How To Store a Yoga Mat So It Doesn’t Crease
Your yoga mat is arguably the most important piece of equipment for regular yoga practice. Naturally, you’ll want to maintain it in good condition to keep your training safe and comfortable. One of the most annoying issues with yoga mats is that they tend to crease if stored improperly.
To prevent a yoga mat from creasing, you should store it rolled up. Fold the mat in half before rolling, leaving some space at the bend. Roll alternating the sides each time to keep the mat straight. If the creases are already there, you can remove them by using heat or applying weight.
If you’re struggling with your mat creasing, don’t worry: there are time-tested solutions to the problem at hand. In this article, you will find many useful tips on storing your mat correctly to prevent it from rolling up, as well as removing the creases if they appear.
1. Store Your Mat Rolled Up
Treating your yoga mat with care starts with making an effort to properly roll it each time and organizing a designated space for storing.
People often think that rolling brings creases, so they fold their mats or store them lying flat. However, while a yoga mat won’t roll up from the ends after folding, you will notice visible creases each time that can eventually ruin your equipment.
Storing your mat flat, on the other hand, exposes it to various kinds of bacteria, as well as dust and dirt. Keeping the yoga mat clean is extremely important, as you make a lot of skin contact with it during practice. Rolling it up is the best way to not only reduce creasing but also protect your health.
Find a nice place to store your mat. It is yet another safety measure, but it also makes your equipment more organized, helping you to store it properly after each practice. Here are some ideas for your inspiration:
- Get a hanger. You can attach a hanger to a wall or door in the room where you exercise or usually store your equipment.
- Storage cart. This one can help you easily organize all your training equipment and conveniently store it in one place. It also looks aesthetically pleasing, bringing more joy to the boring process of cleaning up after practice.
- Display rack. Level advanced! It makes more sense to get a display rack if you own multiple mats or if others in your family do yoga, too, and have mats of their own.
2. Roll the Mat Leaving Some Space in the Fold
Folding your mat before rolling it up makes the process much easier and also keeps the top surface on which you exercise clean at all times (read this article to find out which side of your yoga mat should be facing up).
However, as I’ve mentioned, folding can also be the primary source of creases, so it is important to fold your yoga mat correctly to avoid that.
Here’s how to properly roll your yoga mat:
- After practicing, fold your mat as it lies with its top surface facing you. As a result, your working surface should end up inside, protected from dirt and bacteria.
- Fold gently, bringing one side to the other but not quite reaching its end. Leave a few inches exposed for easier rolling.
- Do not apply any pressure to the folded side to avoid creasing. Leave some space in the bend instead of trying to make it lay straight.
- Carefully roll the mat up, starting from the folded side.
Easy as that, you can securely roll your mat up without any creases appearing on it.
3. Alternate the Sides From Which You Start Rolling
This trick works wonders, keeping our mats in good condition and reducing the rolling up on the sides as you get your mat out for practice.
The advice is simple and doesn’t require much additional explanation. Basically, each time you finish a session and proceed to put your mat away, roll it up from a different side.
Alternating the starting points for rolling means changing the rolling direction. As a result, the material is less affected, and your mat doesn’t insist on sticking its sides up at the beginning of your training.
4. Use Heat To Deal With the Creases
What should you do if the creases are already there? Don’t panic; there are a number of solutions available. One of the most effective ones is straightening the wrinkles out using heat.
The most important thing to remember about this method is that your yoga mat should not be exposed to direct sunlight. Yoga mats can be made of various materials, but what they have in common is a bad relationship with sun rays. To avoid damaging the material, turn to other heat sources.
For example, you can use a hair dryer to work on the creased areas. This will help straighten them out without any adverse effects on your mat. Just make sure not to put the hair dryer too close to your mat, as intense heating is also not beneficial for rubber.
Alternatively, you could take your mat out on a hot sunny day, making sure to keep it away from direct sunlight. The high temperature will do the trick. A warm room will also do, although it might take more time for your mat to straighten up.
You can even gently iron your mat to make it flat and remove the wrinkles. If you have ever thought about customizing your mat and creating a unique design that would make it stand out, that’s a great chance to bring some fun to the process!
You can get some iron-on vinyl and apply it to your yoga mat. The heat will both solve your creasing problem and stick the design you have in mind onto your yoga equipment. Just another idea for your inspiration!
Learn more!! see our article Tips To Choose The Best Yoga Mat and maintain for more information.
5. Apply Weight
Finally, you can use weights to deal with creases on your yoga mat. This can be especially helpful if the mat rolls up from the sides and refuses to lay flat. Storing it with some weight applied to each side can fix the issue.
You can use any heavy items for this method. If you have a bunch of chunky hardcover books at home, bring those and place them in problematic areas. If you use weights for exercising and have some lying around, you can put them on your mat, too.
You don’t need much, just something to force the mat to lay flat so the material can stretch and straighten up your yoga mat. This will reduce the creasing, and if you do it before your practice, you also won’t have to deal with the irritating sticking ends that get in the way of yoga training.
Conclusion
Creasing can be a challenging problem that gets in the way of your practice. If you’re looking for a long-term solution that would prevent wrinkles from appearing, your best bet is to store the yoga mat rolled up.
However, make sure you roll it correctly by folding it in half with the top surface facing inwards and leaving some space at the fold. Roll from a different side each time for an even better effect.
If your mat already has creases and you want to get rid of them, this can be done by applying some weight or heat.
