Meet Vandana Mehra – A Modern Yogini……in Age is Just A Number Series

Now, this blog is for all those who are 50 plus and thinking of retirement. Today many 50+ are living an energetic and healthy life.

Meet Vandana Mehra, the modern Yogini. She started yoga some seven years back when someone advised her to do Pranayama for her ever-increasing Asthmatic problem. She was already forty plus and was averse to yoga yet she thought of giving it a try. Within a year, she stopped using her inhaler and even found a remarkable change in her attitude.

An angry young woman had changed into an amiable, positive personality. She was unable to understand this dramatic change. Later, as she read, she comprehended that it happened because of pranayama.

After some time, her yoga instructor, who was coming from South Delhi, couldn’t continue and her search for a new yoga teacher started. This led her to join Amritam Yoga where she fell in love with yoga and later joined a Yoga Teacher’s Training course after some three years of practical yoga classes.

Today she is a trained and certified World Alliance Yoga Instructor who can perform advanced yoga postures with impressive dexterity. She can do boat pose, handstand, planks etc. for more than five minutes easily.

She is 55 and got her daughter married about a year back. Her son is working in the USA and she stays with her in-laws in Noida.

She loves weekend parties and this couple, I always feel have a zest for life; almost like those in their 30s.

Here’s a very short chat, FCTB had with her.

1. Tell us about your birth, education and family.

I was born in Mumbai, the eldest of three sisters. We shifted to Delhi when I was 8yrs old. Joined CMJ (Convent of Jesus and Mary), an all-girls school, but had lots of guy friends too. Am an extrovert and can get along with both girls and guys. I grew up in Panchshila Park and had many groups of friends, Club friends, Neighbours, School friends etc. Graduated with honours in Philosophy from Lady Sriram College. Was always good in both studies and sports. I fell in love during my final year of college and got married right after graduation.

2.Also tell us about the time u thought you have failed /or cannot perform a particular posture but got up and tried again.

I started yoga due to my wheezing problems and realized that Yoga had improved my motion range, strength, concentration besides my wheezing improved drastically. I stopped taking regular medication. I was hooked.

I had started yoga pretty late in life and there were many times when I would feel that I would not be able to reach a level, that I would not be able to do an asana. But due to support from my children and husband and of course the gurus, I was able to overcome my fears and inhibitions and achieved a level that I had not thought possible.

Today I am an instructor and have students from the USA and UK also.

It feels amazing when people much younger than me come up to me and compliment me on my fitness and range of asanas.

 I will be forever grateful to my guru Manoj Sir and my family for all the support I have got. God has been kind.

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So friends, remember God is always kind. After all, we are his children. We might face problems as per our karmas but our health and destiny is in our hands and not our children’s. Let them enjoy their life and we shall enjoy ours.

Why wait for a daughter-in-law who will serve us because we are getting old?

Let us rewind our life…….when we got married……our eyes were full of dreams. We wanted to do this, we wanted to do that, we wanted to go there, we wanted to see something etc…..the list was endless.

Let the list of our sons and daughters take wings and fly and realise…at least I don’t want them to stop.

Do you? Would you like to stop your son and just be at your service? Why can’t you take care of yourself and let him live a guilt-free life? Call him when you need it. After all, we all need each other. But learn to enjoy life, do what you wanted to but couldn’t. Go on a cruise, meet friends, relatives, party. Write, paint, dance, meditate whatever you love but live a zestful life. I would add, please find a partner in case you are alone but please don’t ruin your or your child’s life.

You’ve worked hard all your life. So you deserve to enjoy your retired life. I wouldn’t call it a retired life because this is the time, you should start living your life because you have the money and time. Be the change and try to bring the change in your surroundings too.

Start working on your health today and be a part of the drive “Age is just a number”.