# Naked, but not getting dressed, in the gym locker room. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 25, 2006, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568 "2006-01-25T17:03:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2006, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/61 "2006-01-28T02:49:02Z")
After rugby, we’d fight to get in one of the two bathtubs, rather than have to freeze under one of the dribbly showers. You sat _across_ the tub, usually in ABA position as I remember, with a continous supply of hot water keeping the temperature nice and high. Some schools in those days (the 70s) still had the big communal baths, so we always enjoyed playing away. Incidentally, I cannot think of something _less_ likely to make (as we used to conceptualise it) you a homo (as we used to put it) than seeing 29 other adolescent boys in the buff. And since I’ve always had exceptionally good skin, that combo of mud, sweat, blood and soap must have powers exceeding those of Cleo’s milk! Not to mention these big girl’s blouse modern concoctions, for which they charge an arm and a leg, with fancy pseudo-scientific names like ‘defoliators’! PAH! Humbug! ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2006, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/62 "2006-01-28T15:04:15Z")
> [@roger thornhill](#): > > You’ve had the best of both worlds, then, eh?! All I wear now is granny dresses and shawls. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2006, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/63 "2006-01-28T16:25:02Z")
> [@AndyPolley](#): > > > [@Ethilrist](#): > > > > Have you discussed this with your fiancé? > > I think she knows I’m not terribly interested in looking at naked men…but yes, I’ve discussed it with her. Oh, Og help me, I’m about to explain an esoteric joke… Fiancé is the proper spelling when the betrothed is a male. For a female, two “e’s” are correct. So assuming your original spelling correctly reflected reality, then not wanting to see naked men might spell trouble for your future with him… I have to go hurt myself now. ---
**Author:** ![ethelbert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/958977/32.png) [@ethelbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ethelbert)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2006, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/64 "2006-01-28T17:47:54Z")
> [@roger thornhill](#): > > 1. Do you notice a trend among the naked folks in your locker rooms the way I have? If so, what kind of trend? The Chinese guys like blowdrying their pubes for some reason. Management had to put notices up saying “For drying hair only”, which I, being the pedant I am, thought didn’t really solve the problem. Is this really a problem for you? I do this all the time. In fact my dermatologist recommended it to me (not specifically in a gym, mind you, but its not like I am actually touching myself with it). And anyway, I do have hair down there 🙂 BTW, I am not a Chinese guy. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. ---
**Author:** ![marymargaret](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@marymargaret](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marymargaret)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2006, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/65 "2006-01-28T17:53:32Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > :dubious: > > Have you discussed this with your fiancé? I was wondering the same thing! ---
**Author:** ![AndyPolley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@AndyPolley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndyPolley)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2006, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/66 "2006-01-28T18:11:32Z")
Fighting igornace is what happens here, and I just had a bit of my own fought. I (obviously) wasn’t aware of the word fiancee as opposed to fiance. Wow. I guess I’m not as ready for marraige as I thought. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2006, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/67 "2006-01-28T18:18:53Z")
\> 1. How casual are you with being naked in your locker room? Not very. When I work out, it’s usually later at night, when there’s no line for the weight meachines or television-equipped treadmills and orbitals. I take off my shorts, throw on my pants, and head home, showering before I go to bed. \> 2. What age group do you belong in? 35-45 \> 3. Do you notice a trend among the naked folks in your locker rooms the way I have? I avery my eyes away from naked people. The ones that tend to walk from the shower to the lockers without a towel tend to be older - the over-55 crowd. Russians are also less modest. You don’t really see people hang around and hold casual conversations while they’re in the nude, though. I work out at a local JCC, and there’s a amall dressing area covered with a curtain. I assume it’s for the Orthodox. ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2006, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/68 "2006-01-29T04:21:51Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > All I wear now is granny dresses and shawls. You trendsetter, you! ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2006, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/69 "2006-01-29T06:41:05Z")
