Nope, there’s no mistake in the title, you don’t need to replace one “naturism” with “nudism” or anything like that. Although you could replace both with “nudism” if you like. Or with “nude recreation” or whatever term you prefer to use. The purpose of this blog post is not to try to line out the differences between those terms. We’ve done that before and honestly, the more we travel the more meaningless the terms seem to us. The terms, not what they represent of course.
After several of our previous blog posts and more specifically after the one about whether naturist resorts will have a future if they maintain their traditional values the question about what naturism (or nudism or whatever) actually stands for came up again. We’re not going to give you another history lesson, but something is important to follow our further way of thinking: Naturism started from an ideology that included much more than just being naked. It was about connection with nature, respect for everything that comes out of nature and about a healthy lifestyle where vitamin D is an important factor (hence the name “sun club” that is still often used).
This was 100 years ago and this way of thinking has been maintained for several decades. Until other people started to recognise other advantages of (social) nudity but without agreeing with all the aspects of naturism.
We’ve seen a similar thing happening with vegetarianism. People stopped eating meat out of respect for nature and more specifically all other living beings. The point of not eating meat was just an aspect of a complete lifestyle. A tool to enhance it, so to say. Just like nudity was a tool for the naturist community. Today there are vegetarians for all different kinds of reasons. Some don’t like the taste, some want to lose weight, some don’t agree with the antibiotics that are used to make the animal bigger/fatter/more full of meat. Some are even parttime vegetarian.
Naturism is like running
Being naked is a natural state of being, it’s very easy, just throw away those artificial layers and there you are. In a way, it’s like running. From whenever some type of human decided that life was better on two legs we have been running (and even before on four legs too actually). It’s a very simple thing to do if you want to get from point A to point B faster than walking. And without any artificial tools like bikes, cars, roller skates, you get the point.
Lots of people are running these days while few do so because they actually want to get to point B. People have lots of reasons to run: Some like the exercise, some like the fact that it’s a healthy thing to do, some do so to lose weight, some are training for a running contest, some run because they can implement that ability in another sport and some just run because they like running (ask Forest Gump).
These are all different reasons that come with different experiences. If you’d read an article about running written by Usain Bolt, you’ll hear about different aspects than in an article written by someone who started running to recover from an accident. Is one better than the other? Of course not.
People enjoy naturism for plenty of different reasons as well, they like the feeling of liberty, the unconventional mini-society, the touch with nature, the removal of social boundaries, the nice tan, the comfort, the fact that it improves body confidence and plenty of other reasons. Some even like naturism for the simple fact because they like being naked.
People enjoy naturism for plenty of different reasons as well, they like the feeling of liberty, the unconventional mini-society, the touch with nature, the removal of social boundaries, the nice tan, the comfort, the fact that it improves body confidence and plenty of other reasons. Some even like naturism for the simple fact because they like being naked.
Most naturists enjoy their lifestyle for a combination of factors, some more important and some rather seen as added value. Does that make one better than the other? Is someone who strongly believes in the natural aspects of naturism more naturist (or a better naturist) than someone who loves to sunbathe naked? If you read many of the existing writings and manifests about naturism, one would certainly think so. That’s because most of those writings are produced by strong minded promotors of one single layer of naturism. The Usain Bolts of naturism, so to say. But that doesn’t make them true for everyone.
Naturism depends on the naturists
We often like to quote a friend who said that there are as many types of naturism as there are naturists. Although we often overlap when it comes to certain aspects of naturism, other aspects that might be appealing to one are not at all to someone else. Even between ourselves (like in really ourselves, Nick and Lins), we can’t say that we have exactly the same thoughts about naturism.
Although we spend more or less 24 hours per day together, visit the exact same places and have the exact same influences, our naturism isn’t 100% the same. Which is actually very interesting when writing a blog because we can point out things to each other that we would otherwise have considered too obvious or not important.
The big question is whether we can combine all those naturism’s into one single principle? Can they be covered by one single federation? Or more technically, can they exist in a single place?
