View Full Version : A question of sauna etiquette in the US
Ser Clegane
03-04-2005, 17:42
I will be in the US for a training during the next week and the resort were I will be staying also seems to have some nice wellness facilities including a sauna.
Maybe a stupid question - but if you go into a sauna in the US, do you keep your towel on?
Here you take it off, but remembering "Nipplegate" I'd like to avoid that you see any headlines about a German pervert in Florida who showed his privates around...
Lord Godfrey
03-04-2005, 17:48
Leave the towel on, us Americans are a little puritan still.
Big_John
03-04-2005, 17:53
wait and see if other people take theirs off first. it depends on the crowd mostly. i mean, lots of us played sports in college or whatever and showered with other guys and whatnot.. i've been in saunas where most of the guys just use the towel to sit on.
like is said, it just depends of the people in there, do as they do. be one of them. conform. fit in. don't make waves. be a team player. don't go against the grain. there is no "i" in team. whoa.. sorry.. got carried away.
Ser Clegane
03-04-2005, 17:58
Thanks for the replies Lord Godfrey and Big_John
wait and see if other people take theirs off first. it depends on the crowd mostly. i mean, lots of us played sports in college or whatever and showered with other guys and whatnot.. i've been in saunas where most of the guys just use the towel to sit on..
This raises another question - are the saunas not mixed? Your response somehow implies that they aren't...
Thanks for the replies Lord Godfrey and [B]Big_John[/i]
This raises another question - are the saunas not mixed? Your response somehow implies that they aren't...
Some are - some are not. If they are mixed it would be best to keep the towel one - or where a pair of shorts. To keep everyone from running out screaming if you remove your towel.
In one-sex saunas - I have seen where men would just sit on the towel and sweat - and some where you had to have shorts on before getting in - along with the towel. Just ask about the rules - at the health spa or club that you use - or as Big John stated - just do what everyone else does.
Uesugi Kenshin
03-05-2005, 05:12
Just remember do not follow the example of the creepy guy sitting in the corner, he is probably not a good role model.
We do not have many saunas up here so i have no idea other than my previous bit of advice.
Towels stay on!
I don't buy this "relaxed atmosphere" amongst men in showers and saunas. You take a shower with another naked guy one day, you're picking out cutains the next.
Showering naked with another person means with a woman! And of course two women may shower together any time they please.
Big_John
03-05-2005, 06:14
well, it all depends on how secure you are in your sexuality. if you fear that seeing another man naked will 'turn' you, then you might want to avoid saunas altogether. i think it's good for people's self-image and humility to see other regular people (of both sexes) naked. speaking of humility, i showered with 4 or 5 guys from the boston celtics (us pro basketball team) about a year ago. if that doesn't humble you, nothing will.
Crazed Rabbit
03-05-2005, 08:10
Keep the towel on.
Towels stay on!
I don't buy this "relaxed atmosphere" amongst men in showers and saunas. You take a shower with another naked guy one day, you're picking out cutains the next.
Exactly.
I'd recommend wearing swimming trunks also.
Crazed Rabbit
Big_John
03-05-2005, 08:39
case in point. :thinking:
Ser Clegane
03-05-2005, 08:45
Wow - I'm glad I asked.
Towel and trunks even in a one-sex sauna (which is a tad boring in the first place)?
I do not even dare to imagine the potential ruckus had I walked into a mixed sauna (if there is one) and dropped my towel ~D
Well ... if you're in Rome, do as the Romans do I guess ~:handball:
well, it all depends on how secure you are in your sexuality. if you fear that seeing another man naked will 'turn' you, then you might want to avoid saunas altogether. i think it's good for people's self-image and humility to see other regular people (of both sexes) naked. speaking of humility.
I'm mighty secure in my sexuality. And I still don't want to shower with other men. Actually I was paraphrasing the great Rodney Dangerfield in Back to School. He refused to shower with the swim team, saying "one day you're showering together, the next day you're pinned to a freshman named Chip."
Nope, water sports are a mixed sex bag of tricks. Call me old fashioned. call me whatever you want. Just call me when the womenfolk are in the shower. :charge:
I showered with 4 or 5 guys from the boston celtics (us pro basketball team) about a year ago. if that doesn't humble you, nothing will.
Were they gentle?
Hosakawa Tito
03-05-2005, 20:35
Why I avoid public saunas
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v517/hoppy84/104342.jpg
Big_John
03-05-2005, 20:44
hosakawa has won the argument.
Were they gentle?no, they were very tall.
Devastatin Dave
03-06-2005, 07:06
I usually leave my towel on so I don't strike fear in the women in there and envy amongst the men, atleast that's how it would be if I wasn't hung like a hamster!!! ~D
Byzantine Prince
03-06-2005, 07:12
well, it all depends on how secure you are in your sexuality. if you fear that seeing another man naked will 'turn' you, then you might want to avoid saunas altogether. i think it's good for people's self-image and humility to see other regular people (of both sexes) naked. speaking of humility, i showered with 4 or 5 guys from the boston celtics (us pro basketball team) about a year ago. if that doesn't humble you, nothing will.
