And what is your method for minimum showering time?
Today at the gym, the daycare staff was out (you can read all about Raleigh’s lovely traffic/snow issues in the news if you wonder why), so the wonderful manager and front desk person offered to watch my kid while I worked out. In consideration, I tried to be as fast as possible.
I managed to take a four-minute shower. I think that’s a personal record. Of course, it only involved the absolute essential stuff - no shaving or deep conditioning or foot pumicing or whatnot.
It got me wondering, what is the minimum time required to wash the essential areas, and is there a particular order or system people use to expedite the process?
Starting at the top and working down seems to make sense.
I imagine being bald or having a crew cut would help significantly. If I wash my hair, I also have to condition it, and with tons of hair it takes a while. Obviously to cut my time I should invest in shampoo and conditioner in one.
At home, I have the advantage of a hand-held shower head, which really speeds rinsing, especially of the naughty bits, which otherwise require odd yoga-inspired poses.
I wonder if a washcloth or shower mitt would be a help or a hindrance.
When I looked at the topic, my first thought was: Why would I want to? After reading your post, I understand the situation but it’s still not anything I would want to make a habit of. I love long hot showers
Well, let’s see. The showhead is about 7 feet from the ground. I’m pretty short, so my naughty bits are maybe 2.5 feet from the ground (30" inseam). Plugging into d = 1/2 a t**2 means that 0.4 seconds is about the absolute minimum. Although if you allow that the water is slightly under pressure, I might be able to cut it down to 0.3 seconds in an emergency.
Before I grew my hair out, if I didn’t shave or brush my teeth in the shower I could finish in two minutes. But I only did that if I was really, really, really late.
I make it a “quickie” on days I go to work. Less than 10 minutes - I’d say about 8.
That’s shampooing, washing myself and conditioning my hair. I use regular conditioner, none of that stuff that has to be left on for a long time. Shaving, of course, adds a few more minutes. That also includes a minute or two of just standing there in the spray, trying to wake up.
But as flickster said, I also love a good loooooong hot shower. We didn’t get a 50-gallon water heater installed for nothing.
I have very long hair, so I don’t wash it in the shower in the morning. Without hurrying in any way, I’m usually in and out in about 5 minutes. In a pinch, say after I get home from a workout and Mrs. Six has supper ready, I can get in and out in 2.
I haven’t timed myself, but I think that my patented Speed Shower gets me in and out in about 5 minutes.
Turn on water. Get in & get wet.
Starting at the top of the head, lather hair with shampoo then work suds down the body to the feet. Rinse.
Put a little conditioner in the hair, wash face withs pecial facial cleanser. Rinse hair & face.
Stop water, towel dry vigorously.
Done.
I only do this on mornings the alarm doesn’t go off, or there’s no hot water. :eek:
Usually I take about 6-8 minutes. If I shave in the shower, it’s closer to 12. My personal best record for full body lather with soap + shampoo and rinse is 40 seconds. I was pretty proud of that one.
IMHO, those shampoo and conditioner in one products aren’t worth the extra time saved. All the kinds I’ve used made my hair tangled and like straw. It’s worth the extra time conditioning separately if combing it out afterwards is quicker and easier.
I have done a 2 minute shower. It amounts to washing hair and privates and assuming that the lather washed from your hair will somehow cleans the rest of you as it flows down your body.
After the first week and a half of BASIC, we were allowed our first shower. 5 secs!, and the Drill Sergeant stood there with a watch!
After another couple days we got a 10 second shower. Then after that, we got a 30 second shower!! That 30 seconds seemed to last forever and felt great!
But for the record, anyone who attempted to use soap during the 5 or 10 second showers, never got it all rinsed out in time. I was smart and stuck with water and friction. I actually did feel clean afterwards.
But honestly, there was pleanty of time to wash all the essentials – with soap – in that 30 seconds.
So I’ll say that the fastest true shower I’ve taken is 30 seconds. The secret is to apply a little soap to the necessary area before you jump in the shower. A few strokes under and above the genitals, on the armpits, and a few strokes on the face (not necessarily in that order) and you’re ready for your 30 second shower.
Back in college we used to term it a “man-shower”. This was the absolute fastest way out of the room.
Deoderant and a hat.
Takes about .5 a second as you fly out the door to class. Also not recommended if you plan to be around people who know your name.
Well, after we were hit with hurricane #3 (Jeanne, this time) we didn’t have power back on by the time I had to get up and go to work. (I think I set the alarm on my cell phone to go off so I would wake up in time.)
Try taking a cold shower out of necessity. That cuts time down by half.
Plus, I couldn’t dry my hair. I was most grumpy that day, until my children called to let me know the juice was back.
Yeah, that’ll do it. I’m usually in the shower for at least 15 minutes (I have a lot of hair), but a couple years ago the hot water was broken for the entire winter (I’m not sure how I survived) and I took a lot less time.
I’m notorious for long showers. 20 minutes is about my minimum. I think I may have taken a 10 minute shower once, but that involved not washing major areas (legs, torso, etc) I probably use too much soap, and I’m doubtless more thorough than I ought to be, but hey, I like to be squeaky clean. I also seem to be a bit forgetful - did I wash my feet already? Better wash them again just to be sure.
At a previous residence, when it got windy the pilot light on the water heater would go out. Showers would be painfully cold. It still took me 20 minutes to shower.
