Sports mats: types and choices

A gymnastic mat is a popular element of any gym, it is purchased for schools, kindergartens, sections and resorts, and mats are also suitable for home training. Choosing a product requires a responsible approach, since its main task is to ensure safety during training.

Whatever the sports training, wherever they take place - they should be as safe as possible. To avoid injuries, indoor mats are laid. Their main function is to provide a comfortable level of rigidity during the landing of the athlete. Mats are indispensable when creating a sports zone, they are often installed as a supplement to the sports complex and the Swedish wall, and are also used during fitness classes in the apartment.

Thanks to their cushioning ability, mats soften falls and bumps and thereby prevent injuries. Gymnastic mats are to the liking of both kids who like to tumbling, and adults who decide to pump up muscles.

Any sports mat should be produced in accordance with the requirements of GOST, which means that it must have the following characteristics:

• depreciation - this is the ability of the product to deform at the moment of impact and elastically assume a physiological form corresponding to the characteristics of the athlete's body
• elasticity - the property in response to a shock to return mechanical energy.

If there is a sports training in the hall, be sure that the mat will not lie idle. When children are engaged, they use products of one kind, while adults use completely different ones.The most important thing when choosing a suitable model is not to make a mistake with the dimensions. If the mat is too small, there is a high risk that the athlete will not fit into its size and land at a distance, in which case injuries are unlikely to be avoided.

Depending on the functional purpose There are several types of products:

• wrestling;
• gymnastic;
• athletic
• children’s.

• Wrestling tatami, as the name implies, are optimal for martial arts. This type of activity requires a sufficiently large and very dense carpet, the thickness of the mat in this case can be from 40 to 100 mm.

• Athletic Mats used for training in fitness and athletics, the height of the coating varies from 50 to 200 mm, the material is medium or high density.

• Gymnastic models indispensable for training in acrobatics and gymnastics, the thickness is 30-100 mm, the filler density is at an average level.

In the manufacture of mats, different types of fillers can be used.

• Furniture foam - This is a fairly soft material that can have a wide variety of density parameters. So, children's mats are made of foam rubber with a density of 23-25 ​​kg / m3, options for adult athletes have a density of 27-30 kg / m3. Such a filler very poorly tolerates the effects of water and temperature fluctuations, therefore, if the rules for caring for it are not followed, it wears out pretty soon and becomes completely unusable.
• Foamed Polypropylene - a cheap and very practical filler, these qualities ensure its wide demand in a wide variety of industries, from building construction to the manufacture of sports equipment. The material is hygroscopic and can withstand the temperature range from -80 to +80 degrees. In sports mats use foamed polypropylene with a density parameter of 25-3 kg / m3.
• Foam Foam characterized by the highest density parameters. This material has a rather high cost, because it is used mainly for "big sport" in the manufacture of professional mats.
• Rubber - sports mats are made from this material, which may vary in thickness. Such mats are very popular in equipping sports fields on the street. Rubber is wear-resistant, it is not afraid of moisture, the material retains its operational characteristics both at low and high temperatures.

The durability and functionality of the sports mat largely depends on the type of surface. The cover must be anti-slip - it is very important that moments are excluded in which a person can slip on a wet surface. For this, EVA blades are usually used. The requirements for children's and ordinary school mats are not so strict, the main thing for them is sufficient strength.

For educational institutions and sports sections usually purchase tent covers with PVC coatingAs a rule, the seams in them are not stitched, but soldered. Such products are reliable, long-term use, so they quickly pay back their already affordable price.

All industrial mats can have different configurations.

• Folding sports mat - A mobile model consisting of several puzzle blocks firmly connected to each other. These mats can quickly change their shape, if necessary, they are quickly laid out and used as a softening flooring, and then easily assembled. Such mats are optimal for schools and small sports sections, as well as for home use.

• Polyvalent Mats - such models are a set of several curly mats, they are fixed with Velcro on a large common basis. The design of disparate blocks can be composed in any order, which opens up the widest prospects for the use of such equipment.

• Mats Tangram - These products include 7 base blocks, most often they are used for developing activities with young children. As you know, kids are very active and need the most safe territory for games. Tangram type mats solve these problems completely.

• Inflatable mats and karemat - such equipment is suitable for performing simple exercises, including changing body positions and static postures, because they are often used for yoga or physical training lessons. Such models are optimal as bedding if the gym floor is cold and dirty.

