What to do when your yoga mat dies

Alice’s hands are sliding further away and her feet are sliding towards the back of her mat. “If this keeps up, this Down Dog is going to be laying down.” thought Alice “I thought these mats are supposed to be sticky!”

It is past time for Alice to replace her yoga mat. The loss of stickiness is only one of the signs.

What are the signs that it is time to replace your yoga mat

To find out if it is time to replace your yoga mat have a look for these signs:

• Holey
• Crumby
• Non Sticky
• Smelly

The most obvious of these and the easiest to spot is the holes in your mat.

Holey

You know your yoga mat is worn out when you start to notice holes appearing in it. This happens a lot if you are doing a vinyasa style of yoga with lots of jump backs. These holes appear where you feet land on the mat and it is not just one hole but two of them side by side.

You can extend the life of your mat by turning it around. This will give you a fresh landing zone for your feet to land on when you jump back but eventually there will be two new holes in that end as well.

Holes are not they only sign. You may notice very small pieces of your mat on the floor.

Crumby

You know your mat is worn out when you start to see a sea of crumbs on the floor around your mat. Every time you finish class you have to clean up the crumbs off of the floor. These crumbs will also be on your clothes and in your hair as well.

Alice’s problem has nothing to do with crumbs but a lot to do with sticky or the lack there of.

Non Sticky

Alice’s problem is that her hands and feet are sliding on her mat. The mat is no longer sticky. One slip and Alice could fall and seriously injure herself.

One of the reasons that you use a sticky mat is for safety. You want your hands and feet to stay where you put them.

Having a mat that is no longer sticky is not the worst thing that could have happened to Alice’s mat. Another sigh that it is time to replace your yoga mat is that it is smelly.

Smelly

If you are doing a vigorous style of yoga and you are sweating a lot that sweat is going to land on your mat. After class you clean up your mat to remove the sweat. However there is a residue left behind. Over time this residue can become quite smelly.

You can try it get rid of this smell by washing your mat in the clothes washer or you can try and wipe it down with a disinfectant. These may work for a little while, but eventually the smell will come back.

Unfortunately this is not a pleasant smell. Not only you but your neighbours and teachers are going to find it quite disturbing. Everyone will be wondering what died.

The sign that told Alice it is time to replace her yoga mat is its lack of stickiness. This can put Alice’s safety at risk.

Why replace your old mat

There are more reasons than just safety to replace you yoga mat including:

• Safety
• Cleanliness
• Comfort

The most important of these is Safety.

Safety

Alice’s mat is no longer sticky. She is sliding all over the mat and the mat is moving around on the floor. This is not safe for Alice, the people around her and her teachers. She could fall down or they could fall down if they should inadvertently step on her mat and it slides away on them.

Safety is an important factor as is cleanliness.

Cleanliness

Some times your mat will start to break down and there will be crumbs all over the place. The crumbs are not only a problem for Alice but for her neighbours as well. They will be upset with Alice if they have to pick old mat crumbs off of their clothes and out of their hair.

Cleanliness is only one of the reasons that involves Alice’s neighbours the other is comfort.

Comfort

A stinky mat will make everyone uncomfortable. No one will want to set up beside the stinky mat and people will start going to other classes to avoid you and your smelly mat.

Alice realizes that it is time to get rid of her old mat and get a new one, but she does not want to throw out her old mat and have it end up in the landfill.

What to do with your old mat

After yoga class Alice asked for suggestions about what to do with her old mat now that she has decided to replace it. Her classmates had several suggestions. Some of the more interesting ones are:

• Weed Killer
• Outdoor Blanket
• Doormat
• Non Skid Pad
• Drawer liners

The one that surprised Alice the most was the Weed Killer suggestion.

Weed Killer

Lay your mat over a part of your garden or where ever in early spring and smother unwanted weeds.

Outdoor Blanket

You can use your old yoga mat as a beach blanket or a picnic blanket. Anytime that you need to sit or kneel on the ground consider using your old yoga mat.

After a satisfying swim or nice picnic Alice can lay down on her old yoga mat and practice Savasana.

Doormat

Take your yoga mat with you on your next camping trip. Lay it out beside the door to your tent, camper trailer or RV. The mat will give you a nice clean and dry place to remove your shoes.

Non Skid Pad

You can cut up your old mat and put it under a slippery rug that you have at home. The mat will keep the rug from sliding all over the floor.

Drawer liners

Cut up the mat and use the pieces to line the bottom of trays or drawers. The mat will keep things from moving around in the drawer and will eliminate any noise when you put things in the drawer.

Summary

Alice’s mat is no longer sticky and she replaced it with a new yoga mat in a colour that she really loves. Following the suggestions of her classmates her old yoga mat has a new life as a doormat beside her tent when she goes camping.

There are a several signs that you can look for to determine if it is time to retire your old yoga mat and get a new one.

• Are there holes in it?
• Is it getting crumby?
• Is it no longer sticky?
• Does it stink?

Additional Reading

To find out more about stinky mats read What to do with a stinky mat

Once you have a new yoga mat you should find out What to do with your yoga mat during class

And here is some final advice about How to avoid the war of the mats