When it comes to running, people tend to pick their places according their specific needs. Someone who runs to get relieved from stress might prefer the local park in the early morning or late at night. Those who need to be pepped up or likes the social aspect of having a common interest will more be attracted to a certain club and their group runs. Others training for a contest could rather opt for a running track. Does that mean that they can’t appreciate the other venues? No, because there’s a common ground in all this.
When it comes to running, people tend to pick their places according their specific needs. Someone who runs to get relieved from stress might prefer the local park in the early morning or late at night. Those who need to be pepped up or likes the social aspect of having a common interest will more be attracted to a certain club and their group runs. Others training for a contest could rather opt for a running track. Does that mean that they can’t appreciate the other venues? No, because there’s a common ground in all this.
Naturist places are designed to fulfil the needs of a certain type of naturists. From the groups of likeminded people somewhere in Germany in the early 20th century who decided to start the first naturist clubs to business owners who saw a gap in the naked travel market to the girl who started her naked yoga school in downtown Manhattan. All attracting a certain dedicated audience, all focusing on one or some aspects of naturism.
This dedicated audience is important for a place and therefore we don’t believe that a naturist venue can focus on every single kind of naturism. The public park will never be the perfect place to train for Olympic gold and if it would ever become so, the hobby joggers will probably start going somewhere else.
There will be different places for different needs, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy several kinds.
There will be different places for different needs, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy several kinds.
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I still think that u cannot put everything under the same sun.
To me, naturism is ,as i said often, being all natrual, meaning to be a real real really naturist, to me it would mean , living in nature, not using artaficial man made stuff, thats real naturism to me.
Being nude on a beach at ur summer vacation is not naturism, its nudism.
And being naked in a park in Paris, or in a museum, is more social nudity.
Doing naked yoga, is for sure to me, far away from naturism as it can be, cause then we can call porn actors naturists as well cause they get naked, or me, when i take a shower.
Just cause all of that invovles being nude, doest make it being a naturist. The only common thing is the nude part ,but hence that it self dont mean a thing.
We’re sure that many naturists will agree for 99% with your opinion. The only point is that it doesn’t all just involve “being nude”, but “being nude in a non-sexual way”. Which excludes the porn actors, at least while they’re at work. Not so long ago we would also have added that it has to be in a social way, but during our travels in Asia we met many “home naturists”, just because they have no other option.
That said, suppose that we say that the only naturism means going completely back to nature and avoid all artificial stuff. What do we do with the naturist beaches? Only allow those “true naturists”? Do we then also need nudist beaches and social nudity beaches?
Our point is, the naturist/nudist/social nude world is becoming scattered and we don’t see a reason why all of them can’t stick together and share the same spaces. Because we all agree on the same basic values.
Well i included porn actors cause they are nude as well,and so am i when i shower.
So my point was that just cause ur nude, that dont make u a naturist.
“That said, suppose that we say that the only naturism means going completely back to nature and avoid all artificial stuff.”
To me , THAT IS naturism. Thats the point of it ,natur aka natrual , not artificial, hm lets not talk about aincent Hawaii lol .. but ya, to me that is naturism ,pure naturism at its core,and hence, that would include sex as well ,cause thats natrual too ,way more natrual then some fancy nudist resort.
As far as the beaches question, i said, that to me, ppl that go to vacate on a nude beach are nudists, not naturists.
Being a naturists, u would have to do everything else naked.
Like that gated town Cape D Agde, ppl do everything nude there, shop ,post ofice, whatever else ,havent been there but ya, that would kinda mean being a naturist, tho i might add that i would rename that and call it a modern-naturist ,cause u still get to keep ur camper, iphone, satelite dish ..
As for the last part, hmmm … um it dependes what u do .. u cant really call a person that works in a bank and on the break goes out to the park to eat naked, and after work goes to a museum naked a naturist ,and a person thats living like in a jungle basicly with no power water phone computer shops car …
It just cant be the same.
Thats why that banker does social nudity ,the guy in the jungle is a naturist, the guy in Cape is a modern naturist, the guy on the beach is a nudist.
Of course if the banker goes to Ada Bojana, he`ll be a nudist.. it depends what u do with that nudity, thats my point.
We would advise you to read some more about what’s really going on at Cap d’Agde 😉
Ah trust me, i know all about that, i ment about the village there, where ppl like live, not just being on vacation, but actually live.
