Yoga Mat Review

My yoga mat is something special. It's my homebase, my playground, my common thread. I love rolling it out, preparing for a practice. Here's a little history of yoga mats, who have accompanied me to also share general pros and cons of yoga-mats.

At first I practiced on a regular, standard mat - the kind, which you get at the usual sports equipment stores, which was fine for the start. Not a big investment and did the trick. After a while the material started rubbing off and coming apart. The edges of the mat were curling up or down depending on the way I had rolled the mat. In particularly sweaty practices my hands and feet were slipping all over the place. One mat I tried washing in the machine and it reappeared with a huge slash through the material.
So eventually I decided I was serious enough about yoga to invest in it. I set out in search for a yoga-mat with lots of grip, good length, washable, of course, and soon purchased what I would consider my first 'serious' yoga-mat. The decision fell upon the JadeYoga Harmony mat, extra long. This mat is wonderful. Great grip, good length, easy to wash, lies flat on the ground and there's a light weight version for traveling, which I think works just as fine for home. Really the only downside to it is the width...
Now just recently I ordered a Revolution online. The PrAna Revolution mat is definitely very cool. First off it has a great shape. It's larger than most yoga mats, which makes it really comfortable. Give yourself some space. What's also awesome is the grip. I actually discovered this mat stepping onto one during a workshop and just being blown away by the firm hold underneath my feet. Like JadeYoga it gets a little slippy when you sweat profusely, but nothing you can't work with. The downside is that compared to other mats it's pretty heavy, so perhaps not the best choice to carry around. The advantage to the weight is that it lies flat and stable on the ground - no bulging under the feet or blowing away in the wind. What I haven't tried yet is washing it... we'll see.

Aside the performance another aspect worthwhile investigating for you may be sustainability. Many of the pricier yoga mats are environmentally friendly, made from natural materials, biodegradable rubbers and the cherry on top would of course be local production.

Of course there are tons of other options out there. Manduka also makes good mats, I just haven't tried one yet. You can also get a 'Skidless' blanket to place on yoga mats at your studio if you want to create your own space and they are also useful when traveling.
If you're looking for mat and practicing regularly I can absolutely recommend the JadeYoga mat and the Prana Revolution. Don't be scared to pay a bit more than you may have planned. Most expensive mats will last you longer than the cheaper versions. Look around a bit and try some mats before deciding.

Feel free to post questions, your own experiences or recommendations in the comments section.
Finally remember, that yoga is not just happening on the mat. Once you roll it up and place it aside, make sure to take your yoga with you into the world.
Have a super-wonderful day.