# Why do professional swimmers shave their bodies? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 15, 2006, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879 "2006-08-15T21:41:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Puzzler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d07c76/32.png) [@Puzzler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Puzzler)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/1 "2006-08-15T21:41:15Z")
At the Olympic games and other professional swimming contests one may see swimmers with shaved bodies. I heard a pro swimmer saying it has nothing to do with lowering friction. So why do they shave? ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/2 "2006-08-15T21:57:34Z")
> [@Puzzler](#): > > At the Olympic games and other professional swimming contests one may see swimmers with shaved bodies. I heard a pro swimmer saying it has nothing to do with lowering friction. So why do they shave? You’ve heard a swimmer say it’s _not_ for lower friction? That’s a new one. I am a swimmer and the only times I’ve ever shaved I’ve done worse. From what I gather from other swimmers it is supposed to make you faster, no friction, and a better “feel” for the water, whatever that is. I can see, maybe, .01 of a second for shaving, so for the Olympic swimmers then it might help, for everyone else I think it’s all in the head. Though don’t actually try and tell that to most swimmers, they always do a shave and taper and say the shave cuts 3-4 seconds off their time. They don’t want to hear that maybe it’s the taper that does it, nope just can’t hear that. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/3 "2006-08-15T21:59:15Z")
They’ll do anything to shave a few milliseconds off their time. ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/4 "2006-08-15T22:05:12Z")
I’ve heard that unofficial world records have been set by swimmers swimming naked. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/5 "2006-08-15T22:12:45Z")
Maybe it’s just my ignorance, but is there really such a thing as a “professional swimmer”? The Olympics and every other swimming competition I have seen is conducted at the school or amateur level. Then again, I admit I don’t follow swimming as much as some other sports, but I’m not aware of any professional swimming organizations. ---
**Author:** ![Puzzler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d07c76/32.png) [@Puzzler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Puzzler)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/6 "2006-08-15T22:16:08Z")
I’ve heard it at an interview with a pro swimmer – while passing by the radio set – and it stuck. He said something like “All pro swimmers shave before major contests. Most people think it’s to lower friction, but that’s not true. It’s \” Please note it’s not an actual quote. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/7 "2006-08-15T23:13:25Z")
> [@FatBaldGuy](#): > > Maybe it’s just my ignorance, but is there really such a thing as a “professional swimmer”? The Olympics and every other swimming competition I have seen is conducted at the school or amateur level. > > Then again, I admit I don’t follow swimming as much as some other sports, but I’m not aware of any professional swimming organizations. Don’t know what pro really means but Phelps can not swim in college because he’s been paid. There’s no pro tour, but there are people who do get paid to swim. > [@](#): > > “All pro swimmers shave before major contests. Most people think it’s to lower friction, but that’s not true. It’s \” I think that would have to do with the feel of the water. I’ve never understood it myself as I feel the same shaved as I do unshaved. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/8 "2006-08-15T23:16:37Z")
I personally can’t see body hair making much of a difference. Mark Spitz swam with no cap and a very 70s mustache. He said it kept the water out of his mouth when he came up to breathe. I bet that extremely few races have been decided on a scale that could possibly be attributed to body hair. What seems to be making a difference is this fake shark skin suit material, which is why you see even men in full length body suits. I see here that Ian Thorpe has decided for the full suit, but left his beard. I guess he’s not so concerned with that slowing him down. [http://ian-thorpe.org/gallery/displayimage.php?album=random&cat=2&pos=-1069](http://ian-thorpe.org/gallery/displayimage.php?album=random&cat=2&pos=-1069) ---
**Author:** ![ltfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@ltfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ltfire)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2006, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/9 "2006-08-15T23:20:46Z")
> [@Alive At Both Ends](#): > > I’ve heard that unofficial world records have been set by swimmers swimming naked. I think a nude male swimmer might be held back by ‘rudder drag’. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/10 "2006-08-16T00:13:14Z")