The shape and size of a sports mat largely depends on what purpose you will use it for. For example, for halls where athletes perform exercises of various types of complexity, preference should be given to classic rectangular models, but there are no strict requirements for using the house, products can be oval and round.

Standard sports mats are available in the size of 200x100x10 cm, but if you wish, you can always purchase products with dimensions of 1 on 1, 2 on 2 and 3 on 3 m. However, it is difficult to find such models for sale, most likely you will have to make them individually to order. The thickness of the mats varies in the range from 30 to 200 mm, however, as practice shows, the most popular models with a parameter of 40-100 mm, since it is in this range that the maximum correspondence of cost and quality is observed.

One of the most popular and popular models of floor mats are budo-mats, for example, “dovetail”. This type of coating is used in many sports, so they can be seen in the vast majority of gyms. This product has significant advantages in comparison with other types of coatings, and first of all, it is the ability to combine composite modules. To assemble a mat of any desired size, each block is fixed to each other using a bending tape, so all the work of collecting and disassembling the structure takes a matter of minutes.

The main advantages of the dovetail include the following.

• Security - minimizing the risk of injury to trainees is always in the first place when choosing a mat. For the "dovetail" use ethylene vinyl acetate - a strong and environmentally friendly material that can withstand heavy loads. Such mats can be laid for wrestling - karate, taekwondo, sambo and judo.
• Anti-slip options - The surface of the mat allows the athlete to better balance. In addition, it softens the fall and minimizes the chance of bruises and injuries.
• Versatility - “dovetail” is optimal in gyms and at home, the coating is popular in kindergartens and schools.
• Due to the reliable locking system, individual blocks do not move apart, and during use do not lose elasticity.
• Due to the high thermal insulation component, mats can be laid in open areas and in poorly heated rooms.
• This type of mat is easy to clean and dries quickly., the material is not susceptible to infection by fungus and mold. All that is required from the owner of the gym is to regularly clean the coating with water and an antiseptic.

When choosing a gym mat special attention should be paid to the following details.

• Product quality - A good sports coating does not have any visual defects, it cannot have uneven seams and protruding threads, hollows and bumps on the surface. Any, even a minor flaw sooner or later leads to damage to the product and increased injury during training.
• Coating material - To date, the best fabric for the manufacture of mats covers is polyvinyl chloride of European production. Pay special attention to the seams - they should be welded, not stitched, and it is desirable that the soldering be double (external and internal). The canvas should not slip, otherwise a person will have time to train from his own sweat. The material should not absorb moisture, otherwise the filler will quickly lose its functionality.
• Pay special attention to the characteristics of the filler itself., it must comply with the conditions and intensity of training, not the least role is played by its softness and ability to restore shape.

Please note - high-quality mats can not be cheap. The high price is fully justified, because a low-quality mat does not adequately protect the athlete, which significantly increases the risk of bruises, dislocations, fractures and other injuries. Decide on the necessary size of the cushioning surface in advance, think about the location of the inventory. If you have a small sports corner at your disposal, it is best to purchase a collapsible model or a mat puzzle.

If you want your sports mat to serve you faithfully for many years - follow simple operating instructions.

• After purchasing and transporting the coating, it should be wiped on all sides with a damp cloth and soap solution to rinse off any dust that has settled in the store and transported to the destination.
• Mats can only be installed on dry and clean floors.
• In the process of flooring, it is necessary to avoid bending of the canvas, otherwise deformation of the surface is not excluded, during further operation, such a canvas will not fit flat to the floor.
• It is better to lay mats together, especially large ones.
• To maintain hygiene, the mats should be wet cleaned regularly. If your model has stitched seams, and foam is used as a filler, water must be avoided, otherwise the operational period of such a mat will be significantly reduced.
• For cleaning, you can use a washing vacuum cleaner or mop.
• During training, it is allowed to move only in sports shoes; if possible, avoid products with a black rubber sole - it will leave prints on the mats.
• Mats are stored in piles, each one can accommodate no more than 40 products, on top of them they cover with a cover or any dense fabric.
• If for some reason the foam rubber has absorbed water, the mat should be removed from the floor and thoroughly dried.

In the next video you will find a description of the production of mats (sports, wrestling, tatami).