How comfortable are men with being nude in communal showers and locker rooms in your country or culture?

[WadWorshipper]

We Americans weren't always prudes about being naked in public. For centuries, there was little choice. Small houses with little privacy meant that boys and men saw each other naked all the time. Ivory soap ads even in the 50's showed mothers sending their boys off to the creek with a towel and Ivory soap to get clean. Being naked around each other was normal because privacy was nearly non-existent. It wasn't practical.

When some public schools installed pools about that time, the boys all swam naked, even at swim meets where the girls were in the stands. It was partially about the poor filter designed that got instantly clogged up from the felt-like swimsuits of the time, but since boys had no problems with being naked since they'd been raised with it, they just did it.

YMCA's in the 50's and the 60's were all-nude behind the front desk, with no women allowed. All boys and men were naked in all areas, the pool, weight room, showers, etc. Boys grew up knowing what men's bodies looked like and it was a normal everyday thing, no big deal. No privacy in a YMCA and it was ok.

What changed was privacy. After WWII, and the GI bill, all of a sudden, a family of four could expect a much better, and larger place to live. At first brothers may still share a bedroom, but as time went on, each boy had his own room. There was no longer any need to be naked at home and these boys grew up with a mixed-bag of privacy. Complete privacy at home, but yet having communal showers at school after sweaty gym practices. It was weird seeing friends naked, where it hadn't been that way for their dads, because it was no longer "normal" not to be naked around other guys all the time.

Eventually this discomfort with school nudity cause parents to push for different facilities, and then NO nudity occurred in young men's lives, and boys behind them came to think of all nudity as bad and uncomfortable. Very sad.

 

[deleted16203581]

I grew up in rural town in the USA, high school in the 70's meant P.E. twice a week mid-day, gym shorts, jockstrap, socks, tennis shoes, and a tee-shirt, gang showers after P.E., no one got out of the locker room smelling like sweat. Boy scout summer camp (guys only), nude pool and lake swimming, no suits allowed, outside open air showers, no walls between the toilets, troth (sp) urinals. I chuckle when I think back amount me and my buddies, huddled together on the lake floating dock, shivering naked, scrotums shriveled like walnuts, being forced to jump back in to earn our merit badges. ((Privately, I did wonder why the scout masters and oldest life guards wore bathing suits.)) There's a gang shower at my old gym, hey for us older guys, nudity in the locker room is ingrained in us. The new YMCA in town, has separate shower stall only. While I am older and wrinkly, and who wants to see that these days, why should it matter? It sure didn't matter when I was growing up. Respect your elders, and don't bend over if you drop the soap.

If it weren’t for the open boarding school and military showers how would we know the status of the princes’ royal family jewels? The hundreds of Sloane Rangers aren’t talking and neither are the pros in Vegas who were paid well to disappear.

 

[tyfromtexas]

We Americans weren't always prudes about being naked in public. For centuries, there was little choice. Small houses with little privacy meant that boys and men saw each other naked all the time. Ivory soap ads even in the 50's showed mothers sending their boys off to the creek with a towel and Ivory soap to get clean. Being naked around each other was normal because privacy was nearly non-existent. It wasn't practical.

When some public schools installed pools about that time, the boys all swam naked, even at swim meets where the girls were in the stands. It was partially about the poor filter designed that got instantly clogged up from the felt-like swimsuits of the time, but since boys had no problems with being naked since they'd been raised with it, they just did it.

YMCA's in the 50's and the 60's were all-nude behind the front desk, with no women allowed. All boys and men were naked in all areas, the pool, weight room, showers, etc. Boys grew up knowing what men's bodies looked like and it was a normal everyday thing, no big deal. No privacy in a YMCA and it was ok.

What changed was privacy. After WWII, and the GI bill, all of a sudden, a family of four could expect a much better, and larger place to live. At first brothers may still share a bedroom, but as time went on, each boy had his own room. There was no longer any need to be naked at home and these boys grew up with a mixed-bag of privacy. Complete privacy at home, but yet having communal showers at school after sweaty gym practices. It was weird seeing friends naked, where it hadn't been that way for their dads, because it was no longer "normal" not to be naked around other guys all the time.

