How to Clean Yoga Mats & Pick the Right One for You (It's Your Personal Altar!) by Lisa Faremouth Weber

Fitness
5 years ago

How to Clean Yoga Mats & Pick the Right One for You (It's Your Personal Altar!)

Your yoga mat is your personal altar. It’s the place for you to contemplate life, so investing in a good-quality yoga mat is money well spent. Of course, if you don’t end up using your mat it’s like money down the drain, so here are my recommendations as a yoga practitioner and teacher for over 30 years. I have gone through lots of yoga mats!

  • Color: Pick a color that evokes a feeling of relaxation or makes you smile.
  • Texture: Top-of-the-line yoga mats will be thicker and nonslip. Most yoga instructors use Jade or Manduka.
  • Starter Mats: Gaiam makes a good starter mat and you can find them at TargetTJ Maxx or Marshall’s.

If you sweat a lot, be sure to clean your mat after each use. I recommend making your own mat cleaner.

You'll need:

  • spray bottle
  • essential oil (lavender, Thieves or tea tree oil)
  • water
  • all-natural liquid soap, optional (I like Bronner's)

Here's how to make it:

  1. Combine a few drops of essential oils and water in a spray bottle. 
  2. If desired, add some all-natural liquid soap.

I learned how to deep clean yoga mats by Martha Stewart. Here's how:

  • Put the mat in the bathtub.
  • Apply natural soap. 
  • Turn the shower on and wash it with your feet like you are dancing on grapes. 
  • Rinse and hang to dry.

What's your favorite yoga mat?

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Cassiday
I didn’t know this, really helpful
Tribe
I’m going to start doing this!
Elisa Schmitz
I love the visualization of yoga mat as personal altar. How beautiful! Thank you for these great care tips, Lisa Faremouth Weber ! 🙏

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