Yoga mats can get rather yucky after just a few weeks or months of use. Not only does dirt and oil rub off from your body, but even in the cleanest of yoga studios, your mat will pick up additional layers of grime and germs from your fellow yogis. And when you roll up your yoga mat after each session, all of that funk gets rolled up and trapped in there. Yes, you could hand wash your mat in the bathtub and wait days for it to dry–or you could do a quick spray down with an effective and great smelling yoga mat spray. Best of all it is easy and inexpensive to make a natural solution for cleaning your favorite yoga mat, and you can customize it’s scent to your preference!
Our DIY germ-killing recipe will clean your mat without any heavy chemicals to harm you. Plus it provides a wonderful fragrance of different fruit and flower-based oils to help calm your mind and lift your mood.
Below is our recipe with instructions to create your DIY, Yoga Mat Spray. You can spray down your mat after each yoga session or just a few times each month, depending on how often you practice.
Yoga Mat Spray Ingredients
- 1 16 oz glass spray bottle
- 1/4 cup witch hazel or vodka or white vinegar *
- 5-10 drops tea tree essential oil
- 10-20 drops of Lavender, Lemon, Peppermint, Rosemary, or Eucalyptus essential oils **
- 1 1/2 cups filtered or distilled water
You can find the ingredients listed in this recipe at most brick-and-mortar health food stores, or at your favorite online shops. (We’ve linked them to Amazon pages for convenience.)
Mat Spray Instructions
- Add witch hazel, vodka or white vinegar to spray bottle.
- Add in essential oils.
- Add water until the bottle is almost full.
- Shake and spray directly onto your mat.
- Wipe clean using a soft towel.
- Let dry and then flip the mat over and repeat on the other side.
- Hang mat to let it dry completely.
*Using vodka or other clear alcohol will help dissolve the essential oils and require less shaking to distribute them in the solution. White vinegar has a strong odor so you will need to add more essential oils to mask the smell.
**You can create your own personal mat spray fragrance by your choice of essential oils to add. We recommend starting simple with a dominant oil that is accented by one other scent. You can hold the bottles next to each other to smell at the same time to help choose which combinations you like. Also, read up on the properties of the oils to choose based on their effects. Below is some basic background on the ones we recommend for this recipe.
- Lavender: Lavender essential oil helps to treat anxiety, certain fungal infections, depression, nausea, and restlessness.
- Lemon: Known for its energizing scent, Lemon essential oil can provide an uplifting boost with its essence. This oil is great for its disinfectant and anti-fungal properties.
- Peppermint: This refreshing oil is known for its ability to give relief from stress, depression, and mental exhaustion. It also has mild anti-microbial properties.
- Tea tree: Tea tree essential oil has strong antiseptic and anti-fungal properties to protect from germs.
- Rosemary: Known for its use among the ancient people of Greece, Rome, and Egypt, Rosemary essential oils have aromas that can increase clarity and insight, reduce nervous tension, and eliminate negativity.
- Eucalyptus: This essential oil is wonderful for rejuvenating your inner spirit while providing a scent that can clear your sinuses and open your chest to encourage deep breathing.
We hope this DIY spray recipe provides a way for you to keep your yoga mat to be clean and germ-free after every use. If you are crafty, you can make spray bottles for all of your yogi friends as great gifts! If you are not a DIY person you can also purchase premade yoga mat spray formulas.
Let us know how this works for you and if you have any other suggestions or recommendations for essential oil combinations or additions.