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One of the sources of frustration for a lot of yogis is slipping during practice while trying to achieve or hold a yoga pose. A good yoga session not only rejuvenizes and reinvigorates you, it also causes you to sweat which will cause a yoga mat to get slippery and sometimes even cause a yoga towel to get slippery.
If you find yourself still slipping even with the use of a yoga towel our team of yoga enthusiasts has put their heads together to come up with the 10 causes for a slippery yoga towel and ways to fix each of those causes.
If you want to learn more about yoga towels, you can start with our definitive guide to yoga towels.
1. Poor Quality Yoga Towels
Poor quality yoga towels are one of the primary reasons for slippery yoga towels. You’ll even find counterfeit yoga towels of name-brand yoga towels that are not made from quality materials yet look like the original.
Counterfeit yoga towels are a lot cheaper than the original. So it is understandable why a lot of people are enticed into buying them but, know that these kinds of towels scrimp on the material. Therefore, counterfeit materials do not provide good value for money.
Remember that the primary purpose of a yoga towel is to keep you from slipping and not to just look pretty (though some do both). If you buy a yoga towel that is really cheap, you’re going to get what you paid for.
Yoga towels are an investment. But, there are also a lot of yoga towels in the market that are affordable. We have created a review article on the best yoga towels on the market today. There are plenty of affordable towels that provide a good traction grip that doesn’t cut a hole in your pockets.
2. Yoga Towel’s Grip Is Not Activated
Yoga towels are designed to get grippier when one sweats. However, most yoga towels need to be damp to activate their grip. This can be done from the beginning of your practice by spraying the towel with a spray bottle of water before every session.
Remember that you do not want to soak your yoga towel. You just need to spray it so that the surface of the yoga towel becomes damp. This moisture mimics sweat and activates the grip of the towel, therefore, preventing you from slipping and sliding during your practice.
3. The Wrong Yoga Towel
Some yoga towels are sold to be pretty and to protect an expensive yoga mat and not to be particularly grippy.
Before you purchase a yoga towel, do some research about the best yoga towels available.
Microfiber is also more absorbent than regular cotton and would go a long way toward keeping you dry during the entire session.
4. No Underside Grip
Some yoga towels do not have an underside grip to help them say in place on top of your yoga mat. This can cause your towel to easily move or bunch up during practice. If you feel like you are unstable, take a moment to decide if you are slipping or if your towel is slipping.
Look for a yoga towel that has grippy undersides such as silicon nibs, rubber, or pockets that you can insert the corners of your yoga mat into.
5. Yoga Towel Is The Wrong Size
Yoga towels come in different sizes. It is important to get a towel that is the same size are your yoga mat. A short yoga towel will not keep your entire body dry while a too-long yoga towel will easily bunch or slip.
Make sure you know the size of your mat before purchasing a yoga towel.
6. It’s the Yoga Mat Not The Towel
Yoga towels protect your mat while giving you more traction. However, brand new yoga mats that are not yet broken in sometimes have a slippery surface. If your yoga towel is slipping on your mat but has a grippy underside, then consider your yoga mat.
Here is a link to an article where we discuss the ways to break in a yoga mat faster.
A properly broken-in mat will provide you with the grip, traction, and stability that you need in practice. Once you have your yoga mat broken in, you can start using your yoga towel to protect it and keep it smelling fresher for longer periods.
7. You Need Time
Sometimes, it takes time to get used to new yoga gear. The reason for your slipping could be that you need more time to get used to using your yoga towel.
We refer to our yoga ‘practice’ because yoga is a process of always improving yet never mastering. Each time you add a new pose or new piece of equipment, do yourself the kindness of remembering that you are going to need practice.
8. Lack of Arm Strength
Sometimes slippery yoga towels are actually due to the lack of strength of the yogi. Yoga helps develops the different muscles in our body, especially the ones we tend to ignore. Therefore, building upper body strength can help you overcome slipping hurdles.
People tend to spout the adage that “Practice Makes Perfect”. There if some truth in this, but some untruth. If you keep practicing, then you get better at it…though never perfect. Do not let your lack of strength and the slips and tumbles that you encounter discourage you from the practice.
9. Lack Of Lower Body Strength
Lack of lower body strength can also be a factor in why yoga towels slip. It might be that your feet don’t have the yoga strength to really ground and grip the yoga towel. Building lower body strength can help you grip the towel and mat better for a more stable practice.
Continuously doing yoga will help develop the muscles of your feet. In time and with consistent practice, you would be strong enough to grip the mat better.
Don’t get frustrated! Just keep doing the work and you’ll find yourself getting better each session
10. Lack of Core Strength
Core strength is also important at it keeps our form steady and stable during practice. As you develop more core strength you’ll find that in poses such as Down Dog you’ll have more strength to pull your hands and feet towards each other which will improve your stability.
Final Thoughts About Slippery Yoga Towels
There are multiple reasons why a yoga towel can be slippery. Sometimes, the issue is the gear itself. Sometimes, the cause is our own place on the journey.
Invest money in the best yoga gear that fits your budget and invest your time in yourself. This is a yoga practice, so practice and embrace where you are today in your journey.
All experienced yogis were once beginners. We have all slipped and slid while doing yoga and we all will do so again.
If we missed anything that you’ve discovered might make a yoga towel slippery, please let us know in the comments below. We’re always happy to have new yogi friends!