Let’s face it, even if your favorite yoga mat is bulletproof and will never ever wear out, there’s still a decent chance that you have a collection of yoga mats laying around the house, most likely never to be used for their intended purpose ever again. Eventually, one day you may decide to tidy up the place and gaze in astonishment at all your mats. First, you’ll wonder where the heck they all came from. And second, you’ll wonder what the heck to do with them since you really don’t need old, worn-out mats filling up the corners of every room in your house, do you?
Well, it certainly looks yogic to have a mat in every corner, but then you think to yourself there must be something practical I could do with all these extra pieces of large, spongy, colorful, plastic rectangles. The simple answer:
REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE
After a little personal introspection and Internet research, I compiled this list of 43 creative ways to reuse, recycle, and extend your old yoga mats’ non-yoga related usefulness. Sound fun? Get your scissors ready. Off you go:
My Personal Top 10 Reuse/Recycle Options:
Turn your mat into a bleacher cushion. Great for those hard bleachers when watching sporting events. Here’s how: Step 1) Cut the mat into equal pieces to make one top and bottom (the size of a newspaper laid flat); Step 2) Punch holes about every 2 inches with a paper hole punch all the way around (both top and bottom); Step 3) Take a couple of days worth of newspapers and lay them between the top and bottom (or if you have another old mat to sacrifice, chop it up and use it as the cushioning); Step 4) Use yarn, ribbon, rawhide, etc. to lace the holes and tie off. Oh yeah, pretty sweet, huh? To re-stuff, untie and add new newspaper. Easy to store, lightweight, washable, reusable, and comfortable
Leave the beach towel home and bring your old yoga mat to the beach instead (caution! may induce spontaneous yoga poses on the beach
Save your floors and roll out the old mats for the kids to do messy craft projects on
Along the same lines as number 1, fold mat in four, place in a pillow cover, and you have a cheap and comfy meditation cushion
Donate your old mat to a mat recycling program such as Recycle Your Mat, an eco-conscious organization whose goal is to re-purpose or recycle the world’s unwanted yoga mats. Apparently Manduka offers 20% discount on your next mat purchase if you go this route! Jade Yoga also offers a 3R Program where yoga students can drop off their used up and unwanted mats to participating studios who, with Jade’s help will find local resources to reuse or donate the mats. I’m sure there’s more recycling programs like these, so feel free to comment if you know of other programs that deserve a mention
Enjoy yoga in the wild! Use old mats as a “Guerrilla Yoga” mat alternative (okay, I just mean plain old outside yoga, but Guerrilla Yoga sounds so much more primitive). Most, if not all, “eco” mats are susceptible to damage by the elements and using them for outside practice is not the best idea. Now you don’t have to jack up your good mat doing it
How could the computer geek inside me resist a nice, thick, cushiony yoga mouse pad for surfing the Internet
I really hate rattling stereo speakers. Place cut out yoga mat squares under those noisy stereo speakers to reduce vibration rattle
Do you absolutely love the feel of yoga mat on your feet? Why not cut out yoga mat insoles for all your shoes. Now you’re a true yogi! Oh, wait, no your not unless you’ve tried number 10…
True yogis don’t wear shoes, right? Why not make a pair of flip-flops out of your yoga mat?!? Click the link and/or watch the video below for everything you need to know. You’re going to need these for going to the beach (see #2 above)
Came across this great shoulderstand video on Rand(Om) Bites. Do it right and it feels great; do it wrong and…just don’t do it wrong, okay. Better yet, this is one of those poses best learned at the hands of a skilled teacher before you get too wild and crazy on your own.
Doesn’t your day just feel messed up if you don’t get in at least a few Sun Salutations? Kermit the Frog thinks so. Though yoga for dogs used to be the rage, apparently yoga for frogs is the next up-and-coming craze.
Er, maybe not, but you’re more than welcome to enjoy the singular experience of brushing up on your Sun Salutation skills with everyone’s favorite frog.
