So, what’s with yoga mat envy?

Been peeking at your neighbour’s mat? Before you turn green with envy, check this out

When Jatta Kristiina Tjurin tells me, “Your mat is as personal as your practice,” I tell her it’s a good quote. She laughs and agrees, it is. Jatta is a yogi — an Ashtanga Yoga practitioner and teacher. She’s Finnish, has lived in Dubai for 13 years. Disclaimer: she’s been my teacher, too, so I know how good she is. In 2001, when Jatta “knew nothing about Yoga,” she bought a £20 mat from Reebok in London. It’s still in use. But for her, “A mat has to stick, it has to have a certain heaviness,” she says, using the wonderful term ‘grippy’. Jatta needs her mats to be grippy. She’s been through halfa-dozen yoga mats, and has a say on what works for her and what hasn’t. She’s had mats melt in balconies, and knows from experience to not keep mats in the car. Once, she bought a Jade mat that started wearing off after two weeks of practice. (Everyone who does yoga knows the frustration of rubber bits of an expensive mat sticking to also expensive yoga pants). She took it back to the distributor who told her ‘not our fault, it’s been exposed to high heat’. She was in Finland at the time. “Maybe it’s the way I practice,” she says. Because some of her students have been happy with their Jade mats, had them for seven years, etc.

I ask Jatta, is there such a thing as yoga mat envy? (I know I’m constantly checking out other people’s yoga accessories; it’s like school: her pencil box is shinier than mine kind of thing). Jatta says, “Everyone wants to be trendy and have the coolest outfit, but mats that look the coolest aren’t necessarily the best. Not when your palms and feet get sweaty and the cool mat becomes slippery.”

Anyone who’s done the tiniest bit of research, knows there are A LOT of yoga mats out there. The 173x61-inch ones, thinner ones, thicker ones, longer ones, grippier ones, Turkish kilim-printed ones, and (how can there not be), eco-friendly ones. Some are made from replanted rubber, plant fibre — bamboo, jute, the ones that claim to use no PVC or EVA or any synthetic rubber. Something I learnt was that Lululemon’s black mat (5mm one is for Dh290) never goes on sale.

There are some mats that have a lifetime guarantee, like the Manduka Pro Series (Jatta’s used hers for nine years now, it’s in great shape, she says). Tara Danishmand, the Middle East distributor for Manduka (American, not a “die-hard yogi,” but keeps up) says the 2017 Spring collection of Manduka mats will be available in Dubai in two weeks (at Kata & Asana, Barsha Mall, in Dubai). And there’s a jute mat (called eKOTerra) coming out by August, for the “novelty people,” as Tara puts it.

The brand Stadium in Dubai used to stock mats from the company Carrot Banana Peach that had bamboo mats, (‘Latex-free, avoiding the use of phthalate plasticisers and does not emit harmful toxins either in production or in use.’). A salesperson told me they discontinued those mats three months ago. How much were they for? Dh365 original price, on sale for Dh125. (When I asked a colleague, would you buy a yoga mat for about 400 bucks, I got an emphatic: are you kidding me, it’s a mat. You lay on it! I woudn’t spend more than 30 bucks on one!)

Jordanian national Hiba Kandalaft is a life transitions coach and mother of two who practices yoga a couple of times a week. Last heard, she was heading for a class of swing yoga at Al Quoz (“I’m just happy to make it to the gym or the studio”). She doesn’t have a yoga mat at the moment. Uses the ones they provide in class. “I’m very basic. I used to have my own mat — I don’t remember what brand. It was thin, organic, used to stick to the floor. Then my husband took it for a yoga retreat in California and (probably) left it there.”

Hiba says, if she were to buy a yoga mat again, after losing that old favourite, she would look into its origins, where it was made, what it was made of, and would spend up to Dh500 on a good mat. A fan of Lululemon pants, Hiba says, “I’m attracted to athleisure in general. I have friends who want to know about lipstick and nail polish. I want to know where your yoga mat is from.”

And then there are the more detached ones. Renato Koch, Brazilian, been in Dubai just under seven years, is a Sivananda yoga teacher. He used to be in an “aggressive corporate environment” with a Brazilian foods company. He attributes his survival of that environment to his interest in ancient philosophies and spiritual healing groups. What about yoga mats? He says he has no idea what brand his yoga mat is. “What matters,” he says, “is the quality of the practice, not the quality of the mat”. Another great quote. But in a place like Dubai, especially, surely you can’t help but be drawn to the consumerist aspect a bit? Does he see that a lot in his students? “In a class, there will always be 10-20 per cent in it for the image of yoga. And often, the teachers more than the students,” he says, referring to “the posting and the showing off”. He says a lot of people are concerned with branding and labels, the externals. “What about going inwards?” Words to live by.

nivriti@khaleejtimes.com Nivriti favours quirky, human interest stories

A mat has to stick, it has to have a certain heaviness. But find out what works for you. Your mat is as personal as your practice. — Jatta Kristiina Tjurin

In a class, there will always be 10-20 per cent in it for the image of yoga. What matters is the quality of practice, not the quality of the mat. — Renato Koch

The mat has done very well in UAE. It comes with a lifetime guarantee. Our mats are made of replanted rubber. The carbon footprint is offset. —Tara Danishmand

I’m attracted to athleisure in general. I have friends who want to know about lipstick and nail polish. I want to know where your yoga mat is from. — Hiba Kandalaft