Yoga: It’s More Than a Workout
We’ve all heard about the magic of yoga and all of its excellent benefits like toning your muscles and mental clarity. But for some, like Elon Yoga Club’s president Maggie Davis, it is a lot more than an exercise class.
The Edge spoke with Maggie to learn more about what yoga means to her and the Elon community. Maggie says she started practicing yoga when she was in 8th grade as a fun way to work out with friends and just had fun with the practice. When Maggie’s dad passed away her senior year of high school, a yoga studio opened in her hometown. Yoga became an outlet for her, and she fell in love with the practice.
“Yoga became my form of therapy,” Maggie says. “It was such a nice break away from the grief.”
Students and staff gather with Elon Yoga Club in 2019. Photo provided by Maggie Davis.
As yoga helped Maggie during her senior year of high school, she continued her practice when she became an Elon student. In her first year, she joined Elon Yoga Club and hasn’t looked back since.
Elon Yoga Club started in 2012 in a pod in the Global neighborhood. It has grown tremendously to have over 160 people practice together and turn people away because there was not enough space for everyone.
Elon Yoga club is a place for yoga newbies and experts. Students range from certified yoga instructors to people who’ve never stepped foot onto the mat before. Everyone is welcome and included!
“It’s a place for students who either love yoga and have practice for years but also for students who have never practiced yoga before,” says Maggie.
Maggie says that the majority of students are people who are just starting their yoga practice. The club provides students with the chance to let go while also taking care of themselves.
A yoga class from 2019. Photo provided by Maggie Davis.
“It’s a place where you can laugh at yourself, and you don’t have to be perfect,” she says.
Elon Yoga Club meets every Monday night with the intention of helping students start their week off on the right foot. Mondays are scary and can be overwhelming at times. The club’s executive board found that Mondays were stressful, so they purposely designed their schedule to bring release and relaxation to the stressful days.
Now more than ever, with all of the stressors like COVID-19, the election, and finals quickly approaching, it is the perfect time to begin your yoga practice. Maggie shares that your practice can be just a workout, but it can also be a way to let go by setting an intention when you begin your practice. Whether that’s relieving stress, managing grief, or playing around on your mat, your practice can be whatever you want it to be.
Maggie says that one of her favorite parts about Elon Yoga Club is the community it brings. Although bringing the club together looks different these days, in an effort to keep everyone safe and healthy, Elon Yoga Club is meeting virtually every week. They have had one socially-distanced outdoor practice and hope to have more next semester when it is safe!
“It’s a lowkey club,” Maggie says.
She encourages you to practice when you can, bring a friend, but it’s a club created not to cause any stress. If you’re free, join them!
If you’d like to join, you can sign up through PhoneixConnect. After you sign-up, you’ll then be added to their email list, and you will receive a Zoom link to their practice or a prerecorded practice from a certified yoga instructor.