A few months ago I experimented with removing running from my exercise routine because I wanted to see how much flexibility I could gain by laying off the daily pavement pounding and sticking with a daily yoga practice. I have a propensity for inflexibility in the first place, but to my surprise, the lack of running really didn’t make that much of a difference in terms of increased flexibility.
However, when I decided it was time to get back out on the streets again, my lungs felt like they were going to collapse. It was at that moment, when the side-cramp and wheezing reached a critical zenith, that I realized I needed to balance out my yoga practice with aerobic exercise.
I still needed running.
While running has many benefits, it can also beat up on the body a little bit, which is why yoga complements it so well. Try some of these recommended stretches/poses from Runner’s World to stay loose and flexible after your next workout.
I guess there could be worse things to be addicted to than books. Every time I walk into a book store, the yoga section in particular tends to keep me occupied weighing the pros and cons of whether I need to buy another yoga book. While I don’t think I’ve ever regretted purchasing a new yoga book, over time I’ve recognized that there are certain books I return to over and over again such as David Swenson’s Ashtanga Yoga Manual and B.K.S. Iyengar’s classic Light on Yoga. I can find answers to most of my yoga questions from those two books alone. Even still, there are tons of other yoga books that I’ve enjoyed and am happy to include in my collection.
Although it’s nice to have the books sorted neatly on shelves at home, I’ve also found it’s nice to have them virtually organized on one of my favorite book websites, LibraryThing.com. I bought a lifetime membership to LibraryThing for $25 over three years ago (still the same price) and have happily enjoyed adding books to my virtual book collection ever since. For book lovers, LibraryThing becomes an extra valuable resource after they’ve entered most of the books from their personal library, wishlists, library books read, e-books, etc., because of the powerful recommendation/anti-recommendation features LibraryThing incorporates. Want to find a new book? Look no further than LibraryThing to steer you in the right direction.
I love shopping for books on Amazon.com, but LibraryThing takes book hunting to a whole new level with its “will you like it?” feature. For example, I ran across the book, “Yoga for Wimps,” clicked on the “will you like it” button, and LibraryThing told me with a “low” degree of certainty that I will probably like the book. From there I searched through the book recommendations on the same page, thought Donna Farhi’s book, “Yoga Mind, Body & Spirit“ looked interesting, clicked on the “will you like it” button, and found out that I will love the book. Hmmm…I might have to check that out next time I’m at a decent bookstore (as in, not in Iraq…).
So even though I love buying and reading new yoga books, I also love keeping them organized, recalling what I enjoyed about each book, and finding future reading material in a fun, simple manner. LibraryThing has a ton of other features, and for the yoga book lover, or just plain old bookaholic looking for a little virtual book organization, I highly recommend LibraryThing.
Without the breath, yoga is just a lot of bending. With the breath, yoga transforms. Ujjayi breath provides the mind-calming rhythmic hum that naturally moves the body from one moment to the next. The sound of the Ujjayi breath reminds me of ocean waves crashing onto the shore, running back out to sea, and then crashing back into the shore again, and again. So peaceful and relaxing, yet so full of strength and power.
Consider these simple tips on correct yogic breathing from Lino Miele, who states:
Awareness (consciousness) of the breath is the basis of a correct practice of the asana (posture). Practice Ujjayi breathing. Keep the throat relaxed and open, and apply a slight closure of the glottis. The air that enters and exits will produce a sound; the quality of the Ujjayi breath should be gentle, deep and strong. The breath is complete when the lungs are either completely full or completely empty.A deep exhale ends below the navel. A deep inhale will expand the back and the thoracic cage, filling the area around the heart.
Though somewhat simple to describe, correct Ujjayi breathing takes persistent practice, usually with continual reminders to refocus on the breath. Sometimes it’s tough to not rush through a practice, giving half breaths for each of the movements. With Lino Miele’s breathing advice in mind, I recommend paying extra attention to feeling your lungs expand on inhale and contracting your lower abdominals upon exhale. Imagine your torso as if it were a sponge filling up with water on inhale and wringing itself dry on exhale.
