LIFESTYLE cargoshippingtimes 10/20/2025 0 Comments

At 93, she is one of Santa Monica’s most popular yoga teachers

Salomon Delgado is one of Santa Monica’s most popular yoga instructors.

He is 93 years old.

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Let me repeat: In a city obsessed with youth and filled with lithe fitness instructors in Lululemon wear and wireless headsets, the 24-hour fitness gym in Delgado has a secret weapon. The elderly yogi has been teaching there for 28 years and his classes – held every morning except Sundays – are usually full.

Many of Delgado’s students would only do yoga with him; Others have been attending his class for decades. And we’re not talking about a specific studio here. This unique 24-hour fitness is a flagship location for the health club chain. Opened in 1996 at Ocean Park Boulevard and 31st Street, it is the central hub for West Side sports fans, with about 15,000 members. And yoga is a key figure in this programming.

“He’s been learning and perfecting his craft since the 70s,” says Bilal Al Amin, the club’s general manager. “This has made him very popular as a yoga guru. You know you’re going to find a teacher who has experience and understands the dynamics of yoga. He brings a culture of yoga that someone off the street can’t bring.”

I recently stopped by Delgado’s class. Delgado, who goes by his yoga name Raghuvan Das, was soft-spoken and had a unique, gentle but authoritative presence. He wasn’t demoing yoga moves, or even working out with us, but simply walking around the studio in a black shirt, black sweatpants, and black sneakers, hands folded under his belly and giving verbal instructions while his eyes scanned the floor.

“Very well, feel—you need it,” he cooed. “Straight to the heart.”

The class, as Delgado describes it, is a combination of basic sun salutations (a sequence of yoga poses), gentle stretches, balance and coordination exercises, breathing and meditative elements. He often reminds participants to “keep it simple.” But while the moves may seem basic, the structure of the class is strategically thought out, Delgado says, moving from the floor to a standing position, then back down to the floor and ending with a meditative “savasana,” or relaxation pose. It’s as challenging as the participants make it, depending on how deep they lean or how long they hold their pose.

Delgado also studied kinesiology, physiology and anatomy and holds certifications in teaching Pilates, aerobics and exercise to adults. The day I attended, the class was about 30 students, a mix of grades, made up largely of women and mostly of retirement age. But there were significant racial differences. The atmosphere was relaxed and inclusive: a physical education class with your favorite teacher who had been at the school forever.

“He’s inspiring, warm and very helpful,” says Erica Fabian, 85, who has studied with Delgado for 25 years. “He’s a total master of different moves. If you’re not good, he’ll come and help you. He cares.”

But be careful. Rule #1 in Delgado’s classroom? “pay attention.”

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I learned it the hard way when I followed on the mat, sometimes relying on written notes – at one point, I caught the teacher’s eye. Delgado politely asked me to leave the room because I wasn’t paying enough attention to the exercises. When I told him that I was there as a reporter, he allowed me to stay. But the event provided insight into Delgado’s yoga perspective — and worldview.

“If you’re not paying attention to what you’re doing, you’re missing out on a lot; it’s like you were never here,” he told the class at the time.

Over coffee a few days later, Delgado told me that “paying attention” is a core principle in how he lives his life.

A yoga teacher is standing in front of her class.

“A focused, focused person is a very calm person,” he said. “You have less stress. Stress destroys your nervous system and makes you sick.”

Imparting such wisdom during class is key to Delgado’s vision as a yoga teacher.

“I tell them a little bit all the time,” he says. “Whatever comes into my mind about food, behavior, what I know, I give it.”

Delgado grew up in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador, the oldest of 10 children. He immigrated to Los Angeles with his aunt in 1959 – he was 27 at the time.

About six years after arriving in LA he married and had a son, though he soon divorced. He worked for about a decade as a garden manager, a chef who prepared cold food, at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, among other places. He went on to study graphic design at LA City College and Santa Monica College before landing a job as a graphic designer at MGM Studios for many years. Eventually, he and his second wife — the love of his life of 50 years of marriage — opened a small health store on Santa Monica’s Wilshire Boulevard called Healthy For You.

But for Delgado the path—the one that gave him his life’s purpose—was yoga. He discovered the practice in his mid-30s.

“There was this girl I was very interested in, and she was into yoga,” he says. “So I started studying at Sivananda in Larchmont [Yoga Vedanta] Center.” (It is now located in West Adams). In 1972 he attended a teacher training course outside of Montreal and became certified as a yoga teacher. He later taught at the Sivananda Center in Hollywood. He then opened his own studio in Westwood.

“To get away from the religious stuff, I called it ‘scientific yoga,’ bringing your own mind and body together through your breath,” he says. “I love it. My goal was to help people. At the same time, I helped myself.”

Participants in a yoga class on their mat.

Delgado says that yoga was his path in life. (Julianna Yamada/Los Angeles Times)

At first glance, Delgado, with deep smile lines from his mouth and eyes, looks like he’s in his late 70s, maybe early 80s. It is surprising to know that he is in his 90s. During our interview, he repeatedly climbed up from a Starbucks table to show off his favorite stretches and full-body squats.

Delgado says he is in very good health but for “bad eyesight” and high blood pressure (he also wears a pacemaker). (He recently took a short leave of absence from work due to illness but says he’s doing well.) He says he doesn’t suffer from chronic pain or stiffness. He still does yoga every day, though more vigorously than he did when he was younger – usually it’s a gentle 25-minute stretch.

So what is his secret to longevity? Delgado credits his health to the fact that he’s been eating salmon, avocados, quinoa and garbanzo beans for over 45 years, and that he prioritizes hydration. She also meditates daily and makes sure she gets enough exercise in addition to yoga every day. Over the years, she enjoys swimming and biking recreationally, and enjoys going to parties and dancing.

“This is very important: no matter how old you are, you need to move,” he says. “Or you become completely void. Even the little bones in your hands and feet. Move.”

To that end, Delgado has no plans to retire anytime soon. “I quit teaching when I physically couldn’t,” she says. “I need to teach my class. Can you imagine if I lose touch with these people? What am I going to do? I sit there all day waiting to hear them come and pick me up?”

The joy and purpose he gets from teaching yoga are also important factors in healthy aging.

“It’s very important to do something you enjoy. I encourage my seniors who are retired to join an organization to help others. Because it gives them meaning to live.”