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How to Clean Your Yoga Mat: Stop Taking Yoga Studio Germs Home With You
Make this a monthly (or weekly) routine - for you and your fellow yogis.
Once started practicing yoga regularly, quickly realized yoga is much more than stretching.
If anyone ever tells you that yoga isn't a workout, they haven't drowned in their own sweat during a rigorous vinyasa flow class or been so sore the next day they feel like they got hit by a bus.
Speaking of sweat, however, eventually you're going to need to learn how to clean your yoga mat. All it will take is one child's pose combined with a rank smell to send you running to Google.
How do you clean a yoga mat?
It isn't hard, but you do want to do it correctly to keep bacteria from turning your mat into a veritable petri dish. After all, your face is going to spend a lot of time on that mat, and you don't need to make bacteria your best friend.
What You'll Need
You'd be hard-pressed to find a non-natural method when learning how to clean your yoga mat. It seems to be a universal rule among yogis to avoid chemicals as much as possible.
As a result, there is a long list of DIY natural cleaners you can easily make at home. These recipes are easy to make and store, so there's really no excuse not to have a bottle sitting at home for your trusty mat!
These items are sufficient if your yoga mat is lightly soiled and just needs a straightforward cleaning after a typical yoga class.
All you need to clean your yoga mat is:
Spray bottle
Damp sponge or soft rag
Water
4 drops of dish soap
However, if your mat has seen quite a few hot yoga classes or you've had one too many yogis rudely walk on your mat, you might need a more powerful cleaner.
To make your own mat cleaner, you'll need:
Spray bottle
1/2 cup of water
1/2 cup of vinegar
2 to 3 drops of essential oils (tea tree oil, peppermint, lavender, eucalyptus)
Make this a monthly (or weekly) routine - for you and your fellow yogis.
Once I started practicing yoga regularly, I quickly realized yoga is much more than stretching.
If anyone ever tells you that yoga isn't a workout, they haven't drowned in their own sweat during a rigorous vinyasa flow class or been so sore the next day they feel like they got hit by a bus.
Speaking of sweat, however, eventually you're going to need to learn how to clean your yoga mat. All it will take is one child's pose combined with a rank smell to send you running to Google.
How do you clean a yoga mat?
It isn't hard, but you do want to do it correctly to keep bacteria from turning your mat into a veritable petri dish. After all, your face is going to spend a lot of time on that mat, and you don't need to make bacteria your best friend.
Don't have a yoga mat yet? Check out a few of our recommendations here.
