What’s a trend? It’s basically something that suddenly becomes very popular. Pokemon was a trend, so were the iPod and platform shoes. Fashion knows new trends several times per year, which dictate the colors and shapes of the clothes that you find in the popular stores. In haircuts, you can find a lot of trends too. Even in haircuts down below. Are you shaven? That’s a trend. You’re au naturel? That is a trend too.
We are hugely influenced by trends, often without even realizing it. A couple of years ago, everyone seemed to start doing yoga. Hundreds of different types of yoga were suddenly born, including naked yoga. It wasn’t that everyone had visited India and discovered yoga or that everyone at the same time thought that this might be a great way of exercising.
Why yoga became a trend
Yoga has existed for more than 5000 years. Until little more than a decade ago, in the western world, it was considered mostly something for hippies. Why is it that yoga has only become a trend? This has a lot to do with another trend of the recent years: The work-hard-play-hard mentality. Our agendas are completely full and we have little to no time left for destressing or for exercising.
Yoga proved to be a perfect solution to that problem. It’s great exercise, it’s a great stress reliever, and most of all, we can do it pretty much where and when we want to. This is very common with trends. They don’t just happen for no reason. They are mostly something we’ve been waiting for, an answer to a current issue.
Other trends of today
Hairstyles, fashion trends, and pokemon cards aside, trends are definitely not always superficial. The yoga trend is a great example, or the ethical treatment of animals movement in the nineties. Suddenly, everyone seemed to be against fur coats and product testing on animals. Definitely a good thing, if you ask us, and quite long-lasting. As a result, testing on animals is very regulated and considered cruel until today. This was also a trigger of the veganism/vegetarianism trend. Which then again was boosted by the healthy living trend that connected to yoga too.
Healthy living has been a big thing for the last several years, and only got more in the picture during the COVID pandemic. Places in nature, away from the big cities are considered the safest. Ecological awareness is growing and we think more about sustainability. The need for mental health is growing too. We’re not sure if we should call these things trends, but they will definitely be a source for many new trends in the near future.
Other important changes of mindset in the 21st century are body confidence or body freedom and gender equality/identity. Both have been a source for the #freethenipple movement. More and more, we realize that the body we were born into is not something to be ashamed about nor something we can be discriminated against.
Why naturism hasn’t become a trend (yet)
If you look at all those new ways of thinking, or trends, if you wish, it’s hard not to see the missing link. Naturism is connected to every single one of them.
- Ecological awareness: Natur-ism is about respect for nature
- Healthy living: naturism was born as a healthy lifestyle with the idea that you need to expose as much skin as possible to natural light to create vitamin D.
- Sustainability: naturism is about respect for oneself, others, and nature. An excellent foundation for sustainable living.
- Mental health: The practice of social nudity works de-stressing in many different ways.
- Body confidence: Naturists generally feel better about their bodies.
- Body freedom: As naturists, we think that our body is nobody’s property but our own and that we can do with it what we like. Even expose it to strangers.
- Gender equality: This is something that could be argued, as it’s known that men and women are sometimes treated differently in naturism. Nevertheless, those practices are against the philosophy of naturism, which states that everyone should be treated equally.
- Gender identity: Respect for others includes respect for other people’s choices.
Is it just us, or does it seem like every single one of these new ways of thinking could be accelerators for naturism? Then why hasn’t this happened yet?
One thing about naturism is that it requires quite a big step out of your comfort zone. We imagine that many people started with yoga on a lazy morning. Sipping a coffee and thinking “maybe I should give yoga a try”. Next thing you know, you’ve started a YouTube video and are doing a downward dog. With naturism, it isn’t that simple. Some people may have thought one morning “maybe I should become a naturist” and found themselves on a nude beach in the afternoon, but those will be few. Most naturists went through a mental process before getting naked with others for the first time.
Everybody naked, would it be a good idea?
Nevertheless, when we talk to new naturists in their twenties or thirties, one or more of the above ideas have triggered them to giving naturism a try. What would happen if these few became many? If naturism did become a trend?
Our first visions are rather horrific. We imagine overcrowded nude beaches and prices of naturist resorts skyrocketing because the demand is much larger than the supply. Every town has a yoga studio these days, but those are quite easy to set up. Building new naturist resorts would take significantly more time.
Then there is the financial aspect. Naturism would become big business and we don’t see our imaginary Fortune 500 nude resort chains care a lot about the underlying philosophy of naturism.
