It has become increasingly important in our modern age to ensure that safety is maintained for all of those who seek to improve their physical health. This is precisely why so many commercial and home gym users have turned to the fitness mat. What is a “fitness mat”? A fitness mat is a purpose-built type of flooring (generally, a rubber mat), made to provide comfort and safety for exercise enthusiasts while in the course of their workouts. Proper fitness flooring is essential because, despite how crucial it is for your overall well-being, exercising can be a potentially dangerous process; one wrong movement, or one misstep can lead to an unfortunate accident. In the unfavorable event you do suffer an exercise-related accident, however, the right fitness mat will go a long way in making sure your safety is maintained as much as possible.

According to one legal writer from LawMatch.com, “it is estimated that 459,978 people were injured while exercising or using exercise equipment in 2012.” With half a million people suffering workout related injuries per year, it becomes clear why exercise mats have become so valued within the fitness community.

Before going straight to purchasing a fitness mat, it is important to consider the differences within the fitness flooring field. Heavy-duty and sport gym exercise mats are an example of an extremely resilient type of rubber matting that is used by commercial fitness facilities everywhere to protect their vulnerable floors. This specific type of matting can range in thickness, however, most usually fall within 3/8 inch to 1 inch thick. For more personal use (home calisthenics, floor exercises, yoga, etc.), there exist more portable kinds of fitness mat. These easily rolled, single rubber mats are generally no more than half an inch thick, and can be constructed from a variety of material (with rubber being the most common and, arguably, most effective).

The benefits of using a cheap floor mat as a fitness mat is that they are typically always available and very affordable. Since most rubber fitness flooring is constructed from recycled rubber, there is no shortage in sight of material for rubber mats. What this means is that rubber fitness mat costs will continue to be low for a long, long time. As an added benefit, by using recycled rubber, exercise mats like these help to reduce your own carbon footprint.

Once you have begun to understand the differences with the fitness flooring field – as well as begun to see the plethora of benefits offered by the fitness mat – you will be ready to purchase the right one for your needs. To do so, check out the deals offered by your local retailer. Oftentimes, fitness flooring retailers near you will offer fair prices and helpful service. Though, if you prefer the convenience and price matching capabilities of the Internet, it is more than possible to find the right kind of rubber matting for your needs on “the Web.” Oftentimes, it takes no more than a few minutes of searching on your preferred web browser before you locate the perfect fitness mat distributor. How’s that for convenient?