Free 12 Week Parkinson's Exercise Programme, Waterford City

What to Expect

Early Onset Parkinson’s Disease Ireland is running a free 12 week exercise programme in Waterford city for people living with Parkinson’s. It starts on Tuesday 1 September 2026 and finishes on Thursday 19 November 2026, with two class slots each week: Tuesdays from 10.30am to 11.30am and Thursdays from 2.30pm to 3.30pm. Sessions are held at Motiv8 Fitness on the Newtown Industrial Estate.

Classes are led by Lauren Murphy, a certified health specialist and personal trainer, and are built around higher-intensity work aimed at strength, balance, mobility and general wellbeing. There is good research behind regular intensive exercise as a way of managing Parkinson’s symptoms, and the programme is structured around that rather than being a general gentle-movement class. Exercises are adapted to the individual. The other half of the point is the room itself: participants meet other people living with the same condition, which for anyone recently diagnosed can matter as much as the physical work. The programme is open to people with Parkinson’s of all ages and participants must be over 18, with priority given to people with Early Onset Parkinson’s Disease. There is no charge, but places must be registered in advance through Eventbrite.

Good to Know

• Starts: Tuesday 1 September 2026, running 12 weeks to Thursday 19 November 2026
• Times: Tuesdays 10.30am to 11.30am and Thursdays 2.30pm to 3.30pm
• Venue: Motiv8 Fitness, Unit 38, Newtown Industrial Estate, Waterford, X91 XA9W
• Price: free
• Open to people living with Parkinson’s, aged 18 and over, priority to Early Onset Parkinson’s
• Registration required through Eventbrite
• Bring water and comfortable training gear

Getting There

Newtown Industrial Estate is on the eastern side of Waterford city, off the Dunmore Road and close to the Ardkeen area. Local city bus routes run along the Dunmore Road with stops within walking distance of the estate. Drivers coming in on the N25 should follow signs for Dunmore East and the Dunmore Road, then turn into Newtown Industrial Estate. There is free off-street parking at the unit, which is worth knowing for anyone for whom a long walk from a city car park would be difficult. Ardkeen shopping centre and University Hospital Waterford are both a couple of minutes away.