I’m not what you might call an avid yoga person… but as one tool in the ‘lose-weight-get-flexible-feel-better’ regimen, it’s a great start. The plant-based mat has a lot going for it. Made from 80% natural tree rubber, Yogo.net also says they plant a tree for every yoga mat sold.
Disclosure: a complimentary yoga mat was sent to me for review purposes. All opinions are my own.
You get a shot of the yoga mat by itself, because no one wants to see not-so-‘lil overweight me trying to do a downward dog. It ain’t pretty.
How big is it?
The size of this ‘ultralight’ extra-long offering as seen above makes it ideal for traveling — 68″ long (172cm), 24″ (61cm) wide, and 0.06″ (1.5mm) thick. Putting it back together is simple enough: fold in half length-wise (top to top, if you prefer), then fold the width (toe to strap) a couple of times. Roll it a couple times until the plastic clasps meet.
It’s shown next to a standard-issue 500ml water bottle for size comparisons, but bottom line: it’s small. It rolls up to around 12″ (30cm) long and 4.7″ (12cm) thick, not including the handles. They’re also quite light — 2.1 pounds (0.95 kilograms) for the regular and 3.1 pounds (1.41 kilograms) for the extra long mat! Carry either one with a pinky finger. It’s extremely grippy — it’s not an exaggeration to say you could easily wear socks while doing yoga on this mat. It’s one of rubber’s natural tendencies, after all, which is great.
Clean-up on aisle five
The instructions say to rinse it off in the shower and hang it up — and man, this thing dries fast. It’s basically rubber, so it’s not like water / sweat can be absorbed into it. While I didn’t sweat much on the mat during my tests, I rinsed it off in the shower and hung it up like a towel to air dry. It’s good to go in basically a matter of minutes.
Need a deeper clean? Throw it in your machine washer on the delicate, cold cycle, then hang it up to air dry.
For avid yogis who appreciate the recycled / sustainable nature of the mat’s material, you can probably stop right now to go pick one up at yogo.net. For everyone else, there are a couple of potential drawbacks to note.
Drawbacks
If you like your yoga mats to have some padding for older / tired knees, you may be disappointed – the mat is only 1.5mm thick and doesn’t provide a ton of padding or ‘give’ on a hard floor.
The other drawback is the rubber material — while I love the texture and the grippiness, and it’s great that it’s sustainably produced, the rubber smell will linger on your hands and/or body. It’s a bit like handling a bike’s inner tube. The solution is simple: wash your hands with soap. You were probably going to do that when cleaning up anyway, so it’s just a temporary thing.
Other thoughts
The straps are incorporated into one half of the top or bottom. Personally, I’d put them at your feet or underneath to avoid accidentally hitting them with your head. That also happens to be what’s recommended on Yogo’s FAQ page.
Final verdict
Recommended. Go get it on their official website.
