Mat Life

To own or not to own? That is the question. When I first started participating in studio classes at the gym and worked as a barre fitness instructor, I used whatever mats were already in the studio. Sometimes I would spray and wipe them down before practice. Other times, I would lay a towel down on a usually-stinky one, figuring I would eventually sweat more on it, anyway. It's not that I didn't own a mat; I did. Being the germaphobe that I am, was I just being careless, lazy, clueless, rebellious (lol), nonchalant, frugal?

Six years into my time as a fitness instructor, I began bringing my own mat on a regular basis to two different locations. I discovered a spare one at home, not recalling how I even came to own it. I no longer had to take my clean "at-home" mat out in public. I purchased a mat strap with the words "Inhale Exhale" for transporting my mat. The small, seemingly trivial ritual of unrolling the mat before practice and then tightly and mindfully rolling it up afterwards actually became quite significant. Those rituals became part of my practice, not a nuisance nor an afterthought. Carrying my own mat into the studio and back out with me brought the experience to a new level.

Then my "at-home" mat became everything. COVID-19 happened. With the pandemic forcing us all into quarantine, our living room became the sole studio and my workplace. One month into quarantine, I acquired two new Gaiam yoga mats through my Amazon Prime account - one for my daughter and another one for me - since our usual mats started to wear from the constant use and leave blue and magenta "mat bits" all over the hardwood floor. I had been leading virtual classes five to six times weekly; my daughter joined me for the majority of them. I prepared for class on my mat, warmed up on my mat, taught class from my mat, and wound down on that same mat. Sometimes, I would even fall asleep on it, while contemplating life or decompressing.

My "going out" mat, which had spent quarantine in the hatch of my Pilot after being thoroughly sprayed with Lysol, went back to work soon after. Four months into the pandemic, I was recruited by a fellow fitness instructor to join an outdoor six-week challenge group. A mat was required for most of the classes, including the one I would be leading. Between uses, that mat would lie out under the sun to dry and sanitize, sometimes after spending a session soaking up rain water from a recent summer sprinkle or downpour. Refreshed by day's end, the mat was ready to go again. It acquired some red stain from the track upon which it often lies.

But this isn't just about the mats. This is about ownership. When you own your mat, you are owning your workout, your fitness journey, your health, your life. You are dedicating yourself to some much-needed, well-deserved "me" time. Most practices on the mat are designed to build strength, gain flexibility, increase stamina, and improve stability, both physically and mentally; they require mindfulness and internal as well as external focus. Think yoga, barre, Pilates, core work.

Although my primary practice was inspired by the ballet-barre warm-up and, as its name suggests, uses a barre to stabilize you through most of the session, there is also a good portion of it that works best on a mat, your personal mat. Even on days when you don't have the energy to complete an entire workout or practice, rolling out your mat and simply sitting or lying on it to quiet your mind, body, and soul through some well-intentioned, thoughtful breaths will do you a world of good. Then when you've achieved that quietness and relaxation, mindfully roll up your mat and know that you were just in control of all that you did.

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