Yoga

Yoga is a type of physical, spiritual exercise that increase your muscle strength and flexibility. It helps release stress and depression. It gives your body shape and keeps you healthy. It is also a type of meditation that connects your body with your mind.

What is a Yoga mat?

A yoga mat is a rug made up of soft fabric material with anti-slipping nature, mainly used for yoga exercises. It provides thermo-insulation by preventing the loss of heat and energy from body to ground. To avoid accidents or any injury, you need a stable mat while performing yoga.

The yoga mat should neither be too thick that it made you so comfortable and lazy nor too thin that it makes your ankles, wrists, knees, and elbows painful. The thickness of the mat is important to give protection to your joints. Mostly the thickness of a yoga mat ranges from 4mm to 6mm. Mostly the 4mm thick yoga mat is made of natural fiber while the 6mm thick yoga mat is made from PVC or foam material.

Does the thickness of the yoga mat matter?

A yoga mat is a necessary tool in your workout equipment. Its thickness matters a lot. Mats are made of different substances, have unique thicknesses and structures and their use is certain to what type of yoga you practice and what degree of consolation you want from a mat. The mats with different thicknesses are available on market.

 The thicker mat protects your joints from any injury or pain. It provides a strong grip on the surface. If the yoga mat is more cushioning, then it is more comfortable and helps you in ground poses for holding longer period.

The thinner yoga mats are the ones that provide more stability for different yoga poses. Their texture made better grip on the surface for the poses that require effort or exertion. They are a convenience for travel as you can easily take them for long in your luggage.

The yoga mats range from super thin to ultra-thick cushy mats. But the standard mats range includes  4mm to 6mm thickness.

The extra-thick yoga mats are normally not endorsed. They make you so comfy that you become physically relaxed and constrained. You will experience less stable and more difficult work while performing regular, flow-style yoga on a thicker mat.

Yoga mat should be of standard ranges thickness for conventional use.

4mm vs 6mm yoga mat

 For the majority of yoga functions, we suggest yoga mats that are between 4mm and 6mm in thickness.

They offer sufficient cushioning to not cause soreness, but not so much that it’ll intrude on your stability. It didn’t allow you to experience the hardness of the ground.

A mat of this thickness is appropriate for the common yoga patterns, which include Vinyasa Yoga, Hatha Yoga, Power Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga, Iyengar Yoga, and others.

The thickness of the mat is based on factors such as you need an elevated grip (e.g. in case you sweat lots, or flow fast), or are preferring the choice of sustainability.

Travel yoga mats tend to be usually paper-thin, around 2mm in thickness. The travel mat is the one that you can fold easily, so you can take it anywhere with you. There’s only so much padding it can provide, so if you use this mat straight on the floor you are likely to feel it in your wrists during various yoga poses. The reason they are so thin and light is to make it easy for you to travel with them.

4 mm thick yoga mat is the most famous one. It is mainly made up of eco-friendly materials. It gives enough comfort and safety. This type of yoga mat is the most stable of all the others. It is the best mat for standing or balance yoga poses.

6 mm thick yoga mat having soft cushion nature is the comfiest one. It allows a person to perform stable yoga poses or hold them for a long period. It does not provide the same stability as a 4mm thick yoga mat.

How thick is the yoga at to choose?

while choosing the yoga mat, you should keep in mind the following things:

• The yoga mat should be thick enough to provide stability.
• It should protect ankles, wrists, etc from injuries.
• The mat should have an extra layer of antimicrobial cotton for the protection of joints.
• It should have thermo-isolation property.
• The mat should have a Cushing nature.
• Your yoga mat should be hygienic.
• It should have anti-slipping nature.
• It should give physical barrios to sliding.

No one size fits all, but we suggest avoiding the extremely thin (2-3mm) and the ultra-thick yoga mats (6mm+) for people who looking to have an effective and empowering yoga practice.

Therefore, you should not choose a yoga mat that is too thin or too thick, as these yoga mats can cause more problems than provide the benefits of your workout. While doing practice, ensure that you have something below like a carpet or another workout mat to remove some of the hardness of the floor away.

Summary

In the end, I summarize the article by saying that for efficacious and productive yoga, the thickness of the mat is very essential. When choosing the yoga mat you should notice its thickness, stiffness, and material. The mats are mainly composed of natural rubber, PVC material, or TPE (thermoplastic elastomer).

Yoga mat average thickness of mat ranges from 4mm to 6mm. Those have a thickness of 4mm or less made of natural rubber or eco-friendly material.  They are comfortable for both the body and the environment and provide proper stability. While the mat has a 6mm thickness usually made of PVC material with soft nature. This type of mat is not much stable but is good enough that they provide a balance to your body.

The standard yoga mats have average thickness with anti-slipping nature. It can be thin enough to be easily folded and travel with you anywhere. It should protect your joints from injury and pain. It should have an excellent grip, non-toxic, and be bio-degradable.