Why Śavāsana is More Than Just a Nap

At the end of yoga teacher training, my classmate Daniel handed each of us a handwritten note, a thoughtful anchor of encouragement as we prepared to take our six weeks of learning out into the real world.

Mine? Short and sweet: “Emma, it was really cool when you would be the only one to take Śavāsana halfway through morning practice. You know your body best.”

I couldn’t decide if I should take it personally or proudly that I was most memorable for how confidently I went horizontal in public.

Considering I once had a colleague joke about printing “Where is Emma?” T-shirts because my vibe was giving human espresso shot, being noticed for stillness was definitely… a new one.

How did I go from hearing Śavāsana as “leave now, go be productive” to becoming the unofficial Savasana expert at yoga school? Let’s get into it.

So, it turns out that Śavāsana is more than just your typical kind of nap…

Also known as Corpse Pose (a bit dramatic, I know), Śavāsana is the deliberate practice of conscious rest. Actual, intentional stillness.

You lie flat on your back, legs long and relaxed, feet naturally falling open. Arms rest by your sides, palms either facing up (if you’re in a receiving mood) or down toward the earth (if you’re craving grounding). The body softens. The breath deepens. And the mind lands softly somewhere between alert and at ease.

Here’s the catch: Savasana asks you to let go without checking out. To be still without losing awareness. Which, for most of us, is way harder than it sounds.

Most of asana practice revs you up in a healthy way, building strength, heat, and resilience. Śavāsana typically comes at the end of our practice to do the exact opposite: to integrate everything you just did and guide the nervous system into parasympathetic mode (aka rest-and-digest, aka the thing we almost never give ourselves permission to access).

As B.K.S. Iyengar put it:“Savasana is being without was, being without will be. It is being without anyone who is.”

That’s why it’s the only pose I include in every single one of my classes. And why it matters more than most people realize…

Let’s talk benefits!

So why are we all voluntarily lying flat on our backs once we’ve done what we came for, pretending we don’t have places to be and matcha to sip?

The Part You Feel

Let’s start simple - what are we literally doing when we lie down on or backs?

Śavāsana is where the body finally stops clenching. Breathing evens out, the usual suspects (the jaw, neck, hips & lower back) loosen their grip, and the spine melts into a gravity-supported neutral instead of holding itself upright against effort.

With no postural demand, joints decompress and connective tissue gets a chance to rehydrate after movement. Muscles that have been quietly “on” can finally switch off. Introceptive awareness comes back online, meaning you stop micromanaging your body and start actually listening to it.

Physically, this is where recovery begins and where the work you just did can actually land.

The Part You Don’t See

While you’re lying there, trying to remember why you’re lying there and convincing yourself to stop thinking about the fact that you’re lying there so you can actually get the benefits of lying there… there’s a whole lot going on beneath the surface.

The biggest shift? Stress comes down. Śavāsana gently moves the body out of fight-or-flight and into rest-and-digest, teaching your nervous system how to downshift after the stimulation from exercise. Organs that were working overtime get to return to baseline, recovery actually kicks in, and the body remembers how to regulate itself.

If you want the science-y details behind how this all works, this post breaks down what’s happening inside the body when we finally let stillness do its thing. SparkNotes ? These internal shifts help rebalance stress-related neurochemicals, all from doing something that looks like absolutely nothing.

Think of it less as rest and more as regulation training.

The Part that Shifts

Still not convinced? Before you start to roll up your mat, this is where Śavāsana stops being rest and starts delivering real benefits…

Staying in Śavāsana actually builds mental resilience. It takes discipline to remain still, resist the urge to fidget or check out, and gently quiet the mental chatter. Over time, that capacity carries off the mat and you get better at pausing instead of reacting.

The mental benefits stack quickly:

• Greater clarity and emotional stability

• Better decision-making (because your nervous system isn’t constantly hijacked)

• Lower baseline stress levels

• Reduced anxiety

There’s also real evidence behind this. A 2016 study found that people with clinical depression experienced significant symptom improvement when they meditated for 30 minutes after aerobic exercise twice a week for eight weeks. Translation: stillness isn’t a footnote to movement, it actually amplifies its benefits.  

The Part that Lingers

Skip this if you’re not into the spiritual side of things, but on a subtle level, this pose is basically a practice in letting go. The body lies still. The breath softens. Effort drops. Nothing to fix, hold, or optimize.

In yogic philosophy, Śavāsana is often described as a symbolic rehearsal of the final release. A tiny bit morbid but also extremely clarifying… When you make peace with the idea of an ending, you tend to feel more alive in the moment you’re actually in. Fully resting, fully releasing, tends to leave you feeling more present, more awake, and a lot more willing to engage with life as it is.

Alright, you’ve convinced me. I’ll stay for Śavāsana… Now what’s the trick to not mentally drafting emails the whole time?

Don’t freak out, no one’s expecting monk-level mind clearing here. You just need a loose plan so your thoughts don’t completely run the show.

• Anchor to the breath
  No need to breathe better or deeper. Just notice it. Where does the body expand? Does the exhale soften anything on its way out? Where does the breath feel expansive or shallow today?

• Do a quick body scan
  Start at the forehead, move down. Every exhale, let something soften. Jaw. Shoulders. Hips. You know the drill. Go slow.

• Give your mind a job
  A simple mantra or reassuring thought works wonders. Something like I’m safe, I have nothing to do, or this counts.

• Use props

  Blanket under the knees, bolster under the spine, eye pillow if you’re feeling fancy. The body cools down in Śavāsana, so staying cozy helps you drop in instead of getting distracted by discomfort.

• Set a light intention
  Not a life goal. Just a word or feeling you want to leave with, Maybe calm, clarity, grounded.

• Think of it as a reward, not an add-on
  Śavāsana helps people stick to their workouts for a reason. At our core, we’re animals wired for reward. That stretch of stillness isn’t “extra,” it’s the built-in payoff that tells your nervous system: we did the thing, now we rest.

And that’s the secret.

You don’t need to have zero thoughts for 5 minutes to get the benefits of Śavāsana. You just need to stay long enough for your nervous system to register that the work is done. When the body lies still, stress hormones come down, recovery turns on, and everything you just did in practice has a chance to integrate.

Stay for it!