If you’ve taken a yoga class, then you are familiar with Savasana (a.k.a. corpse pose). This is the pose practiced at the end of class, typically for several minutes. The students lie down on their backs with palms faced up, eyes closed, and allow their entire body to relax.
A lot of us think, “What good does lying on my back do?” or “I’m really busy today, so I’ll just skip Savasana.” So while all the other students are preparing to relax deeply, we start rolling up our mats. I’m here to tell you to never skip Savasana because it is the most important pose of your entire practice!
Savasana allows your body and mind to integrate everything that happened during your class.
Physically, your entire body becomes relaxed and comfortable. It is at this time that your muscles integrate all the work you did in the class up to that moment. Any tension that may have been built up during the challenging poses is able to leave your body. Savasana allows you to leave your yoga class feeling refreshed and energized!
Mentally, a few magical things happen… the deepest part of your meditation can occur at this time. After a physical practice, your body is ready to stop moving, and your mind becomes more dominant. Now, you are able to relax mentally and simply observe the thoughts coming into and out of your head. Sometimes, you are even able to reach a place of euphoria and experience out of body sensations. It is truly magical!
For those of us that are go-go-go, it is hard to justify spending 5 minutes laying down with closed eyes. But for those of us that are always on the go, we literally need to spend 5 minutes doing nothing! This short amount of time spent in a deep relaxation will allow you to feel mentally and physically rejuvenated – which will increase your productivity for the rest of the day! So next time you think you want to skip Savasana, remind yourself how important it is and that you really can spare 5 minutes out of your day to feel the multitude of benefits.