> [@LunaV](#): > > I think it’s more likely that you’ve been naked around friends (borrowing clothes, changing at the beach, overnight visits, etc.) than strangers, therefore it would be easier to shuck it all off around familiar faces. > Besides, your friends know and love you, and will laugh at your Felix the Cat underwear to your face, while a stranger will wait til you’re gone. 🙂 That’s what I assume the norm is among most people, but that’s not what I’ve experienced! I don’t think anyone in my family has seen me naked since I was in elementary school (I could be wrong, but I can’t think of a time – maybe if I was in the hospital or something), and since I never had to shower at school or college, I literally can’t remember _ever_ being naked in front of friends. (We’d change in cubicles at the beach, I don’t borrow friend’s clothes, and the most nudity that would ever happen at sleepovers would be stripping down to T-shirts and underwear to sleep, which I don’t really count as nudity.) Sorry for the hijack, but is that really that unusual? It just seems that much more awkward to me to be naked in front of people you know (especially “hanging out naked” as mentioned in the OP) – you’re going to have to keep hanging out with these people, after all. I’m not saying it’s a huge deal, just an added level of weirdness. Am I wrong? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2006, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/70 "2006-01-29T21:01:58Z")
> [@Podkayne](#): > > I thought it was funny the time that the pool on campus was overrun with junior high girls who were presumably there for some kind of special summer program. They would hold towels up for each other, blocking off a small section of the locker room, so they could change without anyone seeing their naughty bits, giggling hysterically the whole time. Meanwhile, I’m standing three feet away, towelling off and getting dressed, unabashedly flashing buttock and boob. Maybe I was a crazy old naked person from their point of view. Eh, at that age, most girls are extremely self-conscious about their bodies. They’ll grow out of it. Am I the only one though who just prefers to go straight home and then shower? ---
**Author:** ![Lionne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Lionne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lionne)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2006, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/71 "2006-01-29T21:20:47Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > Sorry for the hijack, but is that really that unusual? It just seems that much more awkward to me to be naked in front of people you know (especially “hanging out naked” as mentioned in the OP) – you’re going to have to keep hanging out with these people, after all. I’m not saying it’s a huge deal, just an added level of weirdness. Am I wrong? I don’t think you’re wrong, it’s all relative to you and your friends are accepting of. I have a very open group of friends, I suppose. But why would it be weird or awkward? These are your friends; you share stories about embarassing moments, or you do and say something mortifying - giving them a view of a hairy mole on your ass doesn’t seem all that uncomfortable in comparison. I would almost rather have them see me naked than drunk and puking outside a car window after making a fool of myself on the dance floor. At least they’d have a prettier picture in the minds! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/72 "2006-01-30T06:30:12Z")
I have avoided working out in gyms for quite a while now. I much preferred hatha yoga class for exercise, in which we all keep our clothes on, thank you. I have every intention of avoiding gyms for the forseeable future. Nudity around others, for me, takes place in safe space among Witches in the outdoors. It seemed to me like everyone in that setting is perfectly comfortable with everyone else, regardless of age or body type. (Don’t get the wrong impression; Witches have so much fun dressing up in fabulous ritual costumes that there is relatively little nudity.) Is it possible to recreate the Edenic state of unselfconscious nudity? Sure it’s possible. I don’t think gyms are the best place to get that feeling, though. > [@roger thornhill](#): > > You trendsetter, you! What went around comes around. Now the old rocket stories from the golden age of science fiction are in style again. They’re retro rockets. ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/73 "2006-01-30T10:34:06Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > Is it possible to recreate the Edenic state of unselfconscious nudity? Sure it’s possible. Surely a bit difficult unless you believe that becoming unfallen is another candidate for retro-isation. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/74 "2006-01-30T15:52:02Z")
I would assume **AndyPolley** is a Tony Kornheiser radio fan! ---