On the other hand, the long-term effects seem much brighter. The misconceptions of naturism would go away, non-sexual nudity would become the default, there would be many more naturist places, and even Facebook would start allowing your naked pictures. Most of all, there would be no way back. Because once you’ve tried naturism, it’s very hard to return to life as you knew it before.
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Some naturist say, that themes like gender, bodyawreness, yoga or environmental awareness are no part of the naturisme. For lot of them are some of that uninteresting or indecent. I tink, befor we have a World with nudity acceptance, we must change the thinking at our own bodies with all their parts, our sexuality, growing, aging, breathing, excretion and many other details. No part of our Body maybe for us more dirty as another part. This mindset must find in many brains.
In our community we must substitute that the differents in the world are essential.
We all must learn, to accept all people how they are, with their bodies. We should demand, that this become a part of law, at least our right to be naked.
Definitely true!
“Our first visions are rather horrific. We imagine overcrowded nude beaches and prices of naturist resorts skyrocketing because the demand is much larger than the supply. Every town has a yoga studio these days, but those are quite easy to set up. Building new naturist resorts would take significantly more time.”
I can really only speak for New Zealand, but I don’t think those would be a problem here. In fact I think the number of naturist clubs and resorts would diminish – maybe even disappear in time – as folks take to the beaches and other outdoor spaces in their droves. We have no nudist beaches in New Zealand because we have no laws against nudity in appropriate public spaces. You can be naked on any beach, provided you do not do anything sexual or intend to cause distress to someone.
That is indeed another direction that it could go. Although we’ve met lots of nudists who prefer private places over public areas, for the comfort that they offer.
That’s true, Nick & Lins. But the reason that some people prefer the relative “comfort” of a club is to avoid the possible confrontations from people who choose to take offence and people who may harass them sexually. If nudity became more acceptable, commonplace and trendy, then those reasons for discomfort in public areas would certainly diminish.
That is very true, and naturism is actually the perfect example of that. You get so used to seeing naked bodies that they lose all meaning. We’ve also noticed that a particularly large number of naturists work in the healthcare sector. This too is not a coincidence, because these people are also very used to see nudity in a non-sexual way.
I rather imagine that if nudity became trendy, that rather than overcrowding of the relatively few naturist/nudist venues that exist, the number of venues would expand. Here in Seattle, whereas even with Seattle’s totally permissive official attitude toward nudity (i.e. non-sexualized nudity is not an arrestable offence), there are only two public parks that are de facto clothing optional (Denny Blaine Park and Howell Park), few to no other venues are commonly used nude.
If nudity became trendy, I would expect to see the commonly-accepted areas for nude use to expand – Gasworks Park, Discovery Park, and other large Seattle parks would become accepted venues. They can accommodate thousands of people.
I would further expect that county, state, and national parks and national forests would begin to see more and more nude use. I would expect the same to become true of city parks, swimming holes etc.
Now, it is commonly understood that wild hot springs are clothing optional. I would foresee that if nudity trends positive, that same attitude would extend to more and more swimming spots and beaches.
I think the trend would feed on itself -i.e. that with a growing positive attitude toward nudity in general, more people would be nonchalant about being nude in a public shower area at a swimming pool or spa, and that they would be used to seeing and experiencing nudity and more apt to be nude and to tolerate others being nude in more and more places.
Another factor: The more that innocent nudity makes the news, the more often closet nudists such as myself have opportunity to refer to such articles and find others’ attitudes toward nudity. I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find how many others – co-workers, people in my church – have responded positively toward nudity when the topic comes up on a natural, unforced way.
So, Andrew, it seems like New Zealand is already set up for naturists. What a cool place New Zealand must be.
Yes, you might even run into a Hobbit or two on a naturist beach there! 🙂
Naturism or nudism are osolete for many people today. It gives no more nakedness in tv, newapapers ore film. Pictures from naked children was to a problem after those can buy in the world wide web. Nakedness in the media is today a sensation again and it is more connected with sex and porno. Nakedness in sozial media is impossible.
For this situation to change we should use every nakedness, live or in media, something move. Every little helps. Thanks for yours work.
One problem is that there’s just much more money to be made by sexualizing nudity than by desexualizing it…
Well, nudity is a basic part of the porn industry, and that is not likely to change any time soon. For naturism to thrive, it has to desexualize the LIFESTYLE, rather than deny the inherent sexuality of all humans. We want to make it clear that most naturists are sensible folks who keep their sex lives behind closed doors, where they belong.
