I’m a seasoned yogi and this budget-friendly yoga mat is my favourite

This grippy and supportive mat has helped me find my zen

Zoe Griffin
Wednesday 31 July 2024 16:54 BST
(The Independent )

If you’re feeling stiff, tired or stressed, have you thought about increasing the time you spend stretching? From gentle moves that open up our joints to more advanced yoga poses that increase flexibility, getting the blood flowing around our bodies has proven benefits for physical and mental health.

Creating a safe, calming environment in which to stretch is the key to motivation, especially for beginners. Making a dedicated place to move and going off to spend a set amount of time there – whether it’s 10 minutes or 45 minutes – makes it easier to focus on your movements and get the most out of your practice. It doesn’t have to be a big area either, just a yoga-mat-sized space with a few inches on either side so that you don’t feel boxed in.

But before you rush out and buy just any old yoga mat, it’s important to be aware that they vary hugely in terms of price, thickness and support. At the lower end of the price spectrum, at just £32, is the Myprotein yoga mat, which is 6mm thick and made from high-density foam that promises to soften the impact. Spoiler alert: it’s a lot more comfortable than any mat I’ve previously used.

How I tested

I upped the frequency of my yoga sessions to put this mat to the test
I upped the frequency of my yoga sessions to put this mat to the test (Zoe Griffin)

From 15-minute stretches to longer flows powered by the YouTube channel Yoga With Adrienne, I’ve been using (and testing) this mat for all of my sessions for months. I got down onto the floor and manoeuvred myself into different positions to see how it fared under my movements. I used it both on my carpeted bedroom floor and on my hardwood living room floor to assess grip and stability.

Between practices, I rolled it up for storage, unrolled it for use and checked to see whether the mat was still fully on the floor and that it still smelled good – nobody wants to do a headstand on a mat that has an odour of feet or sweat. Keep reading for why it’s my new favourite.

Myprotein black yoga mat

Blank 2048 x 1536 - 2024-04-30T121543.777.png
  • Thickness: 6mm
  • Size: 183cm x 61cm
  • Material: High density foam
  • Why we love it
    • Non-slip
    • Easy to grip
    • Bouncy
  • Take note
    • Only available in black

I am the first to admit that I can get distracted easily. Therefore, it’s important for me to have a yoga mat that doesn’t annoy me or give me something else to think about.

When I’m doing a downward dog, I don’t want to see wrinkles where the mat has moved out of its position on the floor. In child’s pose, I don’t feel relaxed if I can see the corners of my mat peeling upwards and looking untidy. And on the few occasions when I psyche myself up to do a headstand, I want to put my head onto the floor without worrying how much cushioning the mat offers. As soon as I got this out of the box, my key questions were how much support it offered and how it felt under my toes.

The support

As I unrolled the mat onto my floor and stepped onto it, I felt it was sturdier and thicker than other mats that I’d used previously – it sunk down onto the floor and stayed in place.

From the first use to the 15th use, the weight of this mat meant there was no rolling of corners or unsightly wrinkling. With a grooved design on the base, it didn’t move a millimetre from when I laid it down to when I picked it up. Even when I did a faster vinyasa flow and changed poses quite quickly, the mat stayed in place effortlessly. In the past, I’ve had mats that have squeaked or made funny suction sounds while I changed poses but this was silent – just the way I like it

The feel

Made from high-density foam, it has a decent softness that rubber or cork mats can’t provide. As I stepped onto it, I could feel my shoulders relaxing and dropping as my body knew it was time to wind down.

While it’s not as grippy as a cork yoga mat, the waved design on the surface provides a stable base. This was useful in both faster-paced flows when I needed to find my balance fast before moving to the next movement, and when doing gentle stretches, as it helped me to feel grounded and connected to the floor. If you’re not careful about cleaning it, the groves do gather dirt and moisture. But the thing that sets it apart from other rubber mats is that you don’t need a separate cleaning spray – I simply wipe it down with my regular multipurpose household cleaner (which smells like pomegranate, so I get a whiff of fruit every time I open it up, which was a great start to my stretching session).

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The verdict: Myprotein black yoga mat

If you’re someone who likes to make exercise a little more comfortable and luxurious, then this Myprotein yoga mat ticks all the boxes. It’s comfortable, stays in place on both carpet and hard floors and the waved texture means your feet have something to grip onto, no matter how much you’re sweating. As long as you wipe it clean after use, it can be rolled up and stored anywhere and stay fresh for the next time it’s needed. The only downside is that it’s only available in black, but this budget-friendly mat is easily my new favourite.

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