Ok - Puzzle mat floor users

L Sass

L Sass

Cathlete
Happy Birthday to me! My basement flooded thanks to the quantitiy of rains that I have never before seen. Unbelievable amounts of water! The basement and workout room was fully finished with carpet and DH says forget it. He ripped out the carpet and we're cleaning up now. The cement slab underneath is drying nicely - so I'm thinking puzzle mats. For those who have done them - do you love them or not? I'll do another search on the topic, but wanted some fresh input as well. Thanks a bunch!

Lorrie


"Pain is temporary - quitting lasts forever"
Candace Grasso, CC-V-6
 
Oh, I love them! I am never going to work out on any other surface again. I got mine here:
http://www.greatmats.com/products/martial-arts-mats-1.html

I got two of the 16-piece sets. I needed half a set to completely cover my workout space, which is roughly 8x6. I had to cut out two pieces in half to make sure everything is flush against my wall and the mat stays in place while I work out. My only beef with the mats is that the edges of the pieces on which I normally do step and kickboxing are starting to wear away. Just tiny little nicks where the edges pop up a little (because the surface underneath is soft and uneven) and get hit by my shoes. But I have extra pieces to replace them with eventually.

Greatmats now has aerobic flooring:
http://www.greatmats.com/products/tileflex.html
They didn't have these before. It's worth checking out. I hope you get these for your birthday. Have a good one!

Pinky
 
Thanks Pinky - were they pricey? Are they easy to care for / how do you clean them? What is your surface underneath? I'm actually thinking of putting them in my whole basement where the carpet had been, so that's like a 30x15 area. I'm just so angry to have lost my workout space. UGH! Thanks for the info, I'll get DH to check out this site.

Lorrie

"Pain is temporary - quitting lasts forever"
Candace Grasso, CC-V-6
 
I love them too! Bought them at Costco a few years ago. I bought a cheap carpet remnant, put that on my cement floor in the basement and then laid the mats over that. Works great!!
Lisa
 
Love 'em - got mine at Sam's Club. A 5 squares x 6 squares area makes a perfect size for all Cathe's workouts.
 
I love mine as well...they are high density and I bought them at Target. I have had them for three years and they have held up remarkable well. In fact, they show little to no wear at all - they are very durable.

Jo
 
I love mine too. I bought them at Sam's Club. Just gotta be sure that you either have them go wall to wall or put weights on them to keep them in place. Mine slipped around a lot and drove me nuts until I "anchored" them down. As for cleaning, all I do is run the vacuum over them. When little doggie prints get on them I just wipe them down. I have only had them about 6 months, so some heavier cleaning might be necessary in the future.


Suz

"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened." - Anatole France

http://www.picturetrail.com/dogs2birds
 
Hi Lorrie! I love the puzzle mats. I was working out on a concrete floor for years before I discovered them about 2 months ago. Sorry to hear about your water situation. Been there many times. My basement gets water in heavy rain so I keep them in large pieces up against a dry area and put them down when I'm working out. The versatility is great, sometimes I need a large area and sometimes a small one, so I just put together what I need.

I got mine at dickssportinggoods.com. They came in 12 packs of 12x12 squares for $9.99 and free shipping if you ordered $99 or more so I ended up getting 10 boxes. Too much, but it was worth it to not have to pay the shipping. My 6 year old uses the extras and does yoga while I'm working out...too cute!

Take care, Melissa
:)
 
Happy Birthday! Yes, I would get them. We have a double layer in our workout room. That wasn't the plan, but I'm glad we have the extra cushion. They do clean up nicely. We've had them since we moved in here which is going on three years. There's no signs of any wear and tear, and I workout out down there 6 out of 7 days. It will be money well spent.

Dallas
http://www.picturetrail.com/chisoxfan
 
Lorrie, the mats were $140 a set, a bit pricey but worth every penny. It has some kind of hard rubber(?) veneer/coating on it that's very easy to clean. I use a Pledge Grab-It with the dry cloth. It only takes a few seconds to cleen. My surface underneath is carpet, which is why the edges of some pieces stick up sometimes. If my flooring underneath were more level, like concrete or hardwood, that wouldn't happen. It's a mat designed for martial arts, so it's great for kickboxing. My son, who can be really hyper, can play on the mats and fall on his face, and I don't worry at all.

Pinky
 
The soreness in my achilles tendons and knees vanished as soon as I put them down (over carpet, pad and the cement slab), never to return.
 
So do you guys just leave these down? I am working out in my bedroom at the moment and I don't want to leave them down all of the time. Just wondering if they're worth getting if you're constantly moving them around...

Marie
 
We spoke with our insurance agent and apparently State Farm has called these storms a "catastrophe" so claims will be more readily addressed. If we're covered I think we're going to do the entire basement floor in puzzle mats - that's a huge area, but based on the great results you all are having, it sounds like the way to go. Thanks for your input! As always, this Cathe family comes through - you all are the best.

Lorrie


"Pain is temporary - quitting lasts forever"
Candace Grasso, CC-V-6
 
I bought mine a few years ago from Great Mats (quick shipping!)also. I purchased enough to cover a 12x10 room cement floor in the basement. They have a variety of colors to choose from and, for me, it was cheaper than having carpet/padding professionally installed. If you order for a "room", Great Mats will send pieces that have finished edges so the edges are smooth instead of the puzzle jagged edges. My basements gets water a few times a year when there is a heavy downpour. I leave the mats down and when there's water, I lift them up, dry the floor with a wet/dry vacuum (and wash/disinfect it), and then wash and dry the mats and put them back --- they are extremely easy to move, rearrage, carry, etc. And they've never had a problem with being wet. I also have not had a problem with mats moving during a workout probably because I have almost "wall to wall" mats. Now I see on Great Mats website that they have a special flooring for aerobics/higher impact stuff ... you might want to check this out if you're going to be making this investment, at least for the workout area of the basement. Deb
 
Thanks Deb - I think we're going to go with those - I've been in touch with Great Mats and they were VERY helpful. My basement is 40x12 with another little cutout of 5x6 - so I need a lot. But it's good to know that these stand up to the repeated 100 year floods we seem to be getting lately!

Lorrie

"Pain is temporary - quitting lasts forever"
Candace Grasso, CC-V-6
 
Sounds good Deb!

Thanks for starting the thread Lorrie (I resurected it last night).

Lorrie - I may be a bit slower ordering - I've redone my kitchen, family room and windows in the office - but I'd love to hear how it turns out for you too :)
 
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