Very highly unlikely for naked naturism becoming a trend due to different ethnic backgrounds, beliefs, cultures and religion
There’s just so much diversity to pull this off and any group that dares set to do this will preyed upon and bullied
We believe that naturism can go beyond ethnic backgrounds, beliefs, cultures, and religions. It’s like ecological awareness. It’s easy to say that in the west we are more ecologically aware than in 3rd world countries. We divide our waste and process it differently, while in (let’s say) Africa, everything goes into the same bag, hole, or fire. But we have met Africans who are much more conscious of the effects of environmental issues than most people we know in Europe.
Similarly, we’ve met naturists with all different backgrounds. Young and old, black and white, rich and poor, Christians, Muslims, Buddhists,…
I agree 100% with you dave
Hey guys how u doin`
Two things about this subject mentioned.
1st, i know u guys are nudies and u hang out with lots of nudies here and there, so tbh i kinda thing u lost the sence of reality in regards of the popularity of it.
I listened a podcast by that guy Duchane or how its spelled from Bare Oaks, and he was talking with someone from umm..Norway? maybe i mixed up some but the point is there, even he said that its kind of in decline, and that sadly thanks to Americanism with the help of soc media, even in Europe ppl are starting to be freaky about the nude, rather that be on a beach, camp, or in a movie.. and i totally agree with that.
2nd , the trend ,popularity .. i was never interested in trends, i think its kind of a sheep thing, money making thing, but.. as far as nudism being trend, do u really want everyone to be naked? Like ..would then naturism lose its meaning? pleasure?
uniqueness? ..im not a nudie but i think it would.
So its a ..its hard to imagine a world like that, and if it would happen, our mindsets would be different then they are right now .. its like in the movie back to the future.
Hey, Iceman! Interesting comments!
Firstly, since you say you are not a “nudie”, I was wondering what your interest in nudism is exactly about? What is your interest in this blog?
You are partly right in saying that nudism is in decline, but you’ll find that applies to club and resort memberships – not nudism as a lifestyle. In fact nudism and naturism has seen a marked increase in many countries since the Covid-19 pandemic hit the world. If you type “nudism on the rise” in your Google search box, you’ll see many instances of nudism / naturism gaining more and more followers – but just not in the clubs.
Yes, many trends are set by money-making commercial enterprises. When something new and innovative comes out, everyone wants one – just like sheep, as you say. The latest cellphone, the latest fashion – nobody wants to be seen with something from yesterday! And some trends come and go – things that are trendy today might be seen as dated tomorrow. But I don’t think nudism needs to suffer that way. Even if it became a trend for a while, then lost its trendiness later on, at least it will have gained acceptance in society and people won’t be able to claim that they are offended by it. Like some clothing styles are no longer fashionable and trendy, but if I wore them around town, nobody will be upset by it.
Don’t forget that there are still some ethnic groups around the world where nudity is a commonly acceptable state to be in. If they can do it, then anyone should be able to. America and Muslim countries are held back by religion, that’s all.
And.. The whole “America held back by religion” is both getting worse, and better. There is a marked decline in people calling themselves “religious”, or wasting time in churches, much as happened in Europe, and even the churches are recognizing that this is due to the far, far, far right evangelicals, and others, who are pushing insane, authoritarian, totalitarian, anti-freedom, madness – again, just like Europe went through, before most of it went, “F this! We have had enough!” But, at the moment the US is both a) on an uncomfortable tipping point, where the madness could consume it, like it did so many European countries are various points, or it could finally reject the whole thing, and b) those involve with pushing the madness are also involved with the declaration that, “This is how you become super rich, by catering to the madness.”, and, “If you really, really, really, believe in a god, then the fact that all these people got powerful and super rich by being utter and complete fanatical assholes God obviously not only approves of it, but we should export this madness to every other country we can!”
You will note Iceman, that its not the general population embracing this insanity, its the… ding, ding, ding, rich, conservative, authoritarians, who have bought into this intersection of wealth, power, and narrow minded “faith” that are pushing the very same ideas in other countries – as a reflection of their praise and worship of the same “successes” by the same sort of people in the US. If such people can manage to keep being successful in the US, its going to get worse. If they go down in flames, then all the madmen in the rest of the world will turn on them, as they always do on each other when their alliances are no longer helping them, like starving animals.
Because, even in the US, nudism is “on the rise”, its just not the same version of it that does “clubs” – which has kind of been the whole problem for such clubs, for some time.
