Nudist camps and Men

[Aslan of Narnia]

How do men keep from having an erection for a good portion of the time at Nudist camps/colonys? I imagine that eventually, you'd be desensitized to people being nude, but what about the time before? I imagine that it would be more of a problem at youth camps, because the males there are just starting to notice the opposite sex and have a lot less control.

[Broomstick]

Have you ever seen real people - NOT airbrushed magazine centerfolds or surgified Hollywood stars - naked?

This is not always a pretty picture.

Haven't been to one myself, but most folks I've talked to who have been say it's not as big an issue as people think. You get used to naked people quickly, and like I said, the average person - pot belly, wrinkles, surgical scars, butt acne, etc. - is not nearly as entrancing as the near-naked crap you see on TV and in the movies.

What I've always wondered about nudist camps is how the issue of women and menstruation is handled. At it's most basic, it would be just plain rude to leave little red seat prints on the furniture. Sure, tampons work, but leaks happen.

[Duderdude2]

Ewwww. Thanks for ruining any pleasing images in my head Broomstick.

[Aslan of Narnia]

Broomstick, here is your answer.

[Mith]

Aslan, thanks for the trip!

that link sent me into the wonderful world of period prints!

i love it! how great!

[samarm]

A bit off topic, but I wonder if there is a lot of "accidental" sex at nudist camps? I could just picture that happening somehow.

[Broomstick]

Originally posted by Duderdude2
Ewwww. Thanks for ruining any pleasing images in my head Broomstick.

Bet it also quashed any incipient erections, too, didn't it?

See, nudity in real life isn't always as fun as the fantasies, is it?

[Freyr]

Originally posted by Aslan of Narnia
How do men keep from having an erection for a good portion of the time at Nudist camps/colonys? I imagine that eventually, you'd be desensitized to people being nude, but what about the time before? I imagine that it would be more of a problem at youth camps, because the males there are just starting to notice the opposite sex and have a lot less control.

I think you're making a logical error here. Most people, if not all, don't get erections at the sight of comely nude people. Usually they need some sort of physical stimulation to become physically aroused.

If you are the type of person that can become erect by merely seeing a comely nude body, the least of your worries would be visiting a nudist camp.

[DMark]

Lots of nude beaches and sunning areas in Berlin, of all places.

For the most part, think of your Aunt Ruth and Uncle Fred, pasty white and showing their naughties. Not a pretty picture. You might have more of a problem getting it up after that image.

Yeah, there were a few hot looking folks, but if you were ever in danger of springing a woody, all you have to do is look over in another direction, watch and listen to the fat guy fart while eating a hot dog.

That oughta do it.

[Tony Montana]

Originally posted by Freyr
I think you're making a logical error here. Most people, if not all, don't get erections at the sight of comely nude people. Usually they need some sort of physical stimulation to become physically aroused.

If you are the type of person that can become erect by merely seeing a comely nude body, the least of your worries would be visiting a nudist camp.

WTF?

I can get wood by the mere sight of a comely nude(or clothed) female body.

You're saying I should be worried?

pfft

[Little Nemo]

Most people, if not all, don't get erections at the sight of comely nude people.

You younger people may not know this, but back in the fifties a man named Hugh Hefner actually tried to earn a living selling a magazine with pictures of nude women inside. Of course, as Freyr points out, people weren't interested and Hefner's magazine disappeared within a few months. Since then, nobody has ever tried to sell pictures of nude people.

[handy]

"Lots of nude beaches and sunning areas in Berlin, of all places."

For a lot of guys being naked for the first time on the beach with the air & ocean rubbing against them is enough to get things up.
(I used to surf at Blacks beach alot)

[Marley23]

Your first few times, I'd think being nervous would.... reduce... the problem. I'd be uncomfortable as hell, anyway. After a few times, you might get used to it and then you're good.
According to a friend of mine who spent a day at a nudist camp a while back with her boyfriend, walking around with an erection is something of a faux pas.

[AHunter3]

Context is everything. You experience unclad women as sexually arousing to the point of inspiring an erection because the opportunity to see them that way pretty much coincides with opportunity to have sex. (Even then, once you're in an ongoing relationship, even in the steamy early period you'll find that you see each other unclothed going to and from the shower or changing clothes etc and it doesn't prompt a rush of erotic interest every time it occurs).

I lived on a clothing-optional commune in California (where else?) in the early 1980s. I remember being in the sauna and one of the female members came in and took off her clothes and sat down with me. I definitely saw it as a flirting opportunity but the absence of clothes didn't really play a role.

On the way back to my folk's home to be present for my sister's wedding, I passed through Las Vegas and the signs and ads promising REAL NUDE GIRLS seemed really weird and anachronistic.

Are you capable of walking down the block and seeing women in tight blue jeans on the sidewalks without getting an erection? I bet you may find them quite attractive but you hardly ever respond with physical arousal. Partially because you're used to seeing women in blue jeans.

Context.

[Freiheit]

Originally posted by Freyr
I think you're making a logical error here. Most people, if not all, don't get erections at the sight of comely nude people. Usually they need some sort of physical stimulation to become physically aroused.

If you are the type of person that can become erect by merely seeing a comely nude body, the least of your worries would be visiting a nudist camp.

This is ridiculous. If ANYONE agrees with Freyr, speak up, please.

[AHunter3]

Well, I "can" become erect merely by seeing a comely nude body, if I stare at it and let that happen, which is easier if the beforementioned nude body is a photograph or a person who is posing or behaving in a sexually provocative manner that encourages staring, and it is also more likely to happen if it's a person with whom I have a sexual history (the sight of her being associated with sexual things).

But I would definitely say I do not tend to become erect merely by seeing a comely nude body.