Eventually this discomfort with school nudity cause parents to push for different facilities, and then NO nudity occurred in young men's lives, and boys behind them came to think of all nudity as bad and uncomfortable. Very sad.

i truly think privacy ruined a lot of boys confidence, like yes some would be nice but to fully shut others off from each other really hurt us i think

 

[WadWorshipper]

i truly think privacy ruined a lot of boys confidence, like yes some would be nice but to fully shut others off from each other really hurt us i think

I completely agree with you. I've lived through the transition. I see the loss of simple male camaraderie that comes with friends or teammates just laughing and joking around when naked when it isn't a big deal. Boys of today can't relate to that, and it's really a shame. They race off to the restroom stall to change jeans to shorts OVER their underwear. They don't feel the simple calm of changing clothes in a locker room with other guys, instead of the panic they feel if someone sees their clothed bulge, believing that there is a sexual predator in every aisle. It's a bit much.

 

[tyfromtexas]

I completely agree with you. I've lived through the transition. I see the loss of simple male camaraderie that comes with friends or teammates just laughing and joking around when naked when it isn't a big deal. Boys of today can't relate to that, and it's really a shame. They race off to the restroom stall to change jeans to shorts OVER their underwear. They don't feel the simple calm of changing clothes in a locker room with other guys, instead of the panic they feel if someone sees their clothed bulge, believing that there is a sexual predator in every aisle. It's a bit much.

it’s just sad tbh

 

[Hakan1]

I don't know who was more proud - me or him.

Same with my dad. I thought it was because our muslim culture. Nice to hear.

 

[deleted2604161]

Personally...Not comfortable at all.

 

[Andleba]

I grew up in the 90’s in the UK and we always showered buck naked in communal showers and under no circumstance could you not do so. This continued through secondary school. We all knew what eachothers dicks looked like and modesty wasn’t a thing.

Now it’s very different. I live in central London and when I went to a cheap but popular gym chain with no pool/sauna/steam, I noticed that 90%+ of the guys didn’t shower after a workout even if they were sweaty and stank, preferring to shower at home. The ones that did shower were either in their late 30’s+ or had huge dicks that they like to parade around the lockerroom or were gay and like to have a good look at the local talent.

My new gym which is significantly more expensive with pool/sauna/steam and 90%+ of guys shower after their workout, regardless of age. You do get the towel dance with some but many will just strip infront off you while getting dried and dressed.

Central London gyms do have a tendency to be quite cruisey even if nothing happens and I think with the access to the internet and prevalence of spy videos etc, younger guys are generally right to be put off because they’ve seen it all online. I’ve had numerous occasions where older gay guys in particular will flat out stare at me when I’m changing to the point where it’s uncomfortable.

 

[deleted16203581]

I grew up in the 90’s in the UK and we always showered buck naked in communal showers and under no circumstance could you not do so. This continued through secondary school. We all knew what eachothers dicks looked like and modesty wasn’t a thing.

Now it’s very different. I live in central London and when I went to a cheap but popular gym chain with no pool/sauna/steam, I noticed that 90%+ of the guys didn’t shower after a workout even if they were sweaty and stank, preferring to shower at home. The ones that did shower were either in their late 30’s+ or had huge dicks that they like to parade around the lockerroom or were gay and like to have a good look at the local talent.

My new gym which is significantly more expensive with pool/sauna/steam and 90%+ of guys shower after their workout, regardless of age. You do get the towel dance with some but many will just strip infront off you while getting dried and dressed.

Central London gyms do have a tendency to be quite cruisey even if nothing happens and I think with the access to the internet and prevalence of spy videos etc, younger guys are generally right to be put off because they’ve seen it all online. I’ve had numerous occasions where older gay guys in particular will flat out stare at me when I’m changing to the point where it’s uncomfortable.

I thought about something: maybe those blokes in your previous cheap gym didn’t shower at home, maybe not at all. The guys who do shower at your new more expensive gym may be going off to work or social situations where it’s actually expected that one not stink.

No need to be uncomfortable when guys stare at you. Better to be flattered and take it as a compliment. I’ve asked some of those types who stare at me in the shower while they wank off if they like what they see and have gotten a few interesting answers. I look at it like it’s not costing me anything to make some guys (and their cocks) happy.

