A GREAT-GRANDMOTHER who is still going strong in her 90th year has revealed the secret to her longevity – weekly yoga classes.

Olive Jackson celebrated the milestone birthday last Friday and puts her remarkable fitness down to a decade of yoga.

Every Thursday, Olive joins her fellow fitness fanatics for a session at the St John Ambulance, in Sion Street, and she has no intention of stopping anytime soon.

She said: “I’m still feeling good even though I have turned 90 now and yoga is definitely my secret. It helps me to keep everything moving.

“I have been doing it now for about 10 years, so quite a long time.

“I started after I saw it advertised in the newspaper and thought I would go along and give it a try.

“It has really helped me. I think and I very fit for my age and I do put that down to going to my yoga class every week.

“There are some times when my balance isn’t always that good, but I try to keep up with everyone else. I think I’m quite good at it, really.”

Olive, who has five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, celebrated her birthday with a family meal at Stand Golf Club on Sunday.

She also had a party on Friday with her fellow residents at the Red Bank extra care scheme, where she also takes part in regular armchair yoga classes.

Olive added: “It is nice to have my family close by, I am very fortunate.

“I love living at Red Bank as well, everybody should have a place like this to live when they get older.”

Despite being the oldest member of her class, which is for over-50s, Olive has no problem keeping up.

Her yoga instructor, Olivia Rigby, said: “She is absolutely brilliant. The fact that she can still get up and down from the floor, which a lot of people her age can’t do, is remarkable.

“She takes part in everything we do in class and she is just a lovely person as well.

“Olive comes to the class as often as she can, which is pretty much every week, and she is very flexible.

“As far as the yoga goes, she keeps up with everyone in the class, many of whom are 30 years younger than she is.

“I think she has been coming here for around eight to 10 years and she obviously feels like the class helps her.

“I run classes all over the area and a lot of the people I instruct are older, because it is something that can help with arthritis and staying flexible.”