Eco-Friendly Yoga Mats

"when we see land as a community to which we belong,
we may begin to use it with love and respect"
- aldo leopold

I've had my fav yoga mat now for over a year. During Christmastime I had several people ask me what kind of yoga mat they should get for themselves or to give as gifts. Of course I recommended my brand of yoga mat. To everyone I steered wrong- I'm sorry! I've recently discovered that my mat is unhealthy for me and for the environment. It is made of vinyl which is toxic to the environment during production and disposal. Vinyl also contains a plasticizing chemical known as phthalates. Exposure to phthalates can cause reproductive health issues, liver, kidney, and lung problems. So, as I'm focusing on long, deep breaths during my practice I could be poisoning my body instead of healing it. That's what Grist and Pollution in People tell us. Then what kind of mat should we be using? The answer...{ eco-friendly mats}. There are oodles of companies out there offering "green" yoga mats. They are made of natural substances and fibers like rubber, jute, wool, and cotton. Manduka sells a great rubber mat in their eko line. Hugger Mugger has an array of eco-friendly mats to choose from. This awesome everything-yoga-store is located in Salt Lake City and their outlet is at 3937 South 500 West. I love Lotuspad for mats especially made just for kids. Want to peruse the multitude of options online? Enter eco-friendly mats in your search engine and you'll be shopping for days. I don't know if I can part with my mat just yet, though. Do I put it in the landfill and oh well- what's a little more dioxin in the air? I think I'll buy a wool rug I found at World Market in Park City {it's on sale for $12.99} and put a barrier between myself and the phthalates. Maybe this will be good enough for now. But... Mother's Day is just around the corner. Let me know if you'd like me to forward this post to your significant other. This time I won't lead anyone astray.

MY TOP PICKS FOR A "GREEN" YOGA MAT:

1. Tapas Terra by Hugger Mugger $32.95












2. eKO Lite™ Mat by Manduka $39.99


















3. lotuspad eco yoga mat $20.00