Best Yoga Mats | What to Look For in a Mat

An increasing number of people today are turning to Yoga as the best alternative for promoting a healthy lifestyle, both physically and spiritually.

The good news is that the basic equipment required is not very expensive -- certainly not compared to what's needed for many other vigorous hobbies, particularly sports, exercise or other athletic activities.

Nevertheless, sooner or later, you're likely to find yourself wondering what are the best Yoga mats.

Aside from all its other benefits, low equipment cost helps make Yoga an ideal addition to a healthy lifestyle in times that are economically challenging. That's the difference between it and, say golf, which not only has equipment costs, but the pay-to-play factor, as well.

What's similar, however, is that you'll find all sorts of opinions about just which combination of materials and construction adds up to making any given product the best.

Fortunately, with the key features -- density, material type and texture, color and design, and intangible special features -- there's not really an objective standard. So, the characteristics of the best Yoga mats can largely reflect the preferences of each individual user.

Most high quality mats should offer at least one or two options within the range of 1/8"-1/2" (3.2mm-6.6mm) of thickness.

Moving beyond comfort, how "green" the mat's material is probably qualifies as the most subjective factor -- and as with politics, it's going to be virtually impossible to get a universal consensus. Popular options include TPE foam (thermoplastic elastomer), open cell natural rubber and vinyl sponge foam.

TPE is considered by many to be an eco-friendly material, especially compared to foam, which may contain PVCs. Natural rubber has the advantage of being a renewable resource. The old saying says, you "pick your poison," but maybe in this case we should make it "pick your antidote" (to stress!).

Sometimes, it's necessary to make a value judgment between features with conflicting benefits. For instance, light weight for easy portability might require sacrificing the thickness that offers maximum comfort. Once again, that's an individual choice. There's no clear "best" here.

Individual preference is likely to apply to less common "special" features, as well, such as methods of cleaning the mat (surprised that's a special feature?), possible antimicrobial properties, and limitation of anything suggesting excessive "chemical" properties, such as becoming scent-free after break-in.

What about whether or not the mat is reversible? You may have to have owned a mat or two before you figure that one out for yourself. Finally, color and design are probably the most visible properties, but don't let anyone tell you that what they prefer is better than the combination you consider the best! High quality Yoga Mats are available at great prices here.