Stoke Newington is an ideal area for keeping fit and pursuing sports. Of the private gyms and health clubs, one is for women only, which offers the full range of keep-fit classes as well as mothers and babies swimming sessions. Every weekend the local parks are busy with football, rugby, cricket and tennis clubs. Clissold Park Tennis Club with its 8 superb courts is particularly active in running courses, coaching, tournaments and social tennis for adults and children.
 
Some of the facilities are exceptional and attract people from way beyond the borough. A Victorian Gothic water tower has been converted into a state-of-the-art climbing centre. You can practise sailing on the nearby reservoir. On the River Lea at the bottom of Springfield Park there is a rowing club and marina. There is a riding stables in the massive Lea Valley Park, as well as a large indoor ice-skating rink,
 
London Fields Lido and Clissold Leisure Centre provide fantastic indoor and outdoor swimming facilities.