Why you should invest in a Valka Yoga Cork Mat

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I often get asked by clients for my recommendations on which yoga mats are the best to practice on. I have bought, tried and tested countless yoga mats over the years and most of those are now gathering dust in a corner!

My favourite mat by far, and the only one who gets to accompany me to classes, is my Valka Yoga cork mat.

I am bit of a hippy by nature and if its labelled natural, sustainable or organic, I’m into it. So I was pretty happy when I came across Valka yoga mats because not only are they great quality, eco-friendly, natural, sustainable and biodegradable, but the designs are also gorgeous and they are great to practise on.

My mats have a hard life.. I practise yoga 5-6 times a week so they have to be able to withstand some pretty heavy use. I have used my cork mat for everything from Restorative yoga - where it insulates your bum against any cold floors, to sweaty vinyasa classes - where the grip improves the sweatier your hands get. It’s still going strong!


There are plenty of cork mats out there on the market, but when it came time to decide what brand to buy for myself and the first Flourish Yoga Studio , my decision was easy to make.

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Here’s why Valka NZ cork mats are the way to go:

  • They are 100% biodegradable, & recyclable - eco-friendly as.

  • Cork is naturally antimicrobial, so they are much healthier to practise on and will never smell like feet! BONUS.

  • Trees don’t need to be cut down for the production of these mats - the tree bark is stripped by hand, which provides a ton of jobs and good income for the communities involved in the harvest.

  • The rubber base is natural tree rubber - and is fused with the cork layer so there are no dodgy, toxic chemicals seeping in through your hands and feet while you do your sun salutations.

  • They are non - slip. The more you sweat the more it grips.

  • Valka Yoga NZ are going carbon neutral by the end of the month by planting a tree for every mat sold. Legends!

If you are considering a mat upgrade or even buying your first ever mat, I definitely recommend investing in a Valka cork mat. Legends that they are, they’ve even given us a special promo code for Flourish Yoga yogis to use! Enter the promo code FLOURISHYOGA15 at checkout to get a 15% off your order with them.

Check out their website here!

Emma Beattie