# Why are old men always naked in gym locker rooms? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 28, 2021, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145 "2021-06-28T02:05:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2021, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/81 "2021-07-02T16:56:47Z")
One explanation occurs to me - men who are still governed by wanting to appear sexually attractive may feel differently about nudity around other men than those who are out of their mating dance years and nudity no longer affects them in the same way. I know that I would have had problems being naked in front of a female doctor when I was in my 20’s or 30’s, but now in my late 50’s and married for 30 years I realize that I don’t much care. I suspect it’s a fairly deep psychological thing having to do with sexual competition that goes away at a certain age. But I’m just guessing. I still dress quickly in a locker room. I’m okay with being naked in front of other men, but I don’t see any point in prolonging the experience. Then there is the unstated elephant in the room: Straight up sexual or social-sexual enjoyment, Gay or straight, there seems to be a certain percentage of men that get a thrill out of having others see their junk. Why do some men expose themselves to strangers? What’s up with subway fllashers? Anecdotally, they also seem to be over-represented by older men. I think some people just enjoy showing their stuff. It may not even be sexual - more of a, “Look at me, the guy who doesn’t give a damn what you think.” Which would be hypocritical I know… ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2021, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/82 "2021-07-03T04:49:45Z")
I think the question is, Jimmy, Why are you spending so much time in Gym Locker Rooms? Do you like Gladiator Movies? ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2021, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/83 "2021-07-03T18:00:27Z")
I feel compelled to point out: the word _gymnasium_ literally means ‘naked room’ in ancient Greek. So the Greeks apparently had no problem with nudity. And they invented the cult of beauty of the male (and gay sex). So for them it apparently had sexual subtext too. Interesting side note too, when I found out gymnasium means ‘naked room’ (at about age 6), I was mortified. The thought of naked people, especially naked adults, bothered me a lot for some reason then. Now, I actually think leaving on more clothes can sometimes be very sexy. Oh, and I have no problem with old men either, usually at least. (Carry on 🙂 .) ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/84 "2021-07-04T13:02:59Z")
BigT I know you’re trying to help but if Omniscient wants to clarify what they meant by “aggressive” then no doubt they can. There doesn’t seem much point in guessing. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/85 "2021-07-04T13:10:21Z")
This thread keeps reminding me of an Aerosmith song, and not in a good way. _There were three naked old men in a school gym locker_ _And I hoped they weren’t looking at me_ ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/86 "2021-07-04T16:52:21Z")
[quote=“Jim\_B, post:83, topic:945145, full:true”] I feel compelled to point out: the word _gymnasium_ literally means ‘naked room’ in ancient Greek. So the Greeks apparently had no problem with nudity. And they invented the cult of beauty of the male (and gay sex). So for them it apparently had sexual subtext too. [/quote] I’m not sure they invented it (Epic of Gilgamesh?), but might well be lauded for adding olive oil. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/87 "2021-07-04T20:38:21Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > I was curious why that exactly is? Is it a weird sexual thrill? Is it because they’re so old they don’t care anymore? Or because it used to be common to exercise naked back in the day? Because when you’ve got it, flaunt it, baby! ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2021, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/88 "2021-07-04T23:20:17Z")
> [@Jim\_B](#): > > Interesting side note too, when I found out gymnasium means ‘naked room’ (at about age 6), I was mortified. The thought of naked people, especially naked adults, bothered me a lot for some reason then. I read somewhere 6 is about the age when awareness that there are two sexes kicks in hard. A lot of four- or five-year olds will have different-sex friends but at six is when you get the “girls have cooties!”\* or “boys are so icky!” stage and unless you’ve been raised where nudity in some circumstances is acceptable – say, parents who take you a nudist resort every year – you get real shy about showing your genitals to anyone. \*I certainly did even though I had no idea what a cootie was outside that plastic critter by [Schaper](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Game_of_Cootie). ---
**Author:** ![GreenWyvern](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greenwyvern/32/2834_2.png) [@GreenWyvern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenWyvern)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2021, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/89 "2021-07-05T05:33:13Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > BigT I know you’re trying to help but if Omniscient wants to clarify what they meant by “aggressive” then no doubt they can. There doesn’t seem much point in guessing. [![](https://i.ibb.co/s3rQMQH/sea-lion2.jpg) ](https://i.ibb.co/s3rQMQH/sea-lion2.jpg) 😀   ---
**Author:** ![NetTrekker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nettrekker/32/2909_2.png) [@NetTrekker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetTrekker)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2021, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/90 "2021-07-07T15:11:42Z")
Definitely not just an old guy thing. There was a young guy at a gym I used to go to who was basically a (naked) fixture in the locker room, not doing much of anything except exposing himself. He seemed to enjoy it immensely. ---
