Steam Room/Sauna Etiquette Question

[2322]

Got a question:

I attended a gym with a sauna and most guys never bothered to cover-up. They used a small towel to wipe their faces, use as a pillow, or drape their nads when lying down.

This seemed natural since the dry heat causes the perspiration to dry so quickly.

A new place I go to has a steam room too but because I usually go late I've never seen anyone else in there. Now, because it's a steam room and the perpsiration doesn't evaporate, every time I've gone in I've used my towel to sit on as the idea of sitting in a pool of another guy's sweat isn't terribly appealing to me. My problem is that I sweat a lot in the steam room and frequently wish I had brought another towel with me to wipe my face.

Is it considered rude, tacky, or weird to sit on the towel in a steam room or grab a few extra towels to be comfortable? Or do guys usually sit with a towel wrapped around the waist? I wish I had a long towel to cover my back so I can lean against the wall, but that's like THREE towels and that seems excessive to me. My nightmare scenario is I'm sitting there quite nude and then a bunch of guys all walk-in with towels wrapped around them and they all look at me like I'm trying to cruise them.

Maybe this is a silly question, but it really concerns me. Is it also rude to go from the steam room to the sauna and back again? Should I shower off first before going into the steam room or sauna?

Thanks for the assistance!

 

[Dave NoCal]

My take on it is that two towels for the sake of comfort and hygiene is not excessive. No need to cover up. I am not offended by someone going back and forth from steam room to sauna without showering, although I like to cool off a bit between them. Now, going from steam room or sauna to the hot tub without showering seems nast to me. Likewise, entering the hot tub without showering is extremely rude in my bbok.

 

[Mattness]

To me, not sitting on a towel in a steam room or sauna is absolutely disgusting.

I have actually said to guys who were NOT sitting on a towel, "you know, by putting your ass directly on the bench, you've just put your shit all over the bench. I'm going to go call the Department of Health and have this entire Steam Room shut down because you've just contaminated the entire steam room/sauna! Thanks, you selfish, fuck!".

In nudist resorts, it's a normal thing that when you sit down on something, you ALWAYS sit on a towel!

Civilized!

 

[Divine1]

I also sit on a towel in both the steam and sauna.
I just let the sweat run down my body.
I shower between treatments.

 

[cgttown]

Sitting on a towel is fine and perfectly acceptable. In the steam room at my gym, some sit on one and others don't. I don't get too upset either way. You have to shower before you steam anyway, and they clean it every day and disinfect. As to the the cover up or no cover up...that seems to vary by the gym. Few guys cover up at my gym, but some do. No one seems to think anything either way about it. By the way, just showing your cock and balls in the steam room is a long way from cruising. Cruising is an attitude, so don't worry that someone will think you're cruising if you aren't.

 

[saabman]

To me, not sitting on a towel in a steam room or sauna is absolutely disgusting.

I have actually said to guys who were NOT sitting on a towel, "you know, by putting your ass directly on the bench, you've just put your shit all over the bench. I'm going to go call the Department of Health and have this entire Steam Room shut down because you've just contaminated the entire steam room/sauna! Thanks, you selfish, fuck!".



Wow. Can you say, "over-react"? What ever...

My gym has both dry sauna and steamroom. When using the dry sauna - I carry my towel in there and sit on it. When I go into the steam room - I go in there naked but carry in some paper towels from the sink area and sit on that.

 

[dudepiston]

At my gym, there are signs saying 'one towel only' but they're these cheap little towels. Almost no one just takes ONE of them into the sauna or steam room. I'm almost always in the sauna alone, and even when I'm not me & everyone else always has used a towel to sit on, even if that meant we weren't covered up at all. And yeah before I get in the hot tub (which we're supposed to do nude) I shower. I've never seen anyone NOT shower before doing that. That'd be kinda gross, imho, esp. after working out. And I've never EVER worried about the idea of cruising at my gym. It's like the other poster said, just being nude and having your cock visible does not equal cruising for sex. :tongue:

 

[Mattness]

To me, not sitting on a towel in a steam room or sauna is absolutely disgusting.

I have actually said to guys who were NOT sitting on a towel, "you know, by putting your ass directly on the bench, you've just put your shit all over the bench. I'm going to go call the Department of Health and have this entire Steam Room shut down because you've just contaminated the entire steam room/sauna! Thanks, you selfish, fuck!".



Wow. Can you say, "over-react"? What ever...

My gym has both dry sauna and steamroom. When using the dry sauna - I carry my towel in there and sit on it. When I go into the steam room - I go in there naked but carry in some paper towels from the sink area and sit on that.

I guess I should have explained WHY I acted that way that time...I was a member of a gym for 6 months and in that time period, I got 4 sinus infections and the Doctor thought it was because of this issue! But it also is oogy to me LOL.

 

[Hjobber]

At Ballys where I go, you must wear a bathing suit in the steam room and saunas. There used to be a lot of guys having sex in the steam rooms.

 

[inwait8]

I go to BSC in Boston... as far as the towel situation I've taken more than one on occasion if I was going to use the sauna and the steam room that way I had a clean one to dry off with. I have also seen some guys take 3 or 4 which I see as unnecessary, but totally up to them. I would be irritated to ever go to get a towel and not have any there...granted that would be the gyms problem.

On the etiquette side... there has only been one location out of the few that I've been to that had a sign posted stating that one must be covered at all times. They meant a towel, this was in the steam room. Everyone that was in there followed this. Other than that its up to you.. who cares what everyone else does?!? Just because they might not be comfortable being uncovered doesn't mean that you should comfort them by doing the same.