After Tommy was born and my need for some bodily sanity resurfaced, I began working out at a local YMCA. I loved the atmosphere there; I knew all the people around me, and they seemed to be pursuing the goal of a genuine, healthy lifestyle. The people said hello to each other. They work sweatshorts and ripped t-shirt, like me.
When we moved out to the boondocks of this quality small town, no local YMCA was within a drivable distance. I was lured, instead, to a more glamorous gym with a great outer pool and a glitzy spa facility. I can't complain too much: the childcare department is fantastic, and I can even get my hair cut when the kids are having fun in there. On the flip side, though, the atmosphere has definitely changed. The women around me are practically supermodels, striving to sculpt their bodies while applying extra lipstick. They wear fancy ensembles and carry around yoga gear that just emerged in this spring's Lucy collection. No one says hello to you unless they are trying to pick you up. It's less of a community; instead, it feels like a competition.
One of the most glaring differences between these facilities is the locker room etiquette women display. At my new gym, the women prance about in their fancy gear and loudly discuss their upcoming vacations. At the YMCA, though, women inquired about each others' lives and seemed entirely comfortable shedding their clothing and walking around in the nude. I'm not suggesting that these practices are entirely dependent on one another; I'm merely noting this is the way it is. Why are the seeming-rich so inclined to wear clothing when their bodies are far more "perfect"? Everything about their demeanor should suggest they are proud of themselves and their flashy lives.
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2 comments:
Most of the women at the Y that I go to are pretty comfortable with being nude in the locker room, and like you mentioned even with carrying on conversations while totally nude.
But a friend of mine who is very well-to-do when it comes to finances is a member of an exclusive country club and she sometimes takes me with her as her guest.
We usually go for a swim in the pool and then relax in the hot tubs and sauna. There is one hot tub and one sauna that are next to the pool that are for both genders to use, and of course swimsuits are required to be worn in those. However, they tend to be over crowded. Then there's a hot tub and sauna in the women's locker room with are of course for women only.
Since the hot tub and sauna by the pool are usually crowded we often use the hot tub and sauna in the women's locker room. And almost none of the ladies ever wear a swimsuit in there. I'm sometimes surprised at how uninhibited so many of the ladies are when they are sitting or laying there nude in the sauna.
The time that stands out in my mind the most was the time that a local TV news-anchor woman was sitting there in the sauna totally nude and chatting away with a friend of hers. I'm thinking to myself "I see you every day on the news, and here you are totally nude and obviously not caring that everyone in her can see every last part of you if they choose."
I myself am not as comfortable with my nudity, but I kind of admire the ladies that are that comfortable in their own skin.
Lisa.
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