Kottayam: Swimming, running, working out in her own gym and cultivating organic vegetables on a 3.5-acre farm -- there are few things that Annamma Trube hasn’t tried her hand at. At 77, she is redefining ageing, one morning at a time, through her practice of ‘water yoga’.

Annamma begins her day at 5 am with a session of water yoga that includes floating, pranayama and meditation. An hour of swimming follows, then a 5-kilometre run and finally, two hours in her home gym. This is not an occasional fitness spree but   her daily routine.

She built a swimming pool in her yard to train others, especially senior citizens and students, in swimming. Many aged between 60 and 70 have learned to swim here.

Among them is 66-year-old Annamma Varghese of Channanikkadu Chandrathil, who came from the U S for a two-month vacation. She had never learned to swim before, but under Annamma's guidance, she not only picked it up quickly but also found relief from her persistent joint pain. Like her, many of her students say swimming and yoga have helped them overcome knee pain and other age-related ailments.

A former government nurse in Switzerland, Annamma was married to Johannes Trube, a Swiss journalist. She turned to swimming 44 years ago after experiencing physical discomfort. Around ten years ago, she began incorporating yoga into her water routine.

When doctors prescribed her medication for her ailments all those years ago, Annamma threw them in the dustbin and she says she hasn’t needed any medicines since.

After her husband’s passing in 2013, Annamma returned to Kerala and took up organic farming as part of the state’s Responsible Tourism Mission. She grows vegetables using entirely organic methods on her land.

“We should never feel that we are growing old,” she says. “Age is just a number. It will move forward anyway, but our minds must stay young. Through swimming, anyone can reduce both mental stress and physical discomfort.”