1, why use a yoga mat?
Yoga mat is not only used for anti-skid, but also plays a certain protective role. If the mat is too thin, your knees will have a strong squeezing feeling with the ground. For example, when we do the tiger pose, only one hand and one leg touch the ground, and the others should be lifted to keep balance. If you have done this, you really know what your yoga mat has brought you.
Yoga mat is not only a tool, but also a tool to protect your body, so that you can avoid injury, better protect your spine, knees and other joints and get a healthier body. Yoga towel can be placed on the yoga mat as an auxiliary tool. One is to increase the length, and the other is to wear it on the body at rest to prevent catching cold.
2. How to choose a yoga mat
2. 1, TPE pad is the most environmentally friendly.
TPE is the top grade of yoga mat, which contains no chloride and metal elements and is antistatic. Each floor mat is about 1200g, which is about 300g lighter than PVC foam floor mats and is more suitable for carrying out. The general thickness is 6mm-8mm. Features: softness, meekness and strong grip-it is safer to put on any ground. Compared with the yoga mat made of PVC, it is about 300 grams lighter and more convenient to carry around.
The advantages of TPE mats are light weight, easy to carry and clean, excellent skid resistance under dry and humid conditions, and no smell if the TPE material of the mat is of high purity. Most PVC foam cushions still have some flavor because of technology and cost, which can't be removed.
2.2, PVC is cheap.
Pvc foam (the weight of yoga mat with 96% pvc content is about 1500g) PVC is the name of a chemical raw material. But pvc is not soft and non-slip before foaming. The role of cushioning, only after foaming it, can we produce finished products like yoga mats and anti-slip mats.
Features: PVC materials are affordable and can be bought everywhere, with guaranteed quality and high cost performance.
3. What should I pay attention to when buying a yoga mat?
The length should not be shorter than the height and the width should not be narrower than the shoulder width. When the thickness is about 5mm, the cushion that is too thin will feel pain when the joint touches the ground, and too thick will affect the stability of standing action.
Observe the elasticity of the yoga mat. Pinch the yoga mat with your hands. If you feel your fingers are easy to pinch together, it proves that the yoga mat is too soft. Even if the yoga mat is thick, knees and other joints will hurt when they touch the ground. If the yoga mat is too hard, it's not good. Our fragile skin is unacceptable, and it is easy to break and difficult to preserve.
Uniformity of yoga mat. Spread the yoga mat flat and observe its foaming uniformity. If the foam on the surface of the floor mat is uneven, it is easy to be damaged during use. If the foamed convex part is damaged, it cannot be repaired.
Moderate weight. Because you need to carry a yoga mat with you in many cases, try not to choose a too heavy mat to carry with you.
The anti-skid performance of the mat surface, the mat is flat, and the mat is pushed forward with the palm of your hand. If the floor mat slides on the ground or hands slide on the surface of the floor mat, it means that the anti-skid performance of the floor mat is not very good.
Extended content: classification and purchase of yoga mats.
With the prevalence of yoga now, various corresponding yoga products are filed in various shopping malls and brand stores, which are favored by many yoga lovers. Many people don't know which yoga mat is most suitable for them because of the wide variety of products and different styles.
For many lovers who like to practice yoga, yoga mat is essential, which is a very important auxiliary tool when practicing yoga. A good yoga mat can help yoga lovers practice better and avoid dirt on the ground, so that their bodies are covered with dust. The choice of yoga mats is very extensive. Here is a brief introduction.
In principle, any blanket/mat/towel will do as long as it can cushion the vibration.
standard
The international standard specification is 173×6 1×0.6CM, and now the length of the extended cushion is 180- 185CM, which is widened to 80CM.
thickness
The standard conventional thickness is 6mm. It is considered that too thin buffer force is not enough to hurt joint bones, and too thick is easy to cause unbalanced sprain in practice. But we should also treat them differently. If you practice on the wooden floor, 6mm is more suitable. For basic practitioners, 4mm is sometimes enough. If it is on the tile concrete floor, it may take 7mm or 8mm to achieve the same buffer as the 6mm yoga mat on the wooden floor.
If you practice yoga on soft ground such as outdoor beach and grass, the purpose of laying yoga mat is no longer to absorb shock, but to isolate dust and soil, so you can choose a lightweight mat, which is convenient to carry.
surface
Anti-skid lines should be deeper, and more lines should be used to achieve good anti-skid effect and good sweat absorption effect (many new mats need to be scrubbed with wet cloth after the surface coating is removed, so that they will not slip).
Yoga mats are classified as follows.
polyvinyl chloride
It is the most common material on the market at present. Compared with other yoga mats, its biggest advantage lies in its affordable price. This kind of cushion has even holes and slightly higher density, and is filled with anti-crack cloth. But for daily use, ordinary ones are enough. The disadvantage of PVC is that some harmful gases may be released during processing. So the new cushion will taste. Anti-skid lines protruding from the surface will generally fall off after a long time.
