Sauna at the GYM

[cali06]

I go naked to the steam room in Bally's and use a towel to sit on. Most of the guys do this, although there are some that use swimsuits if going back and forth to the pool or underwear for modesty. I don't see the point in being modest in a steam room with just guys, especially since it is right across from the shower where everyone is naked anyway.

 

[FRE]

wear a towel
wear flip-flops. Once you have a case of plantar warts you will always wear flipflops in the wet areas of a gym.

Yes, I got warts way back in 1952, but not since then.

I also discovered that the way to prevent foot fungus problems is not to wear leather shoes which stop air flow. Tennis or running shoes made from textiles are OK.

 

[FRE]

I think public nudity, at least for men, regardless of reason is on a rapid decline. I think younger generations of men are increasingly being told from the youngest age that there may be something wrong with their body. Something is not perfect or is different and this is a problem.

I think men are effected by this harder than women because there is such diversity in our private anatomy. For women, they may have large or smaller breasts but it is abundantly obvious looking at them clothed. For men, ours is not so apparent, so it is easier to hide what we have. Given, that many men may be uncomfortable or insecure about their sexual anatomy, why would they be willing to be nude infront of others?

Anyways, I think communal showers in gyms, suanas, nude beaches and things that involve male nudity are going to slowly dissapear in many parts of the United States, in the future.

I know I have a lot of generalizations, but that is my little sociological theory.

Bodies are more imperfect than they were in earlier times. As we all know, there is an epidemic of obesity. I wonder if that's a factor.

Until at least the middle to late 1970s, the downtown YMCA in Minneapolis did not permit men to wear bathing suits in the swimming pool unless women were present. If fact, if a man walked in wearing a bathing suit, he was directed to remove it. Now it appears that it is exactly the opposite, although I haven't been to the Minneapolis YMCA since 1978.

Here at one of the YMCAs in Albuquerque, there is a glass wall between the pool and the weight room. Obviously bathing suits are required.

I mentioned this in another thread, so I hope that it is still acceptable to mention it here also. On a motorcycle web site, there was a thread about child sexual abuse. The consensus was that "ordering" kids to strip in physical education classes made them more vulnerable to child abuse because then it would be easier for a predator to get them to strip. In fact, they even saw it as abusive to "order" kids to strip in gym classes. They were unable to understand that they were not ORDERED to strip, but rather, that it was simply a custom that was generally accepted by everyone without question.

When I lived in San Diego (1978 - 1994), I often went to a large nude beach. On weekends, there were often thousands of nude people there. Nudity was made illegal there about 1977, but the law was generally ignored except on the city portion of the beach where the police would sometimes enforce the law. On the state-owned portion, the policy was not to enforce the law unless there was a complaint, in which case nude people were directed to cover up and there were no charges unless they refused to cover up. So, it remained nude in spite of the law. I'd be interested in learning what the current situation is there.

 

[FRE]

The main problem I have with steam rooms is that my glasses steam up then I can't see anything. I suppose that I could wear my contact lenses to solve that problem.

 

[dickman45885]

mix of nude/non-nude in the sauna at the Y I belong to. Some of nude, some wear a towel, and some wear swim trunks of some sort.

 

[catman]

Funny thing, when younger I loved steam rooms, didn't like the sauna (dry), older I know prefer the opposite (I find it hard to breath in steam rooms....) but I love the slippery/sweatness of the sauna...anyone else?

 

[canuck_pa]

Fre, my glasses steam up too. So instead I have to leave my glasses in a locker and feel my way around in the steam room which can make things interesting. lol!

 

[B_Rob15]

http://www.honeycombe.net/Sauna.jpg
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[bluebear87106]

most guys sit on a towel in the sauna. The wood can be very hot and anyway it's more hygienic. Most gyms ask you to do this for the comfort of everyone. In the US, saunas are usually segregated - men and women; in Europe, they are often mixed. The same rules still apply. Most people go naked so you can sweat better and really open up the pores.

 

[ninerr]

I have two towels in my locker at the gym -- one to use in the shower, and a smaller (like a hand towel) to sit on in the sauna. Other than that, I'm naked in the sauna. It's not that big of a deal... it's just like showering.

 

[nakedwally]

It really depends on the gym, if you should wear shorts or go nude. Most gyms require you to sit on a towel for sanitary reasons, I know that in some localities it is the law to sit on a towel. If the sauna is in a single sex locker area, then it should be acceptable to go nude and to just sit on a towel. If the sauna is in a co-ed area such as the pool area then a swimsuit being worn might be required.

 

[B_The hung one]

i bring a towel in to sit on, but i sit there uncovered... its more comfortable to have my les spread apart to allow my cock and balls to hang

 

[D_Terry_Misue]

The YMCA I work out at just started a new rule: u must wear shorts in the sauna. No nudity, no towel, no underwear (which I would never do, but a lot of other guys do). I don't remember the exact wording but the sign explicitly states that u must wear 'board shorts' in the sauna.

I say fuck it and still go in naked. I bring a towel, but just to sit on. why would u want to wear shorts in the sauna?

 

[B_The hung one]

The YMCA I work out at just started a new rule: u must wear shorts in the sauna. No nudity, no towel, no underwear (which I would never do, but a lot of other guys do). I don't remember the exact wording but the sign explicitly states that u must wear 'board shorts' in the sauna.

I say fuck it and still go in naked. I bring a towel, but just to sit on. why would u want to wear shorts in the sauna?

i agree... i would go in naked too... screw the rules!

 

[bayamon_55]

for the sauna...
a towel that you take off once inside and sit on so you do not pick up bacteria from other asses. but once in, you sit on that towel naked, no excuses. no shorts or underwear in there, dont be weird. after all, that is the way it has been done in europe for thousands of years. and flip flops in the gym allways and forever. keep your feet protected.

i would worry more about being barefoot than people seeing my dick. all men in the locker rooms have dicks have you noticed?

 

[greekgott]

In the sauna, naked, unless it explicitly says otherwise. If someone comes in and does not want to take that pant or that towel off, he/she should be reminded of it.

 

[AgHarley]

My gym in Northern Virginia (Golds Ballston), most dudes are buck naked but carry a towel.

At night, about 8:00, this is a pretty active sauna with dudes strokin each other. A few even go off to the showers together.

If anyone still works out at this gym can you confirm if the sauna scene is still active?

 

[22D ROCK]

The gym I went to I always just wore a towel. Going in the sauna in shorts and just sweating balls, was no bueno. It sure made laundry easier.