday. Every Monday at 6:30 AM, they gather at Washington Square Park for high intensity interval training, which alternates intense exercise with rest time.
David Johnson, co-founder of The Rise, NYC, said fitness is better in groups. “This is really about the sense of comradery and we love to give high fives and we love to be encouraging. You really join a community when you join a group like this,” he said.
There are even free fencing classes. Bryant Park offers beginner lessons with masters from the Manhattan Fencing Center at no charge. Equipment is provided, but pre-registration is required and all participants must be 16 and older. Lessons take place every Friday from 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM, by the Fifth Avenue Terrace at 41st Street.
Rita Sigona, a fitness instructor for Shape Up NYC, a fitness program provided by the Parks Department, said there are options for everyone. "If you don’t like one class that you go into, just go on over to another class and try it out and I guarantee you’ll find a class that you like," she said.
Here are the links to some of these classes: