Wellness Wednesday- Yoga Mat Care
Wellness Wednesday
We couldn't be more excited to be back at the parks practicing yoga this week. After a long winter of being indoors it certainly feels like the perfect time to once again root into the earth with our bare feet and stretch under the Ventura sun.
To honor the time back in the parks, we thought it would be appropriate to share our mat care tips. We know all too well that all the "rooting into the earth" makes for some muddy and grass stained mats. In order to preserve the life of your mat, it's important to give it a regular cleaning.
Once a month we recommend throwing your mat into it's very own bubble bath. Draw a shallow luke warm bath add a mild detergent or cleansing agent. Toss in your yoga mat and give it a good scrub. Lay a towel out long and slowly roll your mat up in the towel to remove any excess water. Once you've given your mat a gentle ring out drape it over an interior door to dry naturally.
In between bubble baths we like to use a mat cleaner on a regular basis to keep things tidy and fresh. Here's the mat cleaner recipe we use in our Ventura Pop Up Yoga classes.
Ventura Pop Up Yoga Mat Cleaner:
Recipe will vary depending on the size of your spray bottle.
Ingredients:
Distilled Water
White Vinegar
Tea Tree Oil
Lemon/Eucalyptus Oil
Empty Spray Bottle
Water/Vinegar: Use 1 cup of vinegar to 3 cups filtered/distilled water. Your solution should comprise of 2/3 water to 1/3 vinegar.
Essential Oils: Tea Tree Oil- We use tea tree oil because of it's antimicrobial and antiseptic properties. Add about 10 drops of this essential oil.
Lemon/Eucalyptus Oil- We love the fresh clean smell of the combination of lemon and eucalyptus. Add an additional 10+ drops of this oil until the essential oil smell outweighs the vinegar scent.
Combine all ingredients and shake well. Add additional oil as needed to balance out the scent to your liking. They're really is no wrong when it comes to this concoction but just a personal preference.
The best part is, any of these essential oils can be traded out for alternate oils; lavender, peppermint, etc. We sourced our oils from the local Ventura Lassens store. Make sure to look for a good quality brand when selecting your essential oils.
We would love to hear what combination you end up making. Share with us any other recipe tweaks you've used in the past.
Happy Spring Cleaning!
