Page 58 - Panama City Living Magazine

PETER KNISELWHEN I STARTED YOGA,I COULD NOT KEEP UP WITH MY TEACHER - THAT INTRIGUED MEBy Val SchogerPhotography by Michael BooiniBorn and raised in Manhattan, Peter Knisel has experienced extremes. A graduate of Washington University (St. Louis) and New York University, he earned a master’s degree in litera- ture. He found his way to yoga while recovering from cancer treatments and evolved from student to teacher. As you would expect, he is soft spoken and conveys inner calm and peace. What is unexpected is his history of working in the entertain- ment industry in the 1970s and 1980s. He lived “the crazy life during the days of disco” as a representative of the theater division of one of the biggest talent agencies in the country at the time. He later transferred from New York to the compa- ny’s television and lm division in Los Angeles and worked for celebrities such as singer Natalie Cole. To escape a fast-paced and destructive lifestyle, he moved to Panama City Beach in 1988 and faced several battles with cancer throughout the years. Today he teaches yoga classes several times a week.How did you get started with yoga?It was in 2008. I was 60 at the time. The tness instructor at my gym guided me into taking a yoga class. The only class available that day was power yoga and it nearly killed me (laughs). I was just nishing cancer treatments. Physically, I was not in good shape. I had never done yoga and didn't know one from the other and never imagined it could be that hard. It was terrible. I could not keep up with the female teacher at all. That also intrigued me. The next day I went again and participated in a traditional yoga class. I started taking class- es every day and then decided to become a teacher. I have taught about 3,000 classes since then.What type of yoga do you teach?I teach traditional Vinyasa Hatha yoga. I have students in my class at Gulf Coast State College who are taking my classesfor credit. At the gym, my classes are very mixed, with many of my students trying yoga for the rst time. I also continue studying yoga and decided six months ago to learn Ashtanga yoga. I am taking David Bulger’s classes six days of the week.You said you had three types of cancer...?I had a type of a blood cancer in 1986. Then I had another cancer in 1997, and colon cancer in 2008. This was when I started yoga. I wish I'd started much sooner, 30 years sooner.How has yoga changed your life?I decided to retire from my other job, study yoga and become a yoga teacher. That was a challenge, especially being in front of people and all that. It's hard to imagine my life without it now. I just turned 70. I'm in pretty good shape. Just having taught so many people is rewarding. For maybe every 10 peo- ple you teach, one or two really connect with it and go further. That's a really good feeling. It is also rewarding when I run into people I haven't seen in years and they tell me they enjoyed my classes.