Name: Alexandra (Ali) McCorke
Hometown: Atlanta, GA
Age: 20
Year: Sophomore
Majors: Psychology & Religious Studies
What made you decide to start yoga club?
“I began practicing yoga as a way to gently rebuild strength my junior year of highschool after I came down with mono and was going to be out for the gymnastics season. To my surprise, I found 100 wonderful things in addition to muscle gain that I could get from yoga. The teachers were so wise, and the words they shared always resonated with me. It was as if they knew what I was dealing with on that particular day and tailored their plans accordingly.”
“When I came to college, I felt that while the gym offered physical yoga classes, the spiritual and community elements were missing. My hope with creating yoga club was to create a community in which members are encouraged and empowered to live out their truth, support one another, release stress from the culture of over-commitment here at Elon and have fun. It’s also great to meet new people, and have a group of “my yoga friends.” Yes, we do downward dog and we sweat and we laugh, but most importantly – we share, learn, and grow.”
What have you learned from starting the club and watching it grow?
First, I will say that starting a club was much more difficult than I thought it would be. From paperwork, to planning meetings, to supporting the development of a community – it takes a lot of energy and a lot of incredible people working their tails off to make it a reality. I will be honest – fall semester felt like a lot of work at times; however, around January, something shifted. People started becoming regulars. People were staying after to chat. Girls I had never met asked me to get coffee to talk about developing a personal practice. And it hit me: you get what you give. I had invested so much time and energy into making this club happen and it was happening. Each one of our members has inspired me in some way this semester, whether they know it or not. So I guess the biggest thing I learned is that those you teach can be your best teachers.
What do you want to say to people who have yet to try yoga?
Several things… 1) Saying you are not flexible enough to do yoga is like saying you are too dirty to take a shower. 2) It doesn’t matter if you have cool yoga pants or what you imagine to be a perfect body – it only matters that you show up. 3) If you are breathing with awareness, you are doing yoga. 4) I truly believe there is a yoga for everyone – if you had a negative experience once before, try to keep an open mind and try a different style. Yoga is not monolithic – it is a diverse tradition with diverse practices.