Yoga is getting more and more popular. Over 11 millions Americans are enjoying it's health benefits. Do you wonder what should be the first yoga accessory you should purchase when starting your yoga class? It is a yoga mat. The mat is an essential yoga accessory. Yoga clothing changes of style, of fashion but yoga mats are the most valuable yoga accessories you will need. If you take care of it, you will keep it for a very long time. The investment is worth. Yoga is physical art that you could practice on almost any type of surface. Often in yoga classes you will find wood floors or cement. These surfaces are hard and your yoga mat will provide some comfort.
A good reason to use a mat during yoga workout, is to give your hands and feet a good grip surface. You will spend a lot of time with your hands and feet on the floor when practicing your poses. And while holding your asanas you need not to slip or your mat to slip. Usually yoga mats are slightly sticky and it's that stickiness that helps you stay somehow in stability by having a better grip and avoid to slip and cause some injuries.
Yoga mats, as your preferred yoga accessories, are not only used flat on the floor. Depending on the pose you are doing you will also be able to roll it or fold it. Rolling the mat is useful when sitting for your end class meditation, as an example, it provides some comfort for your hips or knees. Sitting poses are frequent in yoga and usually longer that upwards poses, you will appreciate the extra comfort of rolling your mat. What is recommended is a yoga mat of ¼ inch thick at least (for pilates you can go up to 1 inch thick), the length can vary between 62 to 85 inches, the width can be from 20 to 50 inches. Your shoulders can be a good measure to decide of the width. You should have about 4-6 inches extra mat space on each side of your shoulders.
Do you wonder what type of yoga mat you should buy? Well, some are made in standard PVC or PVC latex-free materials. These latex free mats content no harsh chemicals, so they are free of that chemical smell that can be overwhelming sometimes. These mats are good for those who suffer of latex allergies. You can also find, what we call, green mats. These natural yoga mats can be made of organic plants, or cotton, natural rubber, organic hemp or jute fibers. You can also prefer using a simple cotton rug that some suppliers are also promoting. These green mats are a little bit more expensive but the investment for that yoga accessory is worth.
Did you know that you also need to clean your yoga mat? We all sweat at different degree and the oils from your hands can make your yoga accessory slippery. So it is recommended to clean your mat on a regular basis. Standard mat can be soaked in your bath in cold water and vinegar. After soaking just rinse it, squeeze the excess of water and let it dry. Some cotton mat or rug can be machine washable. By washing it you will clean up the sweat, oil and germs. Just read the label supplied by your merchant to find out the best way to clean your yoga accessory. If you don't want to bother by cleaning or washing your mat you can find on the web yoga mat cover. These cover usually are machine washable. Don't forget also to purchase a yoga bag. Yoga bags, as the second important yoga accessories, will help to carry and protect you mat. We hope that this article will be useful in the purchase of your yoga mat.
[http://www.theyogaoutlet.com]
Nadine is the owner of a new website targeting yoga lovers. The author felt in love with yoga when she started practicing yoga about 2 years ago. She felt the tremendous health benefits she obtained with time. While going to classes she searched for some yoga accessories and comfortable clothing. She found on the web, wonderful merchants promoting yoga gear. She decided to create a website where she could offer to customers faster access to great merchants. Here it is, TheYogaOutlet was created.
If you are looking for some yoga clothing/accessories/DVD etc, you can have a look at her website and just browse at the listed merchants at yoga_clothing [http://www.theyogaoutlet.com]
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