In a Facebook post about my real sadness and guilt over the condition of our seas, I wrote the following:

"Intrigued by this article because of its reference to mental health, I was surprised to discover its power over my conscience. Something I am passionate about at present is the pollution of our oceans from plastic. I recently heard that glitter is contributing to the pollution because it gets so easily into our water system. At my sister's sparkly themed wedding recently, we were all splashing glitter on our faces, caught up in the celebration and fun of the occasion. It wasn't until the following morning in the shower, when my heart sank as the sparkles ran down the drain. I felt dreadful. During mindfulness Level 2 training the following day, I was reminded just how difficult it is to switch off auto pilot. Sometimes, we just don't think.

Now this article speaks about the fact that PVC yoga mats when washed, release plastic into the water. I just purchased new mats for my studio so again, my heart sank.

In the meantime, on a positive note, another sister found a reference to a yoga mat made of wool! The downside is it costs £220 and you can't wash it. You can only air it in the sun... What to do? If I had 3 times the number of clients, I could restock my studio with sustainable equipment and give my mats to the homeless. Or, if all my clients purchased their own eco mat, I wouldn't have to use mine so often and would therefore not have to wash them so frequently either."

And so it continues...

The article I referred to also discusses how yoga, as a route to mindfulness can support us to make better choices. Clearly I was not being mindful on the day of the wedding, but as Cathy-Mae, my mindfulness teacher explained, 'we are not mindful all of the time' (we are human after all). The route to mindfulness is through the moment to moment awareness of breath and bodily sensations we experience during our class. This can be taken off the mat in order that we learn to pause before we act or react.

I invite you to educate yourself on eco yoga mats and to purchase your own. You can simply spray the surface of your mat with an environmentally friendly cleaner from time to time rather than putting it in the washing machine and I will not therefore have to wash the studio mats so often either. Below are links to a range of mats.

But let's not stop there!

If you travel to yoga, why not ask the others in your class about lift sharing. Can you spare an extra few minutes to wait for one another or go out of your way by 5 minutes? Wearing extra layers to class would enable me to turn the heating down and save energy. Maybe you could wear wrist warmers for when we lie on the floor... If you have any other ideas, please leave a comment. I'd love to hear your views.

If we all do a little bit, we are helping to lessen the effect on nature and instead, we get to enjoy the wonders of the world for generations to come.

Here are some links to purchasing an Eco yoga mat. Please note that I made the mistake of practicing on my rubber mat outside; it began to melt which literally meant I stuck to it and it stuck to me (pretty stupid of me really). They are also heavy so the Manduka Pro-Lite might be better for carrying to and from class. I prefer the Manduka range for sustainability, plus they have a lifetime guarantee. Be informed and make your choice. Let's make Birchwood Yoga more sustainable!

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Here is a link to Yogamatters who stock a whole range of Eco mats ranging from £28 to £70
https://www.yogamatters.com

And here are some other innovative eco mats:
https://fifthbreath.com/product/practice-mat/ £220!
https://liforme.com/liforme-yoga-mat.html £100