For people like Tao Porchon-Lynch, old is the new young. There’s literally nothing about her that suggests she is 93. The woman has been practicing yoga for over 70 years now, and teaching it to students in India, France, and the US for more than 45 years. What’s more, she participates in ballroom dancing in her free time, an activity she took up at the age of 87.

If the mere mention of her physical prowess is awe-inspiring, wait till you hear the story of how she took to dancing. When Tao Porchon-Lynch had just turned 87, she fell down outside a grocery store and broke her hip. She had to undergo a major hip-replacement surgery, something that would leave most people confined to bed for the rest of their life. But Tao would have none of that. Completely disregarding her doctor’s advice to slow things down, she walked into a ballroom-dancing studio merely one month after the surgery, starting lessons that very night. Today, at the age of 93, Tao participates in ballroom-dancing competitions in New Jersey, New York and Puerto Rico along with her 23-year-old dance partner. All this, while teaching 12 Yoga classes a week.

Photo by Joyce Pines

As a proof of her agility and physical stamina, she sent the doctor a photograph of herself with her legs crossed in the Lotus Pose, in front of the Taj Mahal. Her crossed legs are lifted off the ground, and she’s balancing herself entirely on her hands. She added a little note saying, “I just wanted to show you that there’s nothing you can’t do.” Tao started her career as an actress in France, England and America. She has even written screenplays and made documentaries. She now lives in White Plains, New York but travels around the world. According to her website, she has made over 25 trips to India along with her students to receive enlightenment about the true spirit of Yoga.