> [@Cardinal](#): > > What seems to be making a difference is this fake shark skin suit material, which is why you see even men in full length body suits. I’ve found the suits to act as more of a compression suit then any thing. For most people they have extra skin, this can really move around, especially off the walls. The suits keep the skin from moving around. I guess I’ll find out soon how much hair really does change things as I’ve cut my long hair last week. ---
**Author:** ![Lightray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightray/32/391_2.png) [@Lightray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightray)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/11 "2006-08-16T01:38:02Z")
> [@Puzzler](#): > > He said something like “All pro swimmers shave before major contests. Most people think it’s to lower friction, but that’s not true. It’s \” > > Please note it’s not an actual quote. It’s been many a year since I was a competitive swimmer, but we were told that shaving increased your skin’s sensitivity – not only removing the layer of dead skin cells that you scrape off with the hairs, but the fact that your skin is now sensitive having just been so scraped. Much like my chin and neck is now sensitive, having just shaved. Frankly, I think we usually shaved far enough ahead of the race that our skin would have recovered from the unfortunate scraping. However, it’s certainly true that I was more _aware_ of my denuded skin; it felt different, having no hair where there once was. Mind you, I never really _had_ much leg hair to begin with… Presumably, had I been able to translate this into “feeling” the water better over my scraped skin, I might have continued on swimming competitively. Alas, it just made wearing jeans _really_ uncomfortable about a week later as my sparse leg hair regrew. Also, google yielded up [this page](http://soloswims.com/shaving.htm), which actually cites research studies on this, so there’s obviously still some debate left in the topic. ---
**Author:** ![snailboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/97f17d/32.png) [@snailboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snailboy)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/12 "2006-08-16T02:09:03Z")
So why would you need to have more sensitive skin anyway? I’ve done plenty of swimming (not competitively). I can tell the water is there with my hairy arms and I can’t imagine what else you’d need to feel. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/13 "2006-08-16T02:27:57Z")
> [@Alive At Both Ends](#): > > I’ve heard that unofficial world records have been set by swimmers swimming naked. Assuming you are dead serious, I’d be surprised if women’s swimming records have been set by women swimming naked. The most streamlined body making the least resistance using the same caloric output tends to win. Women have those boobies things. Untethered by Speedo fabric, I suspect that a given woman would not be as hydrodynamic as the same given woman who was clothed in her swimsuit. Ergo, men swimming naked may set speed records. Women swimming naked might not. Cartooniverse ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/14 "2006-08-16T02:37:20Z")
I swam competitively in high school. At the end of each season, we tapered for the last week or so, and shaved prior to the big meets (conference championship, sectionals, and state). The tapering might have helped, but I think the shaving was just psychological. If it’s not purely psychological, at least it makes more sense for swimmers to shave than bicyclists, water having significantly more drag than air. As I recall, I always cut myself with the razor on the outer ankle bones. When I hit the water, the wound always stung. This was actually good, because it reminded me to keep my freestyle kick going strong throughout the race. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BrassyPhrase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea666f/32.png) [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/15 "2006-08-16T02:42:03Z")
> [@Puzzler](#): > > At the Olympic games and other professional swimming contests one may see swimmers with shaved bodies. I heard a pro swimmer saying it has nothing to do with lowering friction. So why do they shave? Drag? \ ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/16 "2006-08-16T02:45:16Z")
Hmm… This guy is not convinced about the shark skin suits: [http://coachsci.sdsu.edu/swimming/bodysuit/knowsuit.htm](http://coachsci.sdsu.edu/swimming/bodysuit/knowsuit.htm) [ScienceMag.org](http://ScienceMag.org) wants me to subscribe, I think, and will only tell me, “New swimsuits with tiny ridges modeled on sharkskin are all the rage. Experts are split, though, about whether the high-tech suits reduce drag.” # This guy tried five different suits, four of them “sharkskin”, and even though he tried the full one last when he was most tired, he swam the fastest in it. That’s not a full study, just some guy giving his opinion. [http://www.goswim.tv/articles\_comments.php?id=2765\_0\_16\_0\_C](http://www.goswim.tv/articles_comments.php?id=2765_0_16_0_C) Oh, I finally found something, it seems: Effect of swimming suit design on the energy demands of swimming. Starling RD, Costill DL, Trappe TA, Jozsi AC, Trappe SW, Goodpaster BH. Human Performance Laboratory, Ball State University, Muncie, IN 