Test model
Its biggest selling point is environmental protection. Compared with PVC, it advertises itself as a degradable material. Relatively speaking, the taste is slightly smaller. It is also light and easy to carry, and it is more wear-resistant than ordinary PVC cushions, but it seems that the sweat absorption effect is not as good as PVC.
dead
Pure natural, flax and jute materials. Natural hemp is not malleable enough and slightly rough, so manufacturers usually treat it, such as adding rubber latex. And it will be heavier after treatment.
rubber
Good ductility. There are natural rubber and industrial rubber. The selling point of natural rubber yoga mat is pure nature, returning to nature. But it's usually heavy. The price is not less than 300- 1000 yuan.
Ordinary carpet
Don't choose that fur carpet. Preferably the carpet in the dance studio. However, carpets are not easy to clean. Such as bacteria, fungi and mites. It grows in carpets, which is troublesome to clean and needs to be exposed to the sun frequently. Moreover, the fine fibers of blankets are not good for practitioners who are sensitive to the respiratory system, especially those who have asthma, and there is a risk of causing diseases. Generally not recommended.
Yoga towel laying
It is produced to solve the trouble of cleaning traditional yoga mats such as PVC and TPE, and it is laid on the mat to prevent the mat from being dirty. Generally, there are pure cotton and various chemical fiber materials, and there are anti-slip particles on the towel, which can make the towel and mat stick together. In fact, it is also good to spread towels outdoors directly with yoga, such as grass and beach, and it is also very convenient to carry.
Selection and purchase
When you buy a yoga mat, you should press it with your fingers. Good resilience, proper buffering and safety, depending on the depth of stripes. Anti-skid will be safer. And the smell. Generally, the new cushions of PVC and TPE have a little taste, as long as the qualified products produced by regular manufacturers are open for a period of time! As for the brand, it depends on your own preferences.
Matters needing attention in yoga mat classification
Some friends use a PVC anti-slip mat as bedding, or use a moisture-proof mat instead of a yoga mat outdoors. Because of different processing standards, the material is a little light and hard, and its toughness is not very good. It is not recommended to use it! No matter what material it is, it should be cleaned after use, wiped with a clean wet cloth and fully dried. After all, yoga mats are in close contact with our bodies! You can wash it when the weather is dry (some friends say that pvc mats can't be washed, but it's not necessary, but it's not easy to dry. If there is water residue, it is easy to breed bacteria;
Don't use washing powder when washing, because it is difficult to wash off, and the residue on it will make the mat lose its anti-slip effect. Usually dry in a cool place or a little sunshine. If you are exposed to the sun for a long time (in the hot sun all day), it is not impossible, but the service life of the yoga mat will be reduced, and the skin will crack and fall off in the future.
When cleaning, be careful not to wash the yoga mat with washing powder, because the residue on the washing powder is actually very difficult to clean, which may easily cause the yoga mat to lose its anti-slip effect and become hard. It is best to dry in the shade, ventilated and dry, and don't expose to the sun, because the special material of yoga mat is easy to crack and fall off.
Some suggestions on purchasing yoga mats
1, bring an eraser before buying, and use it to wipe the yoga mat to see if the material is easy to break.
2. Compared with the traditional yoga mat made of PVC, the environment-friendly yoga mat mixed with natural latex and hemp is better for human body and environment, although the price is slightly higher. If the economy permits, we might as well consider it.
3. Gently push the surface of the mat with your palm, which makes it feel dry. If there is too much foaming agent residue on the surface of the floor mat, it will feel slippery, and it is easy to slip when doing exercises on it.
4. Pinch the yoga mat with your thumb and forefinger and try to resist pressure. A yoga mat with good elasticity is more protective to human body.
5. Practitioners who are new to yoga can choose a thicker mat, such as 6mm thick; If you have a certain foundation, you can choose a yoga mat with a thickness of about 3.5mm-5mm-5 mm to avoid the yoga mat from hurting your skin. Some people may say that there is no physical discomfort in practicing yoga on public mats. In fact, the reason is very simple. After the germs in the unclean yoga mat are transmitted to the human body, they will not get sick immediately, but will hide on the skin surface for a long time. Once the human immunity drops, it will break out, leading to various infectious skin diseases.
Doctors say that yoga mats that are not cleaned are likely to contain bacteria, fungi and dust mites.
Among them, bacteria can cause folliculitis, fungi can easily cause tinea corporis and beriberi, and the biggest threat of dust mites to people with allergic constitution is to induce allergic dermatitis and asthma.
In the United States, there are many kinds of yoga mat cleaning wipes, sprays, or yoga gloves, foot covers and other products recommended to consumers, but these products are relatively rare in China. Dr China suggested that the best way to prevent infection is to bring your own yoga mat.
In addition, after exercise, you must choose a shower gel containing antibacterial ingredients to take a bath, and the fitness clothes should be soaked in disinfectant, or dried in the sun for a long time after cleaning.
Some people may think that solving this "trouble" is simple. When you go to yoga, bring some disinfectant wipes and wipe the yoga mat, but doctors don't advocate this seemingly relaxed way. Because the commonly used disinfection products won't wet the whole mat when it is used, the cleaning and sterilization effect is not up to standard, and it doesn't work.
It is very important to choose a suitable yoga mat, because it is essential in yoga practice and will accompany us for a long time, so it is very helpful for us to choose a yoga mat carefully and listen to the advice of professionals.