Tho i know about CDA ,thats just one part of it as i read it, there are normal nude beaches and textile as well.
Tho i heard that “that” beach and the normal nude beach are side by side, like, ppl can see stuff ,dunno tho if thats true,i also saw a video about one of “those” couples, and they say that, the same ppl that they see on the normal nude beach ,taning ,playing with kids, they see them at night at the “parties”.
I agree with iceman. To be a nudist means you enjoy being naked beyond routine instances – taking showers, changing clothes, having sex, being at the hospital. I’m slightly offended by Nick and Lins use of quotations marks around home naturists. They are just as much a nudist as those who do it socially. Not everyone lives close to a nudist area. The ones closest to me are more than a half day’s drive.
no need to be offended. Because iceman described a very narrow slice of the naturist community, we used quotation marks to describe both home naturists as true naturists. These divisions don’t exist officially, but we use them all the time.
I’m going to start using ” clothes free” as the term describing whatever it is I do while naked. The whole premise behind what I do is,,,,I don’t like wearing clothes. Yes all the typical explanations apply but in the end. I just don’t like wearing clothes!!
Good article Nick and Lins.
It’s true – me and my wife both have different things we like to do naked to a different degree, and that’s different again from some of the naturists we meet at our local club or swim.
It’s not “one size fits all” – naturism is there to make your own, and the more naturist events and activities we explore the clearer we can see what we really like and what we aren’t that crazy about.
The exploring is the fun bit!
I need to pick on one part of your blog. Antibiotics do not make animals bigger/fatter, more full of meat. They are used to make an animal healthy when they become ill. Your doctor prescribes antibiotics for you when you get ill to make you better, not to fatten you up.
That’s indeed best case scenario. But unfortunately there are farmers who preventively give antibiotics to animals to prevent them to get sick and as such grow faster.
Nick&Lins,
I am truly enjoying your blog and articles such as these! I personally prefer to call myself a naturist when talking with friends, seems to have fewer prejudices/misconceptions than the term nudist. Just a small side comment, even naturists forget sometime, which you seem to have done with no towels in the photo of you dining. (sorry)
Very justified comment about the towel. Of course we normally put a towel wherever we place ourselves down except when we’re at home. Then we sometimes neglect. Since we’ve been traveling constantly we think of hotel rooms as our home and sometimes forget to put a towel. This was such a case 🙂
Great article and I agree that there is no one size of naturism/nudism that fits all. I feel that we all need to be more accepting of people’s different preferences when it comes to removing all or part of our clothes. As long as we are separating sexual nudity from non-sexual nudity I am fine however the individual is comfortable. I also understand that some people have no option than being “home nudist”. However, some times I feel that there may be some wolves out there that use the “home nudist” argument as their “sheep cloak”. While I try and give every individual the benefit of the doubt, sometimes we need to stay vigilant to protect both naturism and the genuine naturist, especially the children.
The word “naturist” by itself seems to carry a lot of weight and expectations (to the point where some people who engage in nude activities don’t want to be called that way).
Regardless of the designation, naturism (as a social movement) needs to embrace these differences and nuances, rather than segregating.
What u ment by that? I dont get it.
There are those who go to clubs/resorts and those who go to beaches, even those who prefer hiking/camping;
There are those that have money to spend at expensive venues, and those who don’t;
There are those who join groups and/or federations, and those who don’t care about it;
There people that could live their whole life naked, and those who face it as an interesting choice for vacations;
There are those very active, that engage in sports actvitives (swimming, running, hiking, etc) and those who just love to lay down and sunbathe;
And the list goes on and on. In their own way, none of these people are better/worse “naturists” compared to the others. There are many possibilities for different audiences.
We couldn’t have summarised it better! Thanks Rafael
Hum.. i think thats a different subject ..
U can say or use other word instead of naturism like .. white ppl or black ppl or yellow ppl, or gay ppl ..
I dont thing that going hiking nude means ur a naturist and then 2h later ur in ur BMW with ur iPhone X Max ,FaceTiming with ur brother..it just means u were hiking naked..
In a way the closest that i “saw” lol ,i never saw in person but online, the closest to being a naturists is Bare Oaks.