It's not about sexuality. I just wouldn't want to look at another guys nasty private parts while I do things like shower or get sweaty. Men are generally much filthier and nastier looking then women. That's my problem at least.
Kaiser of Arabia
03-06-2005, 17:55
Bah. Saunas. Who need em?
GAH! Try it before you decry it.
I used to take a long sauna after a workout at the gym. Best thing in the world. A few hours of weightlifting, fifteen minutes of 150 degrees and a cool shower after. Makes you feel like a million bucks!
Togakure
03-08-2005, 08:55
Lol ... what city, Ser Clegane? If it's NYC or SF, it really depends on the place, hehe. If it's all guys and their towels are off, and they're looking at you with big smiles and johnsons at attention ... as you have said you are married, I would suggest keeping your towel on and sitting in the corner in such a scenario ... hehehehehe.
Most saunas that I've been to separate the genders. In my experience, most men keep their towels on, but sometimes there are those who choose not to. It's really up to you. I think a lot has to do with your body language and how you carry yourself. If you toss your towel with a (limp) flick of the wrist and parade yourself around, wagging your arse and batting your eyebrows at your fellow sauna dudes, you might attract some unwanted attention. Then again, that might be a good way to get the sauna to yourself quickly. Then again, if it's in SF or NYC ... hehehehehe .... .
Proletariat
03-08-2005, 09:06
I've searched my book by Emily Post and I'm slowly being convinced she had the shortsightedness to completly leave this subject out. How myopic.
:blankg:
Paul Peru
03-08-2005, 09:16
Why I avoid public saunas
https://img.photobucket.com/albums/v517/hoppy84/104342.jpg
I thought I avoided churches because of the godspeak and tedium ~:eek:
Ahh... the gift of Freudian repression!
I think a lot has to do with your body language and how you carry yourself. If you toss your towel with a (limp) flick of the wrist and parade yourself around, wagging your arse and batting your eyebrows at your fellow sauna dudes, you might attract some unwanted attention.
Ahh, that's why those guys were all giving me their phone numbers. I couldn't figure it out. :love:
English assassin
03-08-2005, 13:20
I don't buy this "relaxed atmosphere" amongst men in showers and saunas. You take a shower with another naked guy one day, you're picking out cutains the next
Whoa, wait. So, in the states, after you have been in the gym and its time to shower in the changing rooms, you keep your shorts on? Weird. Surely its the same rules as using urinals, you go in, you do what you need to do (in this case, wash rather than pee, in case anyone was getting confused), eyes straight ahead at all times, you go out. No eye contact, no shorts either.
I just wouldn't want to look at another guys nasty private parts while I do things like shower or get sweaty.
So when DO you like to look at another guys nasty private parts...? ~:)
Togakure
03-08-2005, 13:50
Well, I think a lot of folks here exercise immediately after work, and many go home and shower afterwards rather than use the public facilities. Some people go and sit in the jacuzzi after a work out, without showering (which is why I don't use gym jacuzzis ... yuck). Others will top off a weight/aerobic session with a swim (which I did in the past, but I showered off any sweat before swimming). The staff at the gyms I've patronized that were responsible for cleaning weren't lax, but the sheer masses that use the gyms make its bathrooms an undesireable place to get cleaned up in the minds of most. I personally don't feel "clean" after showering in a public gym, so I'll usually just head home and shower there.
My generation had to take showers after PE class, beginning in Junior High School and continuing through High School. It was uncomfortable at first for most I think, but eventually none of us gave it a second thought. We didn't rivet our eyes forward or anything like that, but we didn't stare at each other either. We just showered, made eye contact if we were talking, dried off, got dressed, and went on our way. No big deal. I recently had a discussion with some teenagers and apparently this is no longer the case in most schools here. The teens I talked with about it were most definitely not into the idea (stereotypical paranoia about gays, etc.). It made me chuckle, because in some ways we're much more open-minded about things sexual these days, and yet, in other ways we are obviously not. Mostly people seem more openminded in the talk, but not the walk ... .
I've heard it said that people are far less self-conscious about nakedness (and sexuality for that matter) in Europe than in the USA.
Togakure
03-08-2005, 14:09
GAH! Try it before you decry it.
I used to take a long sauna after a workout at the gym. Best thing in the world. A few hours of weightlifting, fifteen minutes of 150 degrees and a cool shower after. Makes you feel like a million bucks!
Agreed wholeheartedly. I would do a series of aikido stretches and joint loosening exercises before the sauna. This, followed by the dry sauna, would eliminate muscle tension from arduous calisthenics and weightlifting, intense swimming, or getting tossed around and bent into pretzel-like shapes by my sensei. After the cool shower (which is a heavenly experience after sitting in 150-degree dry heat for 15-20 minutes), I'd be more than ready for 3-4 hours of continuous dancing or other, more recreational and social exercising ... .
