When you think of sports and the wonderful performances being displayed on the court or field, no one really wonders too much about the athletes and body hair. Does it affect their performance? Why so many athletes hardly have any (sorry but I have a very good eye, so I notice every little detail). Why do athletes remove body hair? And what are some of my favorite athletes favorite methods for removing their body hair.
How body hair can affect an athlete’s performance on the field?
There are a