They literaly live there naked ,well they cant be at this time like now cause its Canada and its get cold af .. but u get the point.
They are nude always there and live nude at that club.
As i said ,like for ex. just cause i can run , that dont make me a footballer or a marathon runner, or that i do sports in general.
Its just something i / can do.
Do you think people at Bare Oaks don’t have iPhones or BMWs? 🙂
To us, naturism is rather a state of mind. Which does have a very typical physical aspect that seems to upset the rest of the world. You’re trying to narrow down the subject way too much.
Naturists enjoy the several aspects of their lifestyle to a certain degree. We have respect for other people but that doesn’t mean that we’re going to invite them all over for coffee. We like to be naked but that doesn’t mean that we try to be naked 24/7. We respect nature but that doesn’t mean that we’ll stop taking airplanes or driving cars.
There’s no such thing as a 100% naturist. And the funny thing is, those who are striving to be one are actually losing because they want to be better than others, which means they respect others less.
Naturists have been able to create a harmonious community in different parts of the world. We can go to Bangkok, Toronto or Paris and find an equal atmosphere based on the same values. To us, that’s all that matters.
Nick, i said they are the CLOSEST to naturism, in my book non of u are, i already said that if u wanna be honest and put ur hand on ur heart, real naturism means, diching all the modern stuff ,going to a jungle ,and for that , u dont even have to be naked ,to me thats real naturism.
You know .. when u have a therm, u cant change it and make it fit the way u want it or say ,well times change, so should meaning .. no .. they shouldnt.
U can make up a new word for it, thats fine, but to change it and make it be something totaly different then its original meaning, is wrong.
I know Bare Oaks has an iPhone and dunno what car .. they use internet, they have a podcast that i listen or had .. so as i said ,they are the closes to it, and maybe some other clubs camps that i dunno about.
My point was that thats their life, they live there, they live naked, they work naked cause they are the owners, and they would do everything else naked too if it was totaly legal all the time everywhere.
Alots of ppl woudlnt do that ,even if it was legal.
Its 100% legal in NY to be topless for females, even for those under that special number of “18” .. yet, from all the videos and live broadcast about streets of NY , i have never seen a single female topless ,unless its some photoshot commercial or similar perhaps.
Yayayay .. i know.. ull say .. well they dont do that cause some1 will call them out to be perverted or some1 will rape a 12yo whos topless, or they gonna be shamed.. evenso ,NY is a huge place, and i bet that 3/4 of them dont even know that can be topless.. why? cause most likely they dont even care, they dont have the need to be ,or whatever.
As i said ,if u wanna change naturism thats cool i really dont care, spec cause i aint one.
But as i said ,call it differently then, dont use the same word for two different things.
Its like … we have cars right? An oldie and a new one, huge difference cause of techology, but it still does the same thing.
Takes u from point A to point B.
Now .. if soon we`ll have cars that can also fly, well then.. its not a car anymore..cause a car that can fly and a car that cant, are not the same thing ,therefore then cant have the same name.
Thats my point.
I could also five u a political example, but ill skip that one lol ,not the place for it.
And o ya.. i dont think that those who wanna be the realest naturists are trying to be better then others, they are just trying to keep the meaning of the word to what it really is.
Maybe what u do , or most younger ppl prefer now, should be called progressive naturism? or modern naturism? or more openminded naturism i dunno ..
It’s funny that a non-naturist is trying to tell us what naturism means… But we think you have the wrong book.
The word “naturism” was used for the first time in 1778 by Baptiste Luc Planchon in a sense to promote healthy living. This has been picked up again in Germany in the early 20th century by a group of people who were interested in enjoying fresh air, sunshine and nude exercise.
The history of naturism has really nothing to do with turning away from everything that’s artificial. Only later some naturists moved towards this. So those who you’re talking about have actually tried to change an existing term. Similar to what we are doing 🙂
A ok then in that case ,its sencless to talk about it anyway then ..
Who cares what its called and what it means, just like freedom , being equal..
I guess ppl just love to justify everything regardless.
It’s all about interpretation. We’ve been in Iran some time ago and women felt a sense of freedom when they could take off their scarf at home. This is something we (who live in the “free world”) will never understand. Just like many textiles don’t understand the freedom that comes with getting naked.