**Author:** ![missdavis102](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7feea3/32.png) [@missdavis102](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missdavis102)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/75 "2006-01-30T18:55:02Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > That’s what I assume the norm is among most people, but that’s not what I’ve experienced! I don’t think anyone in my family has seen me naked since I was in elementary school (I could be wrong, but I can’t think of a time – maybe if I was in the hospital or something), and since I never had to shower at school or college, I literally can’t remember _ever_ being naked in front of friends. (We’d change in cubicles at the beach, I don’t borrow friend’s clothes, and the most nudity that would ever happen at sleepovers would be stripping down to T-shirts and underwear to sleep, which I don’t really count as nudity.) Sorry for the hijack, but is that really that unusual? It just seems that much more awkward to me to be naked in front of people you know (especially “hanging out naked” as mentioned in the OP) – you’re going to have to keep hanging out with these people, after all. I’m not saying it’s a huge deal, just an added level of weirdness. Am I wrong? Huh – I lived in a dorm at college, and more than once found myself engaged in a dorm-room game we called ‘bra volleyball’ with my roomate and some friends from down the hall. We also had communal bathrooms, with 6 or 8 shower stalls, so naked or towel-wrapped girls walking down the hall with their cleaning products wasn’t that unusual a sight. Same deal at the gym - I think there it was just a couple of shower heads on the wall on one side of the room. Not to mention the nude sunbathing on the roof. Now I think of it, there weren’t many of my friends at college that I _didn’t_ see naked at some time or other. Anyway, as regards the OP, the gym I go to now, I just do yoga and leave, never go to the locker rooms. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/76 "2006-01-30T19:12:47Z")
I do see a generational thing at work. When I was in high school in the '70s, we had a communal shower in the locker room, and showering was mandatory after gym class. Likewise, the men’s locker room at the YMCA my family belonged to had a communal shower. More communal showers in the gyms at college in the '80s, and at my fraternity house. The gym I joined in '91 had communal showers until they built a new facility with individual showers. I’ve gone skinny dipping with a group of male and female friends, and I’ve been to a nude beach. And I’m in accord with what **flickster** said – get over it, who cares. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/77 "2006-01-30T21:15:41Z")
The thing about casual nudity in the locker room is that it’s being inconsiderate to the people who aren’t comfortable with that. Everyone has to use the locker room, but everyone may not be comfortable with that much nudity. It’s understood that incidental nudity is unavoidable at certain times, such as while changing or while using a communial shower. But when someone is blow drying their hair while nude, they are doing it because of a personal choice rather than necessity. Do they think, “Since I can be nude while changing, I can also be nude while shaving, walking around, talking to strangers, etc?” And just for the record, I’m not a prude about nudity. I’ve gone to many nude beaches, nude saunas, skinny dipped, etc. But in all those cases it’s understood that the environment will be nude. I can avoid the place if I feel uncomfortable. A locker room is different. Everyone uses the locker room. If someone wants to walk around in the nude, great! More power to them. But they should do it in a place where everyone will be comfortable with that. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/78 "2006-01-30T23:22:24Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > I’ve gone to many nude beaches, nude saunas, skinny dipped, etc. But in all those cases it’s understood that the environment will be nude. Has it ever occurred to you that people who are comfortable in the nude in a locker room regard the locker room as just such an environment? ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2006, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/79 "2006-01-30T23:57:39Z")
> [@scotandrsn](#): > > Has it ever occurred to you that people who are comfortable in the nude in a locker room regard the locker room as just such an environment? Yes! I exactly think that. The problem is that many other people there do not and that’s the problem. The nudist at the sink brushing his teeth may feel comfortable, but the guy washing his hands right next to him may not. I feel the nudist should respect the other person’s feelings and be more modest. However, if the nudist is at a nudist colony, then I think it’s fine if he’s brushing his teeth in the nude. He’s in an environment where people are comfortable with casual nudity. But I don’t feel a locker room is like that. Unless, of course, it’s the locker room at a nudist colony. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2006, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568/80 "2006-01-31T00:22:23Z")
> [@filmore](#): > > The nudist at the sink brushing his teeth may feel comfortable, but the guy washing his hands right next to him may not. I feel the nudist should respect the other person’s feelings and be more modest. But on what grounds should your feelings about the matter supercede theirs? That’s the crux of the whole issue of the thread. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/naked-but-not-getting-dressed-in-the-gym-locker-room/341568.md?page=5)