Yoga mat recommendations (UK)

SuffolkSally

I'm hoping someone can give me a heads up here!

I've recently taken up Hatha yoga and really enjoy it.

I want to buy a mat - the ones provided aren't great and I'd rather have my own. I'm 6' tall with very long limbs, and so I've been looking at the longer and wider options - but I need to transport it around, so bulk/weight could be an issue. And I don't want to upset other class users by taking up an unfair amount of space.

There's loads of info on the internet of course, but for a novice it's all rather confusing!

Has anyone got any suggestions for ones I should consider buying? Budget isn't a major problem but I don't like to pay over the odds for things - happy to invest in a good product, but not to pay for the label, if that makes sense.

yoginimary

I love my manduka. It's really heavy but nearly indestructible. I'm sure they have these in the UK as they are made in Germany. If you go to a class where you are frequently folding up your mat for different poses, a manduka won't work. For that, I like the cheap plastic ones.

SuffolkSally

Thanks for that - I'll look them up. I wouldn't have to shift it about much at class, but would need to get it there and back, and find storage space...

Yogi_Carl

Welcome to Yoga, Sally. I second my friend's suggestion to try Manduka mats. Excellent quality and I love the fact that they are manufactured by a company who operate a a zero-waste, zero-emissions process.

In the UK, look up a website supplier called YogaMatters.

I bought a standard weight Manduka (£45) and it has served me well for about three years so far and is going strong.

A good mat makes all the difference.

SuffolkSally

Thanks for the help! After much head-scratching, I found one I like at Ruth White yoga - they get a very good write up. It was the only place I could find the size I wanted (200 x 80) plus a reasonable balance of quality, comfort, and weight. Just under £30 so not too horrendous, and the thought of no longer having to use two of the gym mats (because of my height and reach) which slip, and anyway get sweated on by far too many other people, makes the price well worth paying! I did read up a lot about Manduka and they sound great, but didn't have the size options unfortunately.