Many people who have purchased the Manduka PRO/PROlite mats have complained about how slippery the mat is even after the salt scrubs, sun baths and every day of practice. In this post I am here to either prove that true or totally debunk it, so read on!
When you get your Manduka PRO/PROlite mat, it would have instructions on the label that would say something like this.
So I followed the process, and put some more tweaks and did more repetitions. Read on to see what I did.
Day 1 (2 June 2020):
Mat received
Salt Scrub (around 1PM under the blazing tropical sun)
Left salt to sit overnight
Day 2 (3 June 2020):
Scrubbed left over salt in the morning
Topped up salt
Let sit under the sun until 1PM
Wiped off the salt with damp cloth
Let sit under the sun again to dry
Practiced on the mat
– quite slippery even if wasn’t sweating yet, I could feel micro salt granules sticking to my skin
Rolled it up and stored indoors overnight
Day 3 (4 June 2020):
Did another salt scrub first thing in the morning (under the sun)
Let sit a few hours
Scrub left over salt then hosed mat to rinse salt off
Let dry under the sun
Practiced on the mat
– the mat became so sticky! But since it’s so hot in the Philippines right now I was sweating buckets and found my hands and forearms slipping off
Laid it out under the sun right after my practice (no salt)
Rolled it up and stored indoors overnight
Day 4 (5 June 2020):
Used the mat for some HIIT exercises
– I could already notice some improvements on the grip. Forearm planks didn’t slide as much, and I only slid when I was really sweating like a faucet.
Salt scrub and left it under the sun (~12 nn)
Scrubbed remaining salt (~2PM) then hosed mat to rinse salt off
Let dry under the sun
Day 5 (6 June 2020):
Used the mat for some circuit training
Laid it out under the sun the whole day
Practiced yoga in the eve
Day 6 (7 June 2020):
Morning HIIT
Day 7 (8 June 2020):
Circuit training
Practiced yoga
– The mat starts to feel like it hugs my hands, and my feet in a nice, firm way in my poses. My knees are usually very knobby but my knees remain comfy all through out my practice.
Day 8 (9 June 2020):
Circuit training
Practiced yoga
– I got a yoga towel before practicing to try it out with the mat. I DID NOT NEED IT AT ALL.
From the days 1 to 7 I was using my mat in the province and the heat there was intense. The moment you get out of the shower, you’re already sweating. So whenever I’m doing workouts, I’m really sweating puddles. Literally. I don’t think the mat was designed for heavy sweating/hot yoga and I thought it’s just unfair to Manduka when the PRO series mats are being dissed about how slippery they get once it is drenched.
For day 8, we got back at our home in the city where I normally do my practice. I got a yoga towel (just in case) prior to practicing yoga back home for the first time with the mat but I actually did not perspire as much as when I was in the province. I did not need the towel at all! The mat is very sticky, it was nicely dense and firm so I felt very stable during my practice.
It has only been more than a week since I received my PROlite mat and I know I have a long more ways to go with this mat to fully break it in but I can already feel the difference in my practice due to the break-in methods I did coupled with the great quality and performance of the mat. I would definitely recommend this mat to anyone who’d ask just like how my yogi friends recommended it to me. I’m glad I trusted their word.
If you choose to try this method, I’d like to know if this worked for you as well. Do comment on this post and share your thoughts. 😀
Dako't Layag 