47306, USA. Eight competitive male swimmers completed a standardized 365.8 m (400 yd) freestyle swimming trial at a fixed pace (approximately 90% of maximal effort) while wearing a torso swim suit (TOR) or a standard racing suit (STD). Oxygen uptake (VO2), blood lactate, heart rate (HR), and distance per stroke (DPS) measurements were obtained. In addition, a video-computer system was used to collect velocity data during a prone underwater glide following a maximal leg push-off from the side of the pool while wearing the TOR and STD suits. These data were used to calculate the total distance covered during the glides. VO2 (3.76 +/- 0.16 vs 3.92 +/- 0.18 l.min-1) and lactate (8.08 +/- 0.53 vs, 9.66 +/- 0.66 mM) were significantly (P \< 0.05) lower during the TOR trial than the STD trial. HR was not different (P \> 0.05) between the TOR (170.1 +/- 5.1 b.min-1) and STD (173.5 +/- 5.7 b.min-1) trials. DPS was significantly greater during the TOR (2.70 +/- 0.066 m.stroke-1) versus STD (2.58 +/- 0.054 m.stroke-1) trial. A significantly greater total distance was covered during the prone glide while wearing the TOR (2.05 +/- 0.067 m) compared to the STD (2.00 +/- 0.080 m) suit. These findings demonstrate that a specially designed torso suit reduces the energy demand of swimming compared to a standard racing suit which may be due to a reduction in body drag. You can get the full article at medline by accessing this reference: # PMID: 7564977 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] (I don’t know what that means or how to access that “reference”.) I have to throw in this one too: Project Number: MCS013 Grade: 8 Title: Effect Of Swimsuit Material On Drag Abstract: The purpose of my experiment is to find which swimsuit materials has the least amount of drag. Each swimsuit was cut into a 10cm by 10cm square, a pocket was added, and a penny was placed inside. The sample was dropped ten times through a three-meter cylinder filled with water, and the time was recorded. The Fastskin is the fastest, second was the Aquablade,third was the Reversible, and the slowest is the standard suit (control). Swimmers would want to wear the Fastskin swimsuit when racing so they would be fastest through the water then the swimmers wearing one of the other three suits. ---
**Author:** ![MilTan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@MilTan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MilTan)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/17 "2006-08-16T03:47:07Z")
> [@robby](#): > > If it’s not purely psychological, at least it makes more sense for swimmers to shave than bicyclists, water having significantly more drag than air. Bikers don’t shave for drag reasons. They shave because treating the inevitable scrapes and wounds is easier if there isn’t hair in the way. ---
**Author:** ![Noel\_Prosequi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b19c9b/32.png) [@Noel\_Prosequi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noel_Prosequi)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/18 "2006-08-16T05:12:03Z")
> [@robby](#): > > The tapering might have helped, but I think the shaving was just psychological. I “remember reading somewhere” (sorry, no cite) that the psych part was not just about self-motivation. It had a large component of psyching out the opposition. Just exactly when a swimmer shaves during a particular meet sends information about when he thinks the competition is getting serious. Thus, Ian Thorpe turning up with full beard, chest rug and dreadlocks in the early heats (not picking on him for this particularly, just using his famous name as an example) is kind of dispiriting. The suggestion is, you can’t shave for every race, and you don’t want to shave too soon (stubble factor) but too late and you’ve been eliminated. Even if shaving has no real effect on times whatever, it is fascinating that it can be used as a move in gamesmanship. IANN, NHIEB, a competetive swimmer, by the way. Oh, and professional swimmers? they may not get paid piece rates per meet or per race, but Thorpe is a multimillionaire with no other saleable talent that justifies that level of wealth. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/19 "2006-08-16T05:55:42Z")
[QUOTE=Cartooniverse…Ergo, men swimming naked may set speed records. Women swimming naked might not. Cartooniverse[/QUOTE] It’s worth mentioning that once-upon-a-time (until 30-40 yrs ago) men and boys usually swam nude if there were no females present. High school and collegiate swim teams would have practiced nude, but wore suits at matches where women would be present. So it wouldn’t surprise me if many of the mens’ records were set by nude swimmers. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2006, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879/20 "2006-08-16T06:27:35Z")
I would love to hear a cite for HS swim teams swimming naked in 1966. My dad was out of college before that even, and he says he’s never heard of it. I just can’t imagine it, for legal reasons, really. This wasn’t the swimming hole in “The Great Brain.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-professional-swimmers-shave-their-bodies/368879.md?page=2)