When we practice zazen our mind always follows our breathing. When we inhale, the air comes into the inner world. When we exhale, the air goes out to the outer world. The inner world is limitless, and the outer world is also limitless. We say “inner world” or “outer world,” but actually there is just one whole world. In this limitless world, our throat is like a swinging door. The air comes in and goes out like someone passing through a swinging door. If you think, “I breathe,” the ” I ” is extra. There is no you to say “I. ” What we call ” I ” is just a swinging door which moves when we inhale and when we exhale. It just moves; that is all. When your mind is pure and calm enough to follow this movement, there is nothing: no ” I , ” no world, no mind nor body; just a swinging door.
Breathe in, breathe out…Open door, shut door, open door…
I sat down tonight to read a few pages in the September Yoga Journal and came across the many wonderful “reflections” paid tribute to Pattabhi Jois. In one of the reflections, David Williams recalls the introduction and training in Ashtanga yoga he received from “Guruji,” including one of Guruji’s early visits to America in 1975. After two months of teaching daily Mysore-style classes, Guruji had one night before returning home, and Williams sought parting words of wisdom.
I asked, “Guruji, you have seen my life, you have met my friends. As a big yogi to a little yogi, do you have any advice for me?”
“Yes,” Guruji replied. “Each morning wake up. Do as much yoga as you want. Maybe you’ll eat, maybe you’ll fast. Maybe you’ll sleep indoors, maybe you’ll sleep outdoors. The next morning, wake up. Do as much yoga as you want. Maybe you’ll eat, maybe you’ll fast. Maybe you’ll sleep indoors, maybe you’ll sleep outdoors. Practice yoga, and all is coming!“
Not only do I love that story (and all the rest of the tributes) for the great history it captures, but also for the truth of the philosophy conveyed in such simple words:
Wake up every day
Practice yoga every day
Accomplish those two tasks and the rest of life’s little details take care of themselves.
Many people talk themselves out of starting a yoga practice with a variety of excuses. It’s especially true for beginners who have never been to a class before and don’t really know where to begin. It can seem a bit intimidating at first. I know from experience — we all have a million excuses for avoiding a healthy lifestyle. Not enough time. No place to work out. Don’t know the poses. Too tired. Out of shape. Don’t have the money for classes. Body doesn’t look right or bend right. Lots of excuses. While I don’t blame anyone for making these excuses, because I made them myself, the truth is, most of our excuses are merely rationalizations so that we can continue to be lazy, tired, and out of shape.
But getting into the yoga habit isn’t nearly as hard as you may think. While it’s probably best for beginners to take a few classes to get the fundamentals down, the beauty of yoga is that it does not cost a lot of money, doesn’t [have to] take tons of time, only requires enough space for a yoga mat, and it rejuvenates the tired body and wandering mind. Once you get some of the basics down, yoga is a simple and effective tool for creating the healthy, happy, fulfilling lifestyle that we’re all seeking.
So, if you’re one of those people who would like to do yoga, but have been held back by lame excuses, now is your chance to take the initiative for your physical and mental well-being. Overcome fear of the unknown and enjoy this hour long yoga practice from Yoga Today, designed specifically as an introduction for beginners. No more excuses!! Make good. Make yoga!
Let’s face it, even if your favorite yoga mat is bulletproof and will never ever wear out, there’s still a decent chance that you have a collection of yoga mats laying around the house, most likely never to be used for their intended purpose ever again. Eventually, one day you may decide to tidy up the place and gaze in astonishment at all your mats. First, you’ll wonder where the heck they all came from. And second, you’ll wonder what the heck to do with them since you really don’t need old, worn-out mats filling up the corners of every room in your house, do you?
.
Without the breath, yoga is just a lot of bending. With the breath, yoga transforms. Ujjayi breath provides the mind-calming rhythmic hum that naturally moves the body from one moment to the next. The sound of the Ujjayi breath reminds me of ocean waves crashing onto the shore, running back out to sea, and then crashing back into the shore again, and again. So peaceful and relaxing, yet so full of strength and power.
I sat down tonight to read a few pages in the September Yoga Journal and came across the 
