Last week, I noticed that some of my yoga mats are looking pretty tired and worn out.
When we are lucky enough to practice outside, they can sometimes get muddy or dirty; We stick stickers or name tags on them, then when ripped off, it takes some of the mat away with it; And although I regularly scrub them, or stick them in the washing machine, some marks I just cannot get rid of.
Feeling a little guilty about tossing them straight in the garbage bin, I turned to Google to see if there was something I could do with my old, ready to retire mats, and as always, Google had an answer!
Yoga Australia are trying to lesson the ecological footprint of yoga in Australia. Their head office in Victoria collect old yoga mats and props. Those items that are in good shape are given to yoga based charities, community projects and homeless shelters. Extremely old mats are sent to animal shelters to be used as mats for bedding.
For those of us not in Victoria, there is a whole list of drop off points around Australia. Click here to find out where your nearest drop off point is. If you're in the Sutherland Shire, you have the choice of Wollongong, Bulli or Surry Hills.
Over the Christmas break I will be sorting through my yoga mats, and pulling aside those ones that are ready for retirement to be dropped off for recycling. If you have an old, dusty yoga mat laying around the house, please get in touch and I can add it to my pile for recycling.
As Yoga Australia say - "let's green the yoga scene!"
Do you have any other great ideas or uses for old yoga mats? Share your up cycling ideas in the comment section below!