It’s a feeling and feelings are personal. But yet so many agree to feel the same.
We are not trying to convince people that they should feel this or that. We just tell them what could happen.
Well thats a different thing .. cause .. well i liked how u said it .. “free world” ,cause we`re sure agree that there aint no such thing ,tho ,ya .. its not that we the textiles “dont understand” its that we can do it cause we are in a “free world” ,but we just dont feel the need, i`d feel way more free, if i could really say what i want without being labeled or prosicuted ot similar shit .. now that would be way more free then being nude.
As i said b4 somehere here ..the ppl of NY can be topless , EVERYWHERE, regardless of their sex or age. So ya ,all females from 0 to 110yo, yet i dont really notice (watching videos on NY or broadcasts on soc med from NY) that theres any1 from the female world topless..
So they have the “freedom” (i really hate that word tbh cause there aint no such thing as freedom ,only limitations of it made artaficially by men aka laws) so they have to be topless yet no1 is, unless its a nude parade in SF by Gypsy or when ppl get too free on Prides.
I think that is really interesting .. when u have such a huge city as NY ,and u wont see any females topless ,yet it was one of those victories for being equal.
This reflects a big problem in our current society: Women who walk topless through NY will be harassed at one point or another.
But that’s not the only reason. It’s also about group pressure, if nobody else is doing it, it’s very hard to be the first (or one of the first). There is a group of women who go topless in Central Park though: The Outdoor Co-ed Topless Pulp Fiction Appreciation Society. Because they are in a group, they feel more comfortable.
Being naked in a place where everyone else is naked is a lot easier and comforting than being naked among lots of clothed people. Especially if they don’t really expect to see a naked person.
By the way, men are also allowed to be shirt-less in NY. How many have you seen in videos?
Eventho i might agree, i still dont.
Sadly today, EVERYTHING can be considered as sexual harrasment, even a look .. a LOOK! … something that happend or not 50 years ago! …
No offence, but that group i think i saw them on twitter, to me are nothing more but exibists… they even have like sex events .. their main aim as far as i see, isnt being casually topless in public ,its just a part of it or should i say a “side” effect of it.
Besides on their site they constatnly keep saying all women are welcome (to join them) ,shouldnt they say all females since that topless law isnt age limited same way they say that the toplesness law is same for men and women in NY , instead of males and females?
All of these lil things tell me that we have to think twice b4 taking things for granted about what ppl stand for or ,talk about or represent.
Um, ive seen TONS of males topless even here in my shithole where i live, so theres really no need to talk about that part i think.
And ya i did saw, theres this guy that keeps broadcasting from NY and i saw for ex. this summer at CP or at some fountain ,ppl were getting into it to cool down and of course many were in shorts only.
I understand that its odd to stand out, nude in cloted place or cloted in a nude place, but its same as saying that its more confy to be a guy with a long hair wearing a Metallica tshirt at rock am ring then at some dance festival isnt it? .. but really.. NY has like 10 million ppl living in it… and no1 would go topless to a McD or in TS or whatever? Not once? Yet its totaly allowed…? In this day and age of nakendess on social media, on MTV (todays so called music is more about sex/iness and naugty talk then music) , free porn all over the net, and still basicly no1?
Once more, i dont mind anything really , nothing, not even many things most would ,BUT ,only as long as they are called what they really are/stand for.
Dear Icemen
I read your texts and fully share your vision on naturism. The word has been completely out of context since the nineteen-seventies, because of all these nudist movements today that are not worthy of the name naturism and abuse it.
They use the word without respect for the pioneers of naturism.
Naturism originated at the end of the eighteenth century in the UK in response to the advancing industrial revolution that brought people out of their natural habitat. In this Victorian time these people could only practice this “back to nature” in closed circles. The majority consisted of intellectuals who, by removing their clothes, so naked, also took of their status in society. If everyone is naked, everyone is equal. The three “R” that stand for respect for nature, respect for your fellow man and respect for every living being on this planet. These are hard to find in the current naturism that only exudes the nudity and is also organized commercially. The real naturism is almost dead.