If you’ve ever attempted to practice yoga without a mat, then you are aware of how crucial a mat is to doing your poses safely and flawlessly. However, the best motivation for doing your poses flawlessly most often is the admiration you feel for Yoga, itself.
What Yoga Practice Can Do for You
Regular yoga practice will enliven your mind as it energizes your body! As you unburden your mind to give your full attention to each pose, you stimulate your “inner body” awareness of the present moment. Habitual yoga practice awakens, energizes, and strengthens the structure and flow of the body. The goal of yoga practice is to create a union between the body, mind and spirit.
Patience is not only a virtue, it is the “key” to mastering a yoga pose, especially when combined with ample time and commitment. Do not expect perfect poses in the beginning. But, slowly over time, as you practice and attempt to perform each pose perfectly, without pushing yourself too far physically or beating yourself up mentally, you will notice that you are developing flexibility, strength, and energy physically and feeling more peaceful and clear mentally.
The best environment for doing your practice is an uncluttered, peaceful place with a bare floor and practicable wall. It’s important to turn off your cell phone while practicing your yoga routines to avoid any distraction. For optimum function, you should not eat for at least 2 hours before practicing. If you can’t go without eating, then try to eat something light, such as a piece of fruit, but no more than 1 hour before you start your yoga practice.
Always be mindful of how your body feels, and stop or pause if you feel any pain or discomfort while trying out a pose. Then try again.
Yoga props and yoga accessories, such as yoga mats, yoga bolsters, yoga straps, yoga blocks, yoga mat bags, and even yoga towels are designed to assist you in moving deeper into a pose, in performing a flawless pose, and in practicing in a healthful way.
There are many excellent reasons to think about using yoga props, not the least of which is that they help in relieving discomfort, even pain, during difficult yoga poses.
Yoga props also help to prevent injury when you are occasionally tempted to push too hard to “get it right.”
Doing yoga releases tightness, and using props helps with stress relief by providing the support needed for you to relax (but not be lazy) in your practice.
Another dynamic of using yoga props is that they assist you in sustaining proper alignment and, as we all know, alignment is critical in getting the most benefits from a pose.
Ease and flexibility of movement are important benefits to using yoga props. When your joints move with ease, instead of “rubbing you the wrong way,” your yoga poses are more fluid. Certain props actually open space in the joints.
As we mentioned earlier, yoga practice is concerned with unifying the mind, body and spirit through the nurturing of a deeper awareness and the augmentation of mindfulness. How will yoga props assist in this great goal? When you are able to simply focus your awareness on doing your yoga poses correctly, rather than concerning yourself with transitory limitations, you will go deeper into that balance of mind, body, and spirit.
Yoga Mats
A yoga mat, also called a sticky mat, is a thin, rectangular, and often rubber, floor mat that has many healthful features. First and foremost, as you move into various yoga poses, a yoga mat keeps you from sliding. It offers a stable, non-slip surface for your practice.
It is also made of a composition that gives it the “perfect” texture, the one Baby Bear would use if he practiced yoga. A surface that is too soft, such as a carpet, would make balancing and position yourself very difficult. But, a surface that’s too hard, such as a hardwood floor, would make your hands, knees, and feet uncomfortable in many poses.
You will notice that, in addition to providing stability as you practice, a yoga mat offers protection from cool floors. Nearly all yoga mats are made of non-latex or natural rubber that is both lightweight and durable. For those who want a more eco-friendly mat, there are some around. Specifically, there is a new “environmentally friendly” yoga mat made of PER (Polymer Environmental Resin), a composition that is accredited with being more “cognizant” to the environment and your good health than rubber yoga mats. It doesn’t include phthalates or heavy metals, and its manner of production is said to be entirely non-toxic. However, if being “super” green is your goal, there is a rubber and cotton mesh mat available that comes right from a “tapped” tree that keeps on living.
Yoga Mat Bags
What better way to protect and haul around your yoga mat and yoga props then in a well-made yoga mat bag in the most desirable size for you? There is a small yoga mat bag, sized only a little bit larger than your mat, that is just great if you carry only a few things with you to your yoga class. But, if you’re pack rat when comes to yoga and want to “take it all” with you, there are big, duffel-style mat bags that are more than capable of holding extra goodies like yoga blocks, towels, water bottles, extra clothing, you name it.
If you’re the creative type, there are many great resources online that give instructions on how you can put together your own yoga mat bag out of silk or other materials. Ready-to-buy yoga mat bags are usually made out of nylon, cotton, organic cotton, or hemp.