Manduka eQua Hand Towel Review

My favourite kind of yoga is Ashtanga. Ashtanga has a set series of sun salutations/vinyasa/poses that you do in the same order every time you practice. Those sun salutations and vinyasas all have downward dogs in them. The ones in the sun salutations are held for five breaths, which sometimes feels like forever.

I’d been having trouble with my hands slipping when I was in downward dog. My hands were sweaty, so they wouldn’t be able to grip the mat very well, leaving my arms and shoulders working harder than they should to keep me from face planting. I asked a co-worker who is also a yoga teacher, as well as a teacher after class, and they both suggested I try a towel at the top of my mat. The towel provides more grip, plus as it gets damp it gets even more grippier.

I browsed the Manduka site, and decided that I wanted to get the Manduka eQua Yoga Hand Towel, Kindred (< affiliate link). As I was going through checkout though, the shipping rate to Canada was pretty expensive. I understand getting items to Canada costs, more, but it shouldn’t be more than the cost of the item that I’m buying. Luckily I found it on Amazon, so I was able to order it there with a reasonable shipping rate.

Now, after almost two months of using it, I love it. It makes downward dog so much easier. I feel like I’m using the muscles I’m supposed to be using now that I’m not trying to keep my hands from slipping. I’m able to focus on the rest of my body instead of worrying about not being able to get a good grip on the mat.

So far I’ve washed it a few times and I haven’t had any issues with it. The first time I washed it though I didn’t put anything else in with in just in case the color bled. I went with the purple version of the towel – it’s called kindred. The towel measures 16” by 26”.

Do you use a towel (hand or full size) during your yoga practice?

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