You’re very right that an uprise or a decline totally depends on the factors on which it’s calculated and that a decline in club memberships doesn’t automatically mean a decline in naturism itself. Less than 20 years ago, pretty much every naturist venue required its visitors to be members of a federation. And venues and nude beaches were the only options for naturists.
If you look at today, the offer for naturists has hugely increased, especially in the form of events, activities like naked yoga, and commercial venues that don’t ask for membership cards. So, from that point of view, naturism must be on a rise.
You’re definitely right that we should be very careful not to create a tunnel vision. Just because we spend so much time in the naked world, we might lose track of how things really are on a global level. But being among naturists so much, we also quickly notice minor changes. And during the last years, we are really seeing a change in mindset. During the summer of 2020, for example, in the height of the COVID pandemic, many resorts reported fewer visitors than usual. Not a coincidence, because there were fewer travelers in general. But many resorts also imported an increase of first-time naturists. This means that people seem to be searching for something new or different.
Trend… what’s in a name, of course. And we answer this question at the end of this blog post. If naturism becomes popular, money will get involved and that’s not always a good thing. But eventually, this could generate a global acceptance of nudity which could last for centuries to come.
Organized naturism has never been a ‘free’ activity, tho – even spending the day at a CO beach is not cost-free. One has to pay for gas to get there, or other means of transport. If naturism were to become gradually more popular, the benefits would outweigh the potential hazards.
We always find it strange when people claim that “naturism should be free!”. In our eyes, naturism is and will always be free, it’s the things that improve your experience that you pay for.
Our favourite example is the sunset. Sunsets are free, but if you want to watch it in a more comfortable way, you’ll need to buy/rent a chair (and preferably buy a beer too). It’s the same for naturism and naturist resorts.
Back in 2011 on a mountain retreat, I wrote a book, 2025 Five Days in Paradise, (barnes and noble, amazon, and the publisher — best prices from B&N and publisher — reference my website for a link). In this book, public nudity is accepted but with some limitations. I think I cover the basic objections including towels to sit on. 2025 is the year when all this is supposed to be reality but the journey to that point is outlined and supported. The Five Days is about when two grandchildren come to visit their grandparents on the coast of Florida and spend five days while their parents take a cruise. Their questions provide to impetus to the journey.
Over the intervening years, I’m been a bit amazed how many things I wrote have turned out to be either here now or up and coming. I did not even think about writing the book as one predicting the future but rather as a look back, a journey of world changes starting in 2012. The book starts in 2025.
While not a page turner — no sex or mysteries or hanging chad — it does provide a path to how pubic nudity can become a reality — respect, acceptance, freedom, etc.
O, I even address World Peace in the last chapter — I didn’t think about writing this book but rather it just ‘flowed from an unknown source’ as though it was already written.
It’s curious how quickly things can become reality just due to a change of culture. This has happened with naturism before. Until the mid-sixties, social nudity was definitely not accepted and naturism was a small and rather obscure movement. But in the less than 10 years that followed, the lifestyle has grown exponentially. Just because there were other “trends” to which it connected like body freedom, a middle finger towards the establishment, and a change in the ethics of the society.
Such lovely positive comments on this thread! So far, I can only draw upon a couple of BN dips in our local pool – Exeter – but having found the courage to take the plunge I was amazed by how little of a big deal it was! Changing with others in a mixed room? We all have bodies, so what’s the big deal? It was the norm for them:
I felt welcome, not at all self-conscious. The pool was lovely and warm, swimming much easier without textiles, and we shared a friendly cuppa and cakes afterwards.
We remember the first time when we went to a naturist spa and entered the communal mixed dressing room. We thought that it was very strange. But then we saw the other people just dressing and undressing as if it was the most normal thing in the world. And we realized that it was just us acting weird about it. This is why naturism is really something you need to experience in order to understand it.
Reading this thread has been interesting and leads me to consider some interesting points..
1. Commercialism (capitalism) will oppose any moves to a naturist society, as it will hurt their profits.
2. Naturalism is good for the environment and would assist to reduce the effects of global warming due to the following reasons.
* Less demand on synthetic clothing
* Less detergents being used for washing clothes
* Less rubbish going to landfills
And you could find many other environmental benefits.
3. I notice a lot of comments about religion in previous posts, but I have searched my bible and cannot find anywhere where the bible says you can’t be naked. Adam and Eve only covered themselves because they sinned and became ashamed of their nakedness. But god created us after his image and so why should we cover up.
Didn’t David dance naked before god?
4. I have been told to take pride and cover up.
What’s wrong about being proud of your nakedness, if we are indeed made in God’s image.