Yoga mats are in close contact with your skin (including cheeks) and frequently receive your sweat. You should choose safe materials and clean them with natural ingredients. Many yoga practitioners neglect the cleaning of yoga mats, causing the mat to breed and dust mite bacteria, stains on the surface, and bad smells. This reduces the performance of the mat and is scrapped in advance, which is very detrimental to the health of the practitioner. The daily cleaning of yoga mats is not complicated. The key is to choose a suitable cleaning agent according to the material of the mat, otherwise, it will damage the mat.
Why Clean a Yoga Mat
A yoga mat is an indispensable tool for every sports enthusiast. It records our sweat and engraves the mark of our continuous practice and progress. Of course, we must take good care of it. Therefore, it is necessary to clean yoga mats. Yoga mats that are not cleaned may contain bacteria, fungi and dust mites. Among them, the bacteria can cause folliculitis, and the fungus can easily cause tinea corporis and athlete's foot. The biggest threat of dust mites to people with allergies is to induce allergic dermatitis and asthma. To ensure hygiene, it is best to clean it every other week.
How to Clean a Yoga Mat
Yoga is a wonderful way to improve physical and mental health and is often used as a supplement to traditional aerobic exercise or strength training. Although yoga is called "simple stretching", it is a strenuous exercise that will make you sweat and make the yoga mat dirty. In turn, it can become a breeding ground for bacteria and fungi. These are several ways to clean yoga mats.
TPE&PVC yoga mat
TPE yoga mats and PVC yoga mats have different cleaning methods because of different materials. TPE is currently the best environmental protection material, one of the obvious features is that it does not absorb water and is easy to clean. Just follow the conventional cleaning method and wipe it with a dry towel.
A PVC yoga mat is made by foaming process, so there are gaps between the molecules. During the cleaning process, a large amount of water can be sucked in and cannot be discharged completely. After washing with detergent, even after washing with water many times, it will still be slippery when pressed. It feels that it becomes very heavy after seeing the water. Not only that, friends who use PVC yoga mats will know that the PVC yoga mat may not be able to be used normally after two or three days after cleaning. Therefore, after cleaning, the PVC yoga mat must be dried with a large towel and then placed in a ventilated place to dry thoroughly. Do not soak the yoga mat in the bathtub, as this will decompose and damage the mat material and affect its service life.
The usual maintenance work of yoga mats can use a small tool: yoga towel. The main function of the yoga towel is to spread on the yoga mat to absorb sweat. When we are doing yoga exercises, the body will expel a lot of sweat along with the exercise. If sweat drops on the yoga mat, it will make the yoga mat uncomfortable and easy to slip. At this time, you can use this super absorbent drape on the yoga mat to effectively absorb sweat. Yoga mats also need a master who can take care of them, so that they can be cleaner and use more assured.
Natural rubber yoga mat
A natural rubber yoga mat is made of natural materials, so try not to wash it with acid and alkali washing, pay attention to its easy decomposition characteristics. It can only be washed with clean water and must be dried before putting it away. When cleaning the natural rubber yoga mat, spray the cleaning agent on the surface of the yoga mat, wipe it with a damp cloth, and flatten it out and air dry; do not soak the yoga mat. Natural rubber will decompose and oxidize over time. This is caused by the material. This happens to any natural rubber yoga mat on the market. The vinegar can alleviate the oxidation process of rubber, restore the moisture in the material, maintain its slip resistance and colour, and extend the life of the yoga mat.
PU yoga mat
The surface of some yoga mats is made of PU material, which is skin-friendly and water-absorbing and can still maintain excellent anti-slip performance when sweating heavily, but because this material absorbs sweat, it is necessary to pay more attention to cleaning.
For this type of yoga mat, it is recommended to use the "open cell yoga mat, daily cleaning agent". Squeeze the cleaning foam on a clean sponge or damp cloth, and apply some pressure to wipe the surface of the mat; wash the sponge or damp cloth with clean water and then damp the yoga mat with clean water; hang the yoga mat in a ventilated place to air dry.
Cleaning Process of Conventional Materials
Buy a ready-made cleaner to clean the yoga mat or make your own. Ready-made cleaners are sold in sporting goods stores or online stores and are usually inexpensive.
1. Prepare a basin of water and a clean towel. If you choose detergent, add the detergent to the water and stir evenly. Note that the amount of detergent should not be too much to avoid damage to the yoga mat.
2. Put a clean towel into the water to soak it, and then twist it as dry as possible, because the dry it is, the less detergent will eventually remain on the yoga mat.
3. Gently wipe all corners of the yoga mat with a wrung towel to ensure that the dirt is cleaned. Wipe the front side of the yoga mat first, and then wipe the backside. The order should not be chaotic.
4. Pour out the water with detergent and wash the basin with clean water to avoid detergent residue on the basin. Then change to clean water, repeat the second and third steps above to clean the detergent remaining on the yoga mat, and then dry the water.
5. After the cleaning work is completed, put the yoga mat in a ventilated and dry yard to dry. Be careful not to expose it to the sun to prevent the yoga mat from cracking due to the high temperature.
6. Put the cleaned yoga mat into the yoga strap, fasten it and put it away. It is recommended to clean the yoga mat every week to prevent the growth of bacteria from causing unnecessary harm to the body.
Conclusion
Have you learned how to clean yoga mats of different materials? We'd better clean our yoga mats regularly every week, which not only protects our health but also prolongs the life of the yoga mats. Let us act now!
