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| Following is a recent Q & A interview with John: |
| Q. |
Have you found yoga to be helpful? |
| A. |
Yes, very helpful. |
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| Q. |
In what way? |
| A. |
In that it keeps me moving. I feel that if I stop the yoga I will have more difficulties with locomotion. It helps me with my right hip and my knee. With pain there I tend to favor those areas when I am walking to try to avoid the pain. |
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| Q. |
What does yoga for that? |
| A. |
Following the yoga I am pain free for a time. |
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| Q. |
How long ago did you start yoga? |
| A. |
Nine years ago. |
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| Q. |
Why would a guy like you do yoga? |
| A. |
I was told that I had a bad hip and knee. Swelling in the right leg, and my yoga teacher (daughter) here in Pittsburgh at that time commented on the fact that I was deteriorating wearing elastic stockings. And in her endeavor to keep me around for a while she told me to do yoga. |
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| Q. |
You had a problem with your knee when you started, what was that? |
| A. |
The MRI of the right knee showed a torn meniscus and popliteal cysts, which the orthopedic surgeon said he would take care of surgically. However I opted for yoga and have done well. I went for several years without any swelling or discomfort in that knee. |
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| Q. |
What about your neck and shoulders? |
| A. |
I had cervical spurs in the vertebrae in my neck, which prevented me form putting my head back in extension. And I had numbness in my arms and fingers. |
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| Q. |
How long did it take before you could put your head back? |
| A. |
I don’t remember exactly- probably a matter of two or three months. The shoulder, neck and chest opening positions helped.
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| Q. |
Do you practice at home? |
| A. |
No, I am not a dedicated practitioner unfortunately. I think if I had been better at practicing at home I would have improved even more. However, with Sara requiring me to do it two-three times a week with supervision and the little that I do on my own between times has been very beneficial. |
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| Q. |
How often do you think you do it on your own? |
| A. |
Well, I’m doing it daily now, but for a long time I was just going to class and not practicing at home. |
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| Q. |
And why are you doing it daily now? |
| A. |
Because I’m in more trouble now. |
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| Q. |
And why do you think you’re in more trouble now? |
| A. |
I haven’t determined that yet. Sometimes I think I should just learn to accept more discomfort but I know that if I continue with my yoga practice I should be able to get through this. |
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| Q. |
You mean like get rid of it? |
| A. |
Well, that’s what my hope is. |
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| Q. |
What exactly is it that you want to get rid of? |
| A. |
The discomfort that I feel is radiating in to my legs from my back. |
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| Q. |
So if your daughter weren’t a yoga teacher would you have done yoga? |
| A. |
No, I don’t think I would have. |
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| Q. |
So where do you think you would be now without the yoga? |
| A. |
I don’t think I would be doing as well as I am now but I don’t know how to express it. I certainly wouldn’t have the same mobility. I might not even be around at all, (laughter and smiles.) |
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| Q. |
Would you recommend that seniors do yoga? Some people think they are too old to start. |
| A. |
Yes, I would recommend it. That’s not true. You should be able to do yoga at any age. Iyengar keeps doing it at an advanced age.** Of course he got an early start. |
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| Q. |
Do you think if you had an early start you could be doing yoga like Iyengar’s? |
A.
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No. (Laughter.) |
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| **B.K.S. Iyengar is now 87 years old and continues to teach and practice in Pune, India. See the websites www.iynaus.org and www.bksiyengar.com found on our links page for Iyengar’s story. |
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