 

[kjurgen]

French here, I am 27 years old, I will share my experience.

First of all, I think that being naked with other men is part of the experience of "being a man". It has been done in all cultures, in all times. For me, it's a very intimate feeling that I don't find elsewhere. I have read some comments about sexual behavior in locker rooms or public places naked, this should NEVER be the case. Being naked and neutral with men of any sexuality is far more valuable than sex. If you want to have sex, go to a gay sauna.

That being said, in France, depending on your social standing, nudity between men will be more or less well perceived.

If you come from a wealthy background you will be more used to getting naked between men, it is part of the "healthy body" culture of the French upper classes. In sports played by the wealthy, such as tennis, men get naked very easily in the locker room.

In poorer circles it is the opposite. I think this is due to the fact that bodies are less beautiful because of historically difficult jobs and living conditions. In soccer clubs, for example, men rarely go naked. Moreover now there is the influence of young French Muslims who are very shy, they are the majority in many soccer clubs in poor cities.

In the swimming pools where there is the possibility of showering with your bathing suit, nobody ever goes naked, it would be very bad to do so, you will be seen as a pervert.

In my gym, which is quite expensive, people over 40 get naked without any embarrassment.

I would say about 60% of the guys my age do the "towel dance", which is ridiculous. But most of them still don't care that at some point you see their dick.

What is very important for young people, and I think it's the same in many cultures, is that the nudity is not "done on purpose". For example, a lot of older guys walk around naked for a long time when they could use a towel. This is seen as exhibitionism and is very badly perceived (wrongly I know). But if you go to France be careful with this, recently a guy who came out completely naked without a towel from a shower of a "poor" sport club got his face broken by some young people.

In my case, (without being humble) I am what you could call a "stud" and I always keep the towel around my waist when I walk in the locker room. However, when I put on or take off my underwear, I put the towel at my feet to dry it and I find myself naked for a while.

Other young men see this not as exhitionism, but more as a sense of I don't care to show my dick for 30 seconds. And everyone is looking lol.
I've noticed that some guys who used to do the towel dance are getting naked more easily now too.

 

[deleted16203581]

French here, I am 27 years old, I will share my experience.

First of all, I think that being naked with other men is part of the experience of "being a man". It has been done in all cultures, in all times. For me, it's a very intimate feeling that I don't find elsewhere. I have read some comments about sexual behavior in locker rooms or public places naked, this should NEVER be the case. Being naked and neutral with men of any sexuality is far more valuable than sex. If you want to have sex, go to a gay sauna.

That being said, in France, depending on your social standing, nudity between men will be more or less well perceived.

If you come from a wealthy background you will be more used to getting naked between men, it is part of the "healthy body" culture of the French upper classes. In sports played by the wealthy, such as tennis, men get naked very easily in the locker room.

In poorer circles it is the opposite. I think this is due to the fact that bodies are less beautiful because of historically difficult jobs and living conditions. In soccer clubs, for example, men rarely go naked. Moreover now there is the influence of young French Muslims who are very shy, they are the majority in many soccer clubs in poor cities.

In the swimming pools where there is the possibility of showering with your bathing suit, nobody ever goes naked, it would be very bad to do so, you will be seen as a pervert.

In my gym, which is quite expensive, people over 40 get naked without any embarrassment.

I would say about 60% of the guys my age do the "towel dance", which is ridiculous. But most of them still don't care that at some point you see their dick.

What is very important for young people, and I think it's the same in many cultures, is that the nudity is not "done on purpose". For example, a lot of older guys walk around naked for a long time when they could use a towel. This is seen as exhibitionism and is very badly perceived (wrongly I know). But if you go to France be careful with this, recently a guy who came out completely naked without a towel from a shower of a "poor" sport club got his face broken by some young people.

In my case, (without being humble) I am what you could call a "stud" and I always keep the towel around my waist when I walk in the locker room. However, when I put on or take off my underwear, I put the towel at my feet to dry it and I find myself naked for a while.

Other young men see this not as exhitionism, but more as a sense of I don't care to show my dick for 30 seconds. And everyone is looking lol.
I've noticed that some guys who used to do the towel dance are getting naked more easily now too.

