Your FlowSpace mat is here. Everything you need to know.

Your FlowSpace mat inflates in under three minutes, deflates in under five, and folds back into its carry bag in one motion. This walks through each step so your first session goes properly, and every session after it. Worth bookmarking.

What is in the box

Open it up and you should have four things.

• The mat, rolled and secured inside the carry bag
• The electric pump, with its power cord and the inflation and deflation nozzle attachments
• The carry duffle, with a shoulder strap
• The repair kit, a patch and adhesive. You will probably never open it

Before the first inflation, lay the mat flat on a clean surface and look it over. Check the valve cap is tight and that nothing happened to it in transit.

Getting the wrap off

The mat comes wrapped in plastic. Take the wrap off with your hands, not with scissors and not with a knife.

This is the one step where you can damage a brand new mat in a second. A blade through the wrap is a blade into the surface underneath it. Nothing in the box needs cutting open.

Inflating it

Two to three minutes, start to finish.

1. Unroll the mat on a flat surfaceIndoors or outdoors. Any flat ground works.
2. Find the inflation valveIt is on the side of the mat, under a screw cap. Take the cap off and put it somewhere you will not lose it.
3. Attach the inflation nozzle to the pumpThe nozzle pushes into the valve and locks in place.
4. Plug the pump in and switch it onYou will hear it filling. It does not need watching.
5. Check the firmness at two minutesPress your palm flat on the surface. Firm, not soft and not bouncy. If it needs more, run the pump another thirty to sixty seconds.
6. Take the nozzle off and screw the valve cap back onDo this straight away and do it tight. A loose cap lets air out while you train, and it is the single most common reason a mat goes soft mid session.

For grappling you want it firm enough that you do not feel the ground underneath when you post a hand. For yoga or stretching, a little softer is fine.

Your first session

Once it is up, it is ready. There is no breaking-in period and nothing to adjust.

Move around on it for a few minutes before going hard. The surface is grippy, and your feet and knees will thank you for warming up before full speed drilling.

Deflating it

Three to five minutes, and the pump does the work. There is no squeezing or rolling by hand.

1. Switch the pump to deflateThere is a switch, or a nozzle that reverses. Set it to pull rather than push.
2. Attach the deflation nozzle to the same valveSame spot as inflating. The pump now draws air out.
3. Switch it on and leave itTwo to three minutes and it is mostly flat.
4. Press the last of the air outWalk across it, or push down with your hands, to move the air the pump cannot reach.
5. Take the nozzle off and screw the cap back onTight, before you start rolling.

Folding it back into the bag

This is the step people get stuck on the first time. Do it in this order and it goes back in cleanly.

1. Start flat and fully deflatedAll the air out before anything else happens.
2. Fold it in thirds lengthwiseOne long edge into the centre, then the other long edge over the top of it.
3. Roll from the valve endTightly and evenly. Do not let it go slack in the middle.
4. Keep your weight on the rollCompress it as you work toward the far end.
5. Slide the roll into the bag, valve end firstIf it will not go in, unroll and start again. The roll has to be tight.
6. Zip it upThe pump goes in the side pocket or alongside the mat.

The first time takes a few goes. By the third time it is under two minutes. The whole thing is decided at the start of the roll: a loose start will not fit at the end.

Cleaning and care

The surface is what makes the mat grip, so looking after it is about lifting sweat and dirt off that coating rather than scrubbing at it. A few habits keep it right for years.

• Wipe it down after every session with a damp cloth. Sweat and oils break the surface down if they sit on it
• Let it dry before you pack it. A wet mat rolled into the bag is an odour problem later
• Store it rolled rather than flat. Long spells folded flat put creases in it, and the roll in the carry bag is the right storage position anyway
• Keep it away from anything sharp. It is durable, it is not puncture proof, so clear the floor before you train

• A spare electric pump
• Flow Link connectors, to join two mats

If you need to patch it

The repair kit in the box is a patch and adhesive, and it is there because a training surface lives on the floor of a gym and floors have things on them.

1. Clean the area around the punctureIt has to be dry and free of dust for the adhesive to take.
2. Apply the patch and press it down firmly
3. Leave it to cure for 24 hours before you re-inflatePutting pressure behind a patch that has not cured is how a small repair becomes a large one.

If the damage is on a seam, or bigger than the patch, stop and message us below rather than trying it. Seams are welded rather than glued and they are not a patch job.