Environmentally Friendly Mat
Hi all,
A student asked me for recommendations on an environmentally-friendly yoga mat, price being no object.
If you have information about these, can you post as comments to this post?
Thanks,
Philippe
Hi all,
A student asked me for recommendations on an environmentally-friendly yoga mat, price being no object.
If you have information about these, can you post as comments to this post?
Thanks,
Philippe
My son writes: I have the Manduka Eko mat, and I love it. LOVE IT. Very, very happy with my mat. However, it does require being patient through a relatively short break-in period. Here’s my review I wrote for Amazon.com a few months ago:
I started using the Manduka Eko with some trepidation, given the many reports of major slippage. And, indeed, I found the mat to be unacceptably slippery…..but only at first.
As many have noted, this mat has a “break in” period. Per Manduka’s suggestion, I have been spraying it lightly with a 50-50 mix of vinegar and water, then wiping with a lightly damp cloth, usually about 10 minutes before each practice.
I’ll admit, the first few practices were very challenging. Frustrating even. But I had patience. I started noticing changes in the surface after just a few days (I practice near daily). It’s now been about 3 weeks and the stickyness of the surface has continued to improve and is just about perfect now. In fact, I LOVE this mat. I’m not slipping much at all and the surface and rubbery squishiness is very firm and comfortable. I do not feel that the vinegar/water mix is needed anymore.
Like yoga, this mat requires some patience and work before yielding its benefits. If you buy one, just be patient while you work to hold your positions on the too-slippery surface. It will change, and it really doesn’t take too long to break in (caveat: might take longer than a couple weeks if you don’t practice daily).
I’ve gone from dismayed to grateful. This is a really great mat after you’ve been using it a while. It’s definitely worth putting up with the initial break-in period.
Personally I think Manduka is the best eco option if you don’t mind the price. Plus they have different thicknesses if you want one for traveling for example.
Another option is Jade but I don’t like it that much. It can behave funny on some surfaces and wears off rather fast.
I agree. It struck me as funny that you would get an environmentally friendly mat that wore out twice or three times as fast as the non environmentally friendly ones. Mandukas don’t wear out, or at least not for years and years, and now they make the ef one its hands down the best option.