Hi “stud.”
Humble?! . Has there ever existed a French man or woman who was humble?
Regarding nudity (and other issues): France has always been very different than the countries around it.

 

[kjurgen]

Hi “stud.”
Humble?! . Has there ever existed a French man or woman who was humble?
Regarding nudity (and other issues): France has always been very different than the countries around it.

I had to say it cause if young man who are quite handsome start to show that nudity is not a problem, other will follow, same with fashion

 

[dreams69]

Hi “stud.”
Humble?! . Has there ever existed a French man or woman who was humble?
Regarding nudity (and other issues): France has always been very different than the countries around it.

Let's not start stereotyping people and nationalities please

 

[deleted16203581]

Let's not start stereotyping people and nationalities please

I was kidding the stud. I spent a year of college there. Vive la France.

Let's not start stereotyping people and nationalities please

Relax. I was kidding the stud. I spent a year of university there. Vive la France! Vive la difference.

 

[Jdefrio_22]

I’ve gotten pretty comfortable when most other people do it too. I don’t think I’m at the point where I could be the only one fully nude in a group of guys at a communal shower. Recently went to a Korean spa and was completely comfortable with other fully nude guys

 

[greg_greg]

In my country? Extremely comfortable. Young, middle age and old people will happily shower butt naked.

Our strong sauna culture is to thank here I think.

 

[Ynminpao]

I live in Bulgaria and at the swimming pool I go to, I'd say around 2/3 of the guys shower naked and change openly. It's pretty much the same trend in Eastern Europe which tends to be casual about shower/locker room nudity.

Got any clue where one might find a nice gym/pool with an open shower in Sofia? I have been to a few, but they're mostly with cubicles or mixed...

 

[curtain_swoosh]

half brit half austrian here.

i lived in both countries and i feel like guys these days are more ashamed of their "inperfect" bodies, especially nowadays, where a certain lifestyle is advertised everywhere, especially from those idiot influencers haha.

ive been going to gyms all of my life really, cause of box training, football practise or just regular gym visitis or sauna visits and it definitely changed in the last 10 years or so.

i personally dont care if anyone sees my dick or not, but not everyone is of that mindset. its a shame really.

 

[chrisrobin]

half brit half austrian here.

i lived in both countries and i feel like guys these days are more ashamed of their "inperfect" bodies, especially nowadays, where a certain lifestyle is advertised everywhere, especially from those idiot influencers haha.

ive been going to gyms all of my life really, cause of box training, football practise or just regular gym visitis or sauna visits and it definitely changed in the last 10 years or so.

i personally dont care if anyone sees my dick or not, but not everyone is of that mindset. its a shame really.

The last ten years have seen a lot of changes and much is to do I suspect with more social networking via the internet and being shown the perfect, being told what is perfect and how to become perfect that has resulted in youth and the younger generation being aware of body image, not only muscle bulk being promoted as the way to be but penis size as the way to score on the sex scene.
We are all different, genes account for a lot and while we can do some small changes to our outward appearance some things are a constant no matter how many pills potions or pumps you use.
My generation and background were very Victorian but somehow I managed to dodge the taboos and did skinny dipping as a nipper, enjoy the changing rooms along the way and didn't have a problem with what people thought of my body or dick. I'm happy with who I am and what I am was well as what I have.

 

[Tbprivate]

I’m english and live in Turkey
Nudity is frowned upon here unfortunately I’ve been to changing rooms with friends who were horrified I got naked to change clothes, one told me that I had to go to a toilet cubicle to change in to my shorts. One Turk told me that only your wife should see you naked, no one else
There’s a lot of semi-nudity in Turkish baths but always with a thin towel around their waists.

I visited Tbilisi, Georgia a couple of years ago and all Hot Spring Baths stipulate nudity in public areas. It was interesting to be in a group of naked guys sharing changing rooms, showers, sauna, hot baths and oil massage areas especially considering that homosexuality isn’t legally there.
Talking of different cultures it was amusing to see how different nationalities reacted when told they had to remove their shorts before entering the public areas.
2 college guys from the UK were travelling together, one gladly got naked but his Indian friend was very uncomfortable and had to be persuaded to go with it.