Yoga practice and mat care

Open box of rolled purple mats in their kraft tubes at the warehouse, next to a close-up of the branded shipping tube

What certifications should a yoga mat have?

OEKO-TEX, REACH, FSC and the ones that mean nothing. What each certificate actually tests, which ones apply to a mat, and how to check a claim yourself.

Child's pose on a purple yoga mat by a window, and empty unrolled mats waiting in a bright studio

What yoga mat do you need for Yin yoga?

Yin is sold as a reason to buy 6 mm. What a long hold actually needs is density that stops compressing, and a blanket where a bone meets the floor.

A hand holding a purple yoga mat against street art, next to kraft packaging for the mat

Is natural rubber actually sustainable?

Renewable is not the same as harmless. What natural rubber genuinely does better than plastic, the monoculture problem nobody selling it mentions, and how to judge a claim.

Side bend on a purple mat on a rooftop at dusk with city lights, next to the same mat rolled up on a plain background

What yoga mat do you need for Vinyasa?

A vinyasa class asks for grip that lasts the hour, a base that does not sink in the balances, and a mat you will actually carry to the studio.

Rolled purple mats being packed into a labelled box in the warehouse, next to a macro of the mat folded over showing its edge

How a natural rubber yoga mat is made

From a cut in the bark to a mat on your floor: tapping, vulcanising, the layer underneath, and the steps where a brand can quietly cut corners.

A three-legged downward dog on a purple yoga mat, and a hand lifting the corner to show its thickness

What yoga mat do you need for Ashtanga?

Ashtanga loads the same two patches of mat every morning. Traction that is not glue, density that does not sink, and a surface that survives the repetition.

Product table with yoga mat packaging, next to an unrolled purple natural rubber mat

Natural rubber or synthetic rubber: what is the difference in a yoga mat?

Both are called rubber and only one comes from a tree. What changes in grip, smell, latex content and what happens at the end of the mat's life.

Black and white portrait of Kathi Rüd smiling, next to hands stretched forward in child's pose on purple oléyoga mats on wooden decking

Casa Kavi: the teaching home Kathi Rüd built in Chamberí

A former neighbourhood bazaar in Chamberí rebuilt as Kathi Rüd's teaching home: yoga, pilates, breathwork and sound under one roof, three rooms with a purpose each.

Arms and hands stretched on a purple natural rubber yoga mat, next to the mat half-rolled

When to replace your yoga mat

Five signs that a mat is finished, and three that look like they are but are not. Most mats get thrown away years early, and a few get kept years too long.