**Author:** ![staili](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c57346/32.png) [@staili](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/staili)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2021, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/91 "2021-07-08T00:52:51Z")
Many men over a certain age grew up in an environment where privacy expectations were very different. Not that long ago, a guy in the military or at many schools would be expected to take community showers. Casual male nudity in the gym or locker room was not unusual and was neither exciting nor shameful. It just was. And, as has been said, a lot of elderly guys don’t think of their bodies as being objects of sexual desire. They don’t think anyone is looking. A lot of the earlier comments are wondering why the old guys don’t get dressed more quickly, but I think they would say, “Why should we? What difference does it make?” I think many of them are just doing things the same way they’d be doing them at home. If they’re reading an article and they happen to be nude, they’ll finish the article and not think much of it. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2021, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/92 "2021-07-11T17:03:19Z")
> [@staili](#): > > Many men over a certain age grew up in an environment where privacy expectations were very different. Not that long ago, a guy in the military or at many schools would be expected to take community showers. Casual male nudity in the gym or locker room was not unusual and was neither exciting nor shameful. It just was. I hear what you’re saying, but I still think that doesn’t quite go far enough in explaining some of this behavior. As I said up thread, some of these guys almost seem to be deliberately trying to maximize the amount of time they spend naked. How does “that’s the way it was when they were kids” explain the fact that the very first thing they do upon entering the locker room is strip completely naked, before even attempting to find an available locker or opening their gym bag? ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/93 "2021-07-12T00:31:32Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > the fact that the very first thing they do upon entering the locker room is strip completely naked, before even attempting to find an available locker or opening their gym bag? Are you suggesting that some other order is more appropriate? I imagine that this says something about your attitude towards nakedness. Do you wear your swim suit in the shower? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/94 "2021-07-12T01:09:20Z")
I would guess that they are comfortable without clothing. I admit that i like hanging out naked alone in my home, especially when I’m still damp from the shower. Personally, I’m territorial enough that i would always find a locker before stripping in a locker room. But that order doesn’t seem crazy to me. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/95 "2021-07-12T01:18:23Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > Are you suggesting that some other order is more appropriate? I imagine that this says something about your attitude towards nakedness. Do you wear your swim suit in the shower? No. See the middle paragraph of [my post upthread](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/49): > [@](#): > > I’m a Gen-Xer, and while I don’t do anything crazily modest like try to change my underwear with my towel around my waist, I generally try to minimize the amount of time I spend with my genitals exposed. For example, when I arrive in the locker room, first I’ll look for an empty locker, then put my gym bag down on the bench, open it, and set my gym clothes out. Then I’ll take off my shirt, hang it in the locker, and put on my gym shirt. Then I’ll take off my shoes, then my pants and hang them in the locker. Then I’ll take off my underpants and put on my gym underpants, then my gym shorts. That kind of thing. Getting changed in that order doesn’t take any more time than stripping completely naked first. > [@puzzlegal](#): > > I admit that i like hanging out naked alone in my home, especially when I’m still damp from the shower. Personally, I’m territorial enough that i would always find a locker before stripping in a locker room. But that order doesn’t seem crazy to me. At least in the gyms I’ve belonged to, for some reason there are enough people with such little concern for their belongings that they don’t use a lock, meaning you can’t tell just by looking for locks which lockers are unoccupied. You can open a locker with no lock on it only to see it’s filled with someone’s stuff. You can go down an entire row like this before you find one that’s empty, sometimes needing to move to the next section or aisle. So it’s a no brainer to me that step #1 should be finding an available locker, not getting naked. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/96 "2021-07-12T01:48:43Z")
Ok, I see that minimizing nakedness is important to you. _If_ old men attached the same importance to nakedness as you do, _then_ you could infer from their nakedness that it was deliberate. Personally, I minimize nakedness when I’m cold. If ‘attempting to find an available locker’ makes me warmer or colder, it’s relevant. Otherwise, not. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/97 "2021-07-12T01:52:16Z")
Old men evidently attach much more importance to nakedness than I do, since they prioritize being naked as much as possible. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2021, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/98 "2021-07-12T20:48:29Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > Ok, I see that minimizing nakedness is important to you. I’d guess that minimizing _other_ people’s nakedness has value for him, especially when you consider what most naked people look like, multiplied by stage of decrepitude. Not everyone is into the Turkish Bath Experience or whatever supposedly Enlightened Danish People do. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/99 "2021-07-14T01:20:20Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > I generally try to minimize the amount of time I spend with my genitals exposed. Seriously, why? What is the problem with more time? Are you ashamed of your naked body? Do you think nakedness automatically implies sexual intent? Does same gender non-sexual nakedness offend you? Do you consciously attempt to minimize your time naked when alone in your own bathroom? You are assuming those who do otherwise are trying to maximize the time their genitalia may be visible to others, but reality may be just that how much time they are or are not naked us of no matter to them in a locker room, any more than it would be in their own bathroom. Why should it be? ---
**Author:** ![Ellecram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellecram/32/18948_2.png) [@Ellecram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellecram)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2021, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145/100 "2021-07-14T20:29:20Z")
I actually sat across the aisle from someone cutting their toenails on an international flight. It was … unsettling. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-old-men-always-naked-in-gym-locker-rooms/945145.md?page=4)