The huge selection of yoga mats as of late is overwhelming. You’ll find a yoga mat in each shade and design and of various thicknesses and lengths. Whereas issues like colours and patterns are purely for aesthetic preferences, the thickness of a yoga mat can decide its usability.
Additional thick yoga mats could also be nice for one yoga model but a hindrance to a different, and the identical is true for skinny mats. So that will help you select a yoga mat that’s best for you, we’re sharing the professionals and cons of various thicknesses, together with our favourite thick and skinny mats.
What Is The Splendid Thickness For A Yoga Mat?
The very best yoga mat thickness will rely in your private wants. Thicker yoga mats give extra cushioning and are finest for restorative yoga kinds the place you maintain poses for longer. Nevertheless, thinner mats present extra stability and enable you keep steadiness. Thus, they’re higher for dynamic yoga kinds corresponding to vinyasa, Ashtanga, or sizzling yoga.
So what are the completely different thicknesses accessible? Most traditional yoga mats vary from 3 to five mm thick, whereas additional thick yoga mats can from 6 to 10 mm. Journey yoga mats are the thinnest, simply 1 to 2 mm thick.
How To Select The Proper Yoga Mat Thickness
There isn’t any one good yoga mat. Each thick and skinny yoga mats have benefits and drawbacks, which is why many skilled yogis wish to have each thick and skinny ones. That method, they’ll interchange relying on the kind of yoga they’re doing and the surroundings they’re doing yoga in.
Alternatively, chances are you’ll decide for the standard yoga mat that’s round 4 or 5 mm. Common yoga mats give sufficient cushioning to guard your joint well being with out being too cumbersome or decreasing steadiness or stability.
Let’s discover the professionals and cons of thick and skinny mats.
Thick Yoga Mats Professionals and Cons
- Present additional cushioning
- Finest for folks with sore or delicate joints
- Give extra safety to your knee joints
- Best choice for utilizing on onerous flooring
- They are often giant and hulking
- Onerous to move round
- Make balancing tougher
- Sometimes heavier
Skinny Yoga Mats Professionals and Cons
- Best choice for journey
- Take up much less area
- Give extra stability
- Higher for steadiness poses
- Sometimes lighter
- They are often painful for forearm and kneeling poses
- Lack of cushioning may cause sore joints
If you’re doing outside yoga, chances are you’ll assume a thinner mat is finest as it’s lighter and simpler to hold round. Nevertheless, a skinny yoga mat may be uncomfortable or painful when practising on a tough or uneven floor outside, corresponding to concrete or in a forest.
Finest Thick Yoga Mats
Do you are feeling a thicker yoga mat is finest for you? If that’s the case, listed here are our three favourite thicker mats.
Lululemon The Exercise Mat 6mm
In the event you do numerous dynamic yoga and, thus, require a grippy mat however don’t need to compromise your joints, the Lululemon Exercise Mat is fingers down the best choice.
It’s 6mm thick, offering ample padding, but it has wonderful grip due to its raised textural design. This lets you transition shortly and effortlessly between standing poses with out dropping traction.
As a result of this thick yoga mat is designed for different exercises apart from yoga, it’s tremendous sturdy and can be utilized with sneakers. Thus, it doubles up as an incredible health or pilates mat for yogis who love all types of motion.
The 2kg (4.4lbs) mat is constructed from 100% Recycled PVB and has a closed cell design that retains sweat and different moisture out. Furthermore, it’s stain resistant and simple to scrub with a moist fabric, so it would keep smelling recent even in essentially the most strenuous sizzling yoga classes.
Gaiam’s 10mm (2/5 inch) mat is likely one of the thickest yoga mats. Due to its thickness, it may be used for different health actions apart from yoga. Plus, it’s very best should you usually follow on a tough or uneven floor.
Regardless of its thickness, this mat is surprisingly light-weight, weighing simply 1.4 kg (3.1 kilos). Subsequently, many yogis love utilizing it for outside practices. It additionally comes with a straightforward cinch strap, making it easy to safe and sling over your shoulder.
Though it’s an additional thick yoga mat, it offers respectable stability due to its dual-sided, textured ridges that assist enhance traction and cut back slippage. It’s constructed from Nitrile Butadiene rubber foam and is available in 9 shade decisions.
Manduka PRO Yoga Mat
The famend Manduka PRO is seen in yoga studios worldwide and beloved by yogis in all places. At 6mm thick, it has the best yoga mat thickness for dwelling or studio use, defending essentially the most delicate joints whereas giving superior stability.
The Manduka PRO yoga mat is high-performance and ultra-supportive. Additionally it is one of the vital sturdy, thicker yoga mats, constructed to final a lifetime. As well as, Manduka PRO mats are crafted in Germany from licensed PVC and are free from dangerous substances.
It incorporates a closed-cell design to stop moisture and micro organism from getting contained in the mat. This makes cleansing straightforward after your yoga follow as you merely wipe it with a moist fabric. This design additionally prevents 4 smells from occurring.
The draw back of the Manduka PRO is that it’s heavy, weighing 3.4kg (7.5 kilos). Thus this isn’t a mat you’d need to carry from place to position.
Finest Common Thickness Yoga Mats
Need a versatile yoga mat that can be utilized for a number of yoga kinds and environments. Think about considered one of these commonplace thickness mats.
Lululemon The Mat 5mm
You’ll be able to’t go improper with the Lululemon reversible 5mm “The Mat” for each cushioning and grip. Its pure rubber base offers eco-friendliness to the planet and extra cushioning to your physique. Utilizing it with the underside aspect up is right for practices with numerous kneeling or seated poses.
