Need a mat/surface for stretching

[hanzosbm]

Between mobility issues, APT, and just some odds and ends exercises I'd like to do, I'm in need of some floor space to do some stretching and other exercises. The two spots in my home I've identified for this to be possible are the basement (where my home gym is currently) and a guest room. I'm 6'2", and at least one exercise I'm doing involves rolling my entire body side to side, so a little yoga mat ain't gonna cut it. Here's the issues I've got with the two locations I've identified:

Basement: Cement. I've got plenty of floor space here, but our cat also has free reign of this area since his litterbox is in the basement. Anything too spongy and he'll claw on it. In other words, the horse stall mats I have down there now are fine (but not really soft enough for what I'm looking for) but the 2'x2' interlocking mats I have under our elliptical upstairs are torn to shreds.

Guest room: Hardwood floors (so still need something to put down) with enough space. I can close the door so the cat can't get to it, but when my mother comes into town to visit, she usually stays for 3 weeks at a time and I lose this space. So, something that rolled up and could be put out of the way might work, but there's some inconvenience.

I was leaning towards some kind of extra large yoga mat that I could roll up when not in use, but a lot of those are hundreds of dollars. The interlocking foam mats would work, but they're kind of a pain to take apart and put back together to move them.
Wasn't sure if anybody out there is doing something similar and can offer a suggestion that I'm not thinking about yet.

[sera310]

How about a remnant piece of carpet for the basement, rolled up & stored where the cat can't get to it when not in use? Prolly could get that for free or almost free, since you won't care what it looks like.

[robbieuva]

There is a 72" long, 1/2" thick mat with 2 rings for hanging in the Life Fitness outlet right now. Would be about $40 shipped. Might be worth it for the ease of hanging to keep away from your cat. (Link to follow - need to remove the spaces - don't have enough posts for my links to work).

https: //shop .lifefitness .com/collections/life-fitness-outlet/products/fitness-mat-outlet

If you have a Menards nearby, I think their 15% off anything you can fit in a bag (it's allowed to stick way out of the bag) sale is still going on - you could see if they have anything worthwhile.

[hanzosbm]

How about a remnant piece of carpet for the basement, rolled up & stored where the cat can't get to it when not in use? Prolly could get that for free or almost free, since you won't care what it looks like.

Wow! That's a really simple, yet excellent idea. I'd want to get something really thick to over some padding, but like you said, since I don't care what it looks like...
Plus, even if I forget to roll it up and the cat scratches it, it's not the end of the world