[Tony Montana]

Originally posted by Freyr
Most people, if not all, don't get erections at the sight of comely nude people. Usually they need some sort of physical stimulation to become physically aroused.

Would this be projecting?

Just because you cannot attain a woody by the mere sight of a comely nude body, doesn't mean others dont.

[Mockingbird]

In a venue where everyone is naked, it quickly loses the mystery and the air of doing something forbidden.

Without those aspects, which are socially conditioned, it renders nudity neutral and not instantly erection inducing.

[Anamorphic]

Originally posted by Freyr
I think you're making a logical error here. Most people, if not all, don't get erections at the sight of comely nude people. Usually they need some sort of physical stimulation to become physically aroused.

If you are the type of person that can become erect by merely seeing a comely nude body, the least of your worries would be visiting a nudist camp.

I must be a freak then, because looking at beautiful naked women gets me hard. So, dare I ask, if this is the least of my worries, what else do I have to be concerned about?

[Eonwe]

I just read (Newsweek, Time, one of those) an article on nudist camps, and they mentioned that everyone, men and women, were required to bring towels with them to sit on. No nude bits on chairs.

[Sunspace]

Every time I see a nude beach, it seems to be populated by big hairy biker dudes and clothed women. One of the unofficial beaches in the Toronto area is visible from the commuter trains, and that's exactly what I saw. Same for Wreck Beach in Vancouver.

Seriously, you get used to an all-nude environment in about ten minutes, and after then it's business as usual (although possibly with more sunscreen). It's a humbling experience, and at the same time a great relief, as you realise that maybe you aren't as far below the norm as you thought. It's also an intense reminder of just how out-of-touch with reality the fashion industry image game is.

Attractive people (however you define them) will be attractive whether or not they have clothing on. If they're sufficiently attractive, it can be embarassing. Looking at Uncle Fred and Aunt Ruth can be a relief at that point.

What's weirder is a mixed nude/clothed environment. I'm thinking of the naked people who walked in the Pride parade a few weeks ago. The old reactions are a lot easier in a mixed environment because you still have a lot of the familiar clothed context around you.

I wonder whether this is the real reason that Ontarian women do not go topless in the city streets in summer even though it's perfectly legal to do so. It's certainly been hot enough for it lately.

[Freyr]

Alright, before this gets out of hand, let's define the terms here.

I took the OP's use of erection to mean the penis at full extension, engorged and standing upright or at least perpendicular to the body.

I have no doubt that the mere sight of a comely body, nude or clothed could start tumescence, but to the various members who responded to me, are you saying you're sporting full erections at the mere sight of comely bodies? How in the world do you guys walk down a typical city street without needing to re-arrange yourselves?

[panache45]

Originally posted by Freyr
Alright, before this gets out of hand, let's define the terms here.

I took the OP's use of erection to mean the penis at full extension, engorged and standing upright or at least perpendicular to the body.

I have no doubt that the mere sight of a comely body, nude or clothed could start tumescence, but to the various members who responded to me, are you saying you're sporting full erections at the mere sight of comely bodies? How in the world do you guys walk down a typical city street without needing to re-arrange yourselves?

Often I don't even need to actually see someone.

And sometimes "re-arranging" myself is half the fun.

[plnnr]

A regular visitor to nude beaches and nudist camps checking in (I was at one over the holiday weekend - I'm competing in the George Hamilton Invitational Tan Championships).

Nude beaches, nudist resorts, etc. are not particularly erotic. As I've pointed out before, all of the same people you see at a regular beach you see at a nude beach - they just don't have any clothes on. Your grandfather? I've probably seen him (or someone just like him). Your high school gym teacher? I've seen hiim or her. Your parents? Ditto. There is nothing particularly erotic about it at all. Sure, erections happen at nudist resorts, but they aren't common (you usually see them on little boys or kids who look to be going through puberty). No one pays any attention and they go away.

As to another question, no there isn't casual sex at nudist places. The surest way to get thrown out of any nudist resort is to start sexual behavior in public. It just isn't tolerated, just as it isn't tolerated at clothed beaches.

For anyone who's ever wondered what its like, I'd very much suggest a day visit to a nudist beach or nudist resort. I won't post the link, but you can visit the American Association of Nude Recreation and learn all you want about the naturist lifestyle. Go for a day. Try it. Most places welcome newcomers and make them feel at ease. Most also allow you to ease into the experience. If you go and find that it isn't for you, that's OK. Just another experience you've had that wasn't for you. If you go and have a good time (and I suspect you will), great. I look forward to seeing you (I'll be the one in the UVa hat and bright yellow towel).

[handy]

"were required to bring towels with them to sit on. No nude bits on chairs."

Yep. Thing is, they have to pick up those towels with their hands & you ever shake hands with people who just picked up a towel they put their nude butt on?

[Anamorphic]

Originally posted by Freyr
Alright, before this gets out of hand, let's define the terms here.

I took the OP's use of erection to mean the penis at full extension, engorged and standing upright or at least perpendicular to the body.

I have no doubt that the mere sight of a comely body, nude or clothed could start tumescence, but to the various members who responded to me, are you saying you're sporting full erections at the mere sight of comely bodies? How in the world do you guys walk down a typical city street without needing to re-arrange yourselves?

Luckily for my dignity, you very seldom see comely naked women walking down the street, even here in Los Angeles.

Seriously, I'm not sure how you equated 'getting an erection when seeing a beautiful naked woman' to 'getting an erection at the mere sight of a beautiful clothed woman' (obviously, change sex as warranted). Pretty huge leap there. Do I get an immediate and uncontrolable full-on erection at the merest sight of a pretty naked woman? No, of course not, but viewing pornography for more than a passing glimpse certainly will do the trick without any additional, outside 'help'. And I hardly think that's the abnormality your first post in this thread implied.