To feel embarrassed about walking around naked in gym changing rooms?

[IShouldNotCoco]

It isn’t because I dislike my body or anything but I do feel incredibly awkward about just stripping off and walking around. Is it upbringing?

I am quite envious of all the women who seem totally unbothered about doing this. If you’re trying to get changed without exposing everything, you’re definitely in the minority at my gym.

So I’m wondering how common it is for people to feel the way I do?!

I’ve been a gym member for 30 years and I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone walking about naked.
Why would you?
Most people change in front of their lockers fairly discreetly. Although some people dry their hair at the counters topless. Who cares?

I feel.your pain.
Have you considered a bag over your head?
Worked for me.

I've been in swimming changing rooms where the women wander around naked. I didn't and used to change in a cubicle.

We now have a new leisure centre with a changing village and individual or family cubicles. I know a lot of MNers don't like those but I prefer it.

Germans are what sorry?!

Only foreigners walk about naked in the gym. Just not brought with the same level of shame!

Yes it is normal in some gyms/swimming pools unfortunately .

I don’t understand it myself - if nothing else, aren’t they too cold?

No need at all to walk around naked. Doesn’t happen at my gym.

I took my then baby swimming lessons at the local private gym. I was amazed people are happy to pay upwards of £40 a month and you don't even get a private space to change.

A pp suggested people who care are jealous 😆 Jealous of what?

If you mean jealous of their figures, I’ve seen women much fatter/skinnier, older/younger than me walking around naked and it’s equally unwanted.

It has nothing to do with envy.

I wouldn’t join a gym where I was expected to walk around naked in public.

What do you mean by "expected to"?

I wouldn’t use a gym with only communal changing. I use a David Lloyd, where at least there are a few cubicles for me to use.

Why on earth would you walk around naked!? Sounds awful.

I have no issue with brief and incidental nudity - quickly drop towel top put bra on, someone walking to the side might get a quick glimpse but parading is unnecessary.

I had the same rule at home for my children when they were small. A quick dash from bathroom to bedroom if you've forgotten your towel, fine. Walking around naked all morning and lolling on the sofa with a bare arse NO THANKYOU.

Some karen actually reported me for perving on a girl who was walking around starkers! She was 10/10 and who wouldn't look. A member of staff pulled me to one side - they've know me a while - and mentioned it to me.
"Oh was it so-and-so strutting around?" I was asked. "Yes and she was covered in coconut butter ... I didn't mean to stare." Staff member giggled "Oh yeah she does like to flaunt it doesn't she. I don't blame you giggle Just be more subtle next time."
I've gone nude but normally it's briefly. Some gym princesses obviously like showing off their goods a bit too much😉

Honestly, I don’t want to see naked bodies and bare bum cracks sitting on benches. It’s easy enough to keep a large towel around you and change underneath it. We did as kids at the beach and my kids know how to do it too.

Communal changing room, obviously.

I don’t want to strip in front of anyone of either sex. I can’t be that unusual.

I'm at a david Lloyd and only see one or two parade

I use David Lloyd as well, and I think it's partly caused by the fact that they give out tiny towels. I used to bring my own but I got sick of washing them when I could borrow one. But the towels are such that there's no spare towel to dry yourself with if you want to also be covered up.

I have given up having any sort of shame but I also don't walk around naked. So I would generally dry myself, put my hair into a towel turban and then get dressed. So maybe 30s naked at a guess.

I am actually quite grateful, I have become way less self conscious since joining. Meant going to a Swedish sauna was vastly less of a baptism of fire than it would otherwise have been.

I wouldn’t say that people in my gym ‘wander round naked’ but there is definitely a lot of nakedness - just people stood drying themselves or getting changed or showering. I totally get where the OP is coming from as I’ve never been comfortable in that setting, right from school to now. I never naked shower at the gym, and my changing routine involves contortion and towels.

At uni I went to the gym once (and only once) with a friend who attempted to have a conversation with me whilst stood there completely naked as if nothing strange was happening at all. I was like ‘Er, yeah?’ to whatever shit she was talking about whilst me brain was going ‘I CAN SEE YOUR BITS! THEY’RE RIGHT THERE!’ We were 19 or 20 and back then I was worse than I am now.

I didn’t have a cloistered upbringing or anything. There’s no obvious reason for my embarrassment but it’s definitely there. I don’t like medical procedures involving people having to see my private parts, and when I think back on giving birth it makes me shudder slightly (more than remembering the pain does!).

No, you're not unusual but really, nobody expects you to walk around.

I dress my top half with my towel fixed round my waist and then sit on my towel to put my undies on, so others would only see side bum. I'm unaware of ever having disappointed onlookers or felt any expectation to wander from the spot my stuff is in.

It's the fixation with "walking around" bit on this thread that I'm finding a bit weird.

I don't think it is unusual.
I wouldn't be comfortable walking around naked.

Why would you walk around naked?
I am pretty chilled about that sort of thing and won't tie myself in knots in case anyone sees a nipple but I generally wrap myself in a towel

I wouldn’t in a gym, swimming pool or any where else.

I work in gyms so have been in a lot of changing rooms. Yes some people are really confident and comfortable- I admire that. The most confident ones I see seem to be older and elderly women. Some will be chatting to others while drying off with a towel and getting changed. Some use the hairdryers topless with just pants on etc. I think it’s great that they feel so comfortable. I’m a lot more reserved but who knows how I’ll be when I’m 60/70/80?