In the meantime, the highest layer offers wonderful grip and moisture absorption, good for flowing by means of solar salutations and difficult standing and balancing poses. It’s additionally straightforward to scrub with a moist fabric because it has antimicrobial remedies to stop mould and mildew.
It weighs 2.38kg (5.24 lbs), so it’s gentle sufficient to hold round whether or not you’re going to the native studio or outside yoga lessons. Plus, with over 10 designs and colours, your subsequent mat shall be high-quality and tremendous trendy.
JadeYoga Concord(™) Yoga Mat
The Jade Concord mat is 4.7mm (3/16 inches) thick and provides the right mixture of grip and luxury. It’s constructed from pure open-cell rubber, which provides higher cushioning than artificial rubber mats, making it simpler to carry poses and keep steadiness.
The Jade Concord mat is simply nearly as good for the planet as for you as it’s constructed from 100% plant-based pure supplies and has no PVC, phthalates, or heavy metals. As Jade additionally offers again by planting a tree for each yoga mat bought, this is likely one of the finest eco-friendly mats.
The reasonably thick mat weighs 2kg and is available in 12 shade choices. It’s extremely sturdy, and most yogis discover it lasts them a few years and withstands on a regular basis put on and tear. There are additionally three size choices; 68-inch, 71-inch, and extra-long 74-inch. All are 24 inches vast.
Liforme Authentic Yoga Mat
The Liforme 4.2mm rubber mat options the perfect yoga mat thickness for each kind of yoga. It offers sufficient consolation and assist for restorative yoga. But, its ground-breaking “GripForMe” materials offers unparalleled grip and stability in vinyasa or Ashtanga yoga.
One other distinctive promoting level of this widespread yoga mat is the “AlignForMe” system, which helps you discover foot placement and stop accidents. Additionally it is environmentally pleasant as its constructed from eco-polyurethane and rubber and is biodegradable.
As a pure rubber mat, it’s not tremendous gentle, weighing 2.5 kilos (5.5 kilos). There are six colours to select from, all of which retain vibrancy even after a number of years of use.
Finest Journey Yoga Mats
Are you searching for a skinny mat that’s gentle, doesn’t take up a lot area, and is simple to journey with? If that’s the case, listed here are our high three journey mats.
Lululemon The (Un) Mat
The Lululemon Un Mat is tremendous light-weight and simple to journey with, permitting you to follow in all places and wherever. At simply 1.5 mm thickness, this barely there mat can be utilized on mushy surfaces or as a topper for a thicker mat on onerous surfaces.
As a result of it weighs simply 1.05kg (2.32 lbs), it makes an excellent yoga mat for frequent vacationers who don’t have a lot area or weight to spare of their baggage.
One other superior factor about this mat is that it’s reversible. So the underside offers extra cushioning whereas the highest is easy and grippy.
The bottom is constructed from sustainably sourced and FSC™-certified pure rubber with a textured grip very best for low-sweat practices. In the meantime, the modern high-grip high layer wicks up moisture, so it’s fab for sweaty practices. It additionally options an antimicrobial additive to stop mould and mildew buildup.
JadeYoga – Voyager(™) Yoga Mat
The Jade Voyager yoga mat is a well-liked selection amongst yoga-loving digital nomads and touring yoga lecturers, because the mat folds as much as the dimensions of a yoga block.
It’s simply 1.6mm thick (1/16 inches) and weighs a featherlight 680 grams(1.5 kilos), making it one of many lightest yoga mats ever. Whether or not you add it to your checked baggage or carry-on, it would take up virtually no area or weight.
It’s not simply the dimensions that makes this mat a fab selection. It’s constructed from eco-friendly pure rubber with an open-cell design, considerably decreasing slipping. Many yogis like to make use of it as a journey mat whereas away and a topper to their thicker mat at dwelling.
Yoga Design Lab Journey Yoga Mat
This tremendous skinny mat by Yoga Design Lab is simply 1.5mm thick, serving as a 2-in-1 yoga mat and towel. It’s very best for sweaty practices like Bikram yoga as its ultra-absorbent microfiber high layer offers superior sweat administration.
Curiously, as it’s made for sweaty practices, the sweatier you’re, the higher your grip. To extend stickiness, you may moist your fingers earlier than follow. Due to the yoga mat thickness, you may machine wash it on a delicate cycle and hold it dry. Nevertheless, it’s best to hand-clean it with a fabric to protect its life.
The journey yoga mat includes a pure rubber base layer bonded to a recycled PET microfiber high layer made utilizing 15 plastic bottles. Thus, it is a fab selection should you’re searching for a sustainable and eco-friendly journey mat.
What About Yoga Towels?
A yoga towel topper is an excellent useful merchandise, whether or not it’s to wick up your sweat, cut back slipping, or add further thickness. They’re extremely light-weight and fold up tiny, making them a fab part to your journey yoga mat. Plus, should you’re utilizing a skinny mat and want additional cushioning to your knees, you may fold the towel like a blanket for additional padding.
Yoga towels are available just a few completely different sizes. Most towels particularly designed for yoga, like The Towel by Lululemon, are fabricated from microfibre material, so they’re quick-drying. It’s also possible to select between many trendy patterns and a number of colours.
Remaining Ideas On How Thick Ought to A Yoga Mat Be?
As you may see, the best mat thickness solely will depend on your yoga follow. A thinner mat could also be finest should you do numerous fast-paced, dynamic yoga that makes you sweat. Nevertheless, should you’re a lover of yin yoga, you’ll possible discover a thicker yoga mat extra comfy.
In the event you’re after a brand new yoga mat, the mats featured on this information are all premium high quality and rated extremely by different yogis.