Man, now I really miss having access to a sauna :embarassed: .
Whoa, wait. So, in the states, after you have been in the gym and its time to shower in the changing rooms, you keep your shorts on? Weird. Surely its the same rules as using urinals, you go in, you do what you need to do (in this case, wash rather than pee, in case anyone was getting confused), eyes straight ahead at all times, you go out. No eye contact, no shorts either.
I don't know what they do in the States, but here I was lucky enough to have a really nice gym at the ski hill all to myself. Very few people went. And only once did I have the misfortune of encountering another naked man in the shower. and I got the hell out reeeeeal quick.
:curtain: Could you pass me the soap Beirut sweetie"
~:eek: "AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
So when DO you like to look at another guys nasty private parts...? ~:)
Well there's that guy in the mirror over my bed, but other than him I try to avoid it. Except in a good porno. But that's kind of different. ~;)
I don't care what people call me, coward, insecure, homophobe, homosexual, homosapien, couldn't give a rat's tuckus. I just do not want to shower with naked men. Showering with naked women on the other hand is lovely and fun and tantalizing and blissful and happiness inducing and warm and wonderful indeed.
Call me biased. I simply have my preferences and that's that.
DemonArchangel
03-08-2005, 20:53
Well, I'm so huge, I scare folks, but it really depends on what the other participants do, if you keep your towel on and everyone else is naked, then you either have size issues or are insecure.
If you take it off while everyone else has a towel on, you're gay (just kidding).
Bah. Saunas. Who need em?
dont knock em, their very relaxing..im gonna put one on the end of my deck this summer. the wife and i are even debating about turning on of the spare rooms, into a hot tub/ sauna room... if so then ill put it inside... cant wait..
as for topic on hand, use your judment, and if its mixes, highly unlikely keep the towel on, id say if you wear a towel and leave it on your fine.
btw if indooer, this is kinda like what i want.
http://www.nordicsauna.com/store/images/site_images/fg-3030_M.jpg
Kaiser of Arabia
03-09-2005, 23:58
dont knock em, their very relaxing..im gonna put one on the end of my deck this summer. the wife and i are even debating about turning on of the spare rooms, into a hot tub/ sauna room... if so then ill put it inside... cant wait..
as for topic on hand, use your judment, and if its mixes, highly unlikely keep the towel on, id say if you wear a towel and leave it on your fine.
btw if indooer, this is kinda like what i want.
http://www.nordicsauna.com/store/images/site_images/fg-3030_M.jpg
I personally dont like them. Just a steam room more or less.
Cold Showers all the way.
Specially in Summer.
Don Corleone
03-11-2005, 22:05
I've taken totally nude mixed saunas here in the US. I've also been in places where men wore two towels, one around waist, one around shoulders, in a male only sauna. It really depends on the health club and the part of the country (where I live now, they don't even HAVE saunas, you perverts!) One big no-no that's very different than the sauna culture I've experienced in Europe....absolutely no alcohol in the sauna, or the lounge room attached. You'll get shown the door, pronto.
Uesugi Kenshin
03-12-2005, 03:07
I wonder why that is, anyone know of any solid reasons or is it just for liability type stuff?
Ser Clegane
03-12-2005, 13:08
Lol ... what city, Ser Clegane?
It was in Safety Harbor, Florida (just came back). It turned out that I did not go to the sauna after all because
a) it was gender separated ~;)
b) it was not really the nices sauna I have seen ~:eek:
c) I had less spare time than expected
Don Corleone
03-12-2005, 14:42
It's a combination of things... liablity, not wanting to offend other guests, etc.
Uesugi Kenshin
03-12-2005, 18:06
Yeah, I am sure it would be interesting to see what happened if they allowed people to bring booze. Whenever a restriction is placed on something here and then lifted people go nuts with it. Case in point drinking age. On a ot of people's 21st birthday they go out and get drunk, then some get in cars.... Good times..................
Dutch_guy
03-12-2005, 19:31
Yeah, I am sure it would be interesting to see what happened if they allowed people to bring booze. Whenever a restriction is placed on something here and then lifted people go nuts with it. Case in point drinking age. On a ot of people's 21st birthday they go out and get drunk, then some get in cars.... Good times..................
rules are made to be broken , has always been that way ~:)
how is it to not drink till 21 ?
In hollland it's 16 for beer and 18 for really strong stuff and driving.
Argh... still 15 can't wait
Uesugi Kenshin
03-12-2005, 23:56
Well I am very sober......
Not bad for me, but for many people you can tell they will be future alcoholics, the people who want to stay home on New Year's Eve so they can get a glass or more of champagne or something from their parents. Personally I have no need for booze, but that is just me, many people go to illegal parties where they give booze to minors.
Here we get to drive with a permit, parent or experienced driver in passenger seat and all, at 15 and can get a license at 16. i will be getting mine soon!
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