When age is just a number Premium

A bestseller writer and runner at 93, Air Marshal P V Iyer (retired) is an inspiration for today’s youth

When many men his age struggle to walk without support, Air Marshal P. V. Iyer (retired), goes for a run every morning. At 93, he stands ramrod straight and gives a firm handshake to send across a message. Age is truly just a number in his case. Celebrated Japanese writer Haruki Murakami’s book What I Talk About when I Talk About Running has attracted thousands to take to running but Iyer had fallen in `love’ with this daily routine much earlier.

Author of Fit At Any Age, he won praise from Amitabh Bachchan for his bestselling book. “If you are one of those who have come to believe that physical fitness and age are inversely related, that fitness reduces with increasing age, then here is a masterclass which busts that belief systematically,” says Bachchan, known for his indefatigable dedication to work.

Iyer is a man with amazing energy to absorb. Based in Bengaluru, he was on a visit to Delhi to present a copy of his book to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“Generally people tend to think of fitness as a difficult goal to achieve, involving hours and hours of strenuous workouts, visits to the gym, and a dedication that asks you to sacrifice the normal pleasures of life,” Iyer writes in the book, talking about his life’s experiences and why ‘being fit’ is a compelling part of his personality.

Iyer has devoted attention to sharing fitness schedule suitable and convenient for the common man and for sportsperson too. “One needs to exercise daily and not think of it as a punishment,” he says and adds, “You begin to enjoy when you discover your body responding positively.” The book makes for a delightful read as Iyer shares his wisdom in a lucid style laced with humour, to engage he reader.

I

A striking resemblance to Hollywood star Paul Newman made Iyer popular in his student days. “ Many people told me that,” he chuckles. His wife, Kalyani, once won a prize at a surprise competition in Nagpur in 1972. “It was a monthly party of Air Force Officers’ Wives and they were asked who all had a picture of the husband with them. Kalyani promptly pulled out the picture of mine (resembling Newman), which she always carried in her handbag for 57 years.”