How to Clean Your Yoga Mat
October 21, 2007 – 7:54 pmOnce you’ve found the perfect yoga mat, the last thing you want to do is have it get dirty and not fit to use. It’s neither difficult nor time consuming to take care of yoga mats right, so make sure you take these steps to making sure it remains beautiful and useable for years to come!
This yoga mat guide applies to most standard yoga mats - but if you have something in a non typical material such as cloth, you will want to go with the instructions given with the mat. For optimal cleanliness, you’ll want to clean your yoga mat once a week or once every other week, depending on how often you hit the mats.
I’ve seen several different solutions made for cleaning up yoga mats - Myra G. Kelley at Health magazine recommends one part water with three parts mild soap. Donna Raskin at Yoga Journal has a slightly different concoction, advising 2 cups water and four drops of dish soap. Regardless of what type you end up using, just spritz it lightly on the mat and rub it down with a towel.
If you have a really, terribly dirty yoga mat you can use mild detergent to cleanse it, but don’t put it in the clothes washer. Instead, soak it in warm water and detergent, then make sure that you dry it down completely. You don’t want to lose the sticky in your sticky mats, and you don’t want slippery from the soap either!
If you prefer a more innovative method to cleaning your yoga mat, there is such a thing as yoga mat cleaning wipes. My favorite of this kind of cleaning method are Jo-Sha Wipes. I love the fragrance from these little wipes - they are infused with soothing essential oils in Lavender, Peppermint, Eucalyptus, and Tangerine scents. They dry very fast and thoroughly clean the surface of your mat. The wipe has no alcohol or bleach, and it’s biodegradable. The plastic bag is 100% recyclable as well.
