At 78, retired Kerala nurse proves age is just a number with aqua yoga
Annamma Trueb Vayalunkal, a 78-year-old retired nurse, begins each day with a 30-minute session of aqua yoga in the swimming pool at her farmhouse in
Annamma Trueb Vayalunkal, a 78-year-old retired nurse, begins each day with a 30-minute session of aqua yoga in the swimming pool at her farmhouse in Kerala's Kottayam district. On International Yoga Day, her daily practice of "jala yoga", or aqua yoga, has helped her stay healthy and active. A former NRI nurse who spent decades working in Europe, Annamma said she has followed a disciplined routine of yoga and natural food, mostly vegetarian, for more than four decades. "Even at 78, I do not have any major health issues because of my constant practice of jala yoga," she told PTI. Read Full Story Annamma said she was introduced to aqua yoga while working in Switzerland, where a fellow nurse trained her in the practice. "I was once very afraid of entering the water. But with training and persistence, I overcame that fear," she recalled.
During her years in hospitals abroad, she said she saw patients recover and improve their quality of life through water-based exercises. "I saw many people return to normal life through aqua therapy and water exercises. It is particularly beneficial for respiratory and heart health," she said. According to her, the importance of lung health became clearer during the Covid-19 pandemic, when respiratory illnesses rose across the world. "If the lungs remain healthy, it becomes easier to overcome many illnesses," she said. Annamma believes yoga in water has advantages over yoga on land, as water resistance helps strengthen muscles and improve cardiovascular fitness, while the gentle pressure of water creates a natural massage-like effect on the body. Her daily routine includes Water Tadasana, or mountain pose, Water Vrikshasana, or tree pose, Water Utkatasana, or chair pose, Water Virabhadrasana, or warrior pose, Water Trikonasana, or triangle pose, Water Bhujangasana, or cobra pose, Water Setu Bandhasana, or bridge pose, Water Marjariasana, or cat-cow pose, Water Balasana, or child's pose, and Floating Shavasana.
Born on April 22, 1948, in Pangada village to Thomas and Thresyamma Vayalunkal, Annamma completed her schooling in Kottayam district before pursuing higher studies and nursing education in Europe. She specialised in nursing in Germany and later worked in Switzerland, where she became a head nurse in government hospitals before retiring. In 1973, she married Swiss-German journalist Johannes Trueb, whom she met during her years in Europe. After his death in 2014, she returned permanently to her native village. Since then, she has been involved in several community initiatives, including an organic farm, a women's gym, a swimming academy, a meditation centre and a village agri-tourism project. Her three-acre property has a swimming pool where she practises aqua yoga every day and where locals are encouraged to learn swimming. According to her, around 500 children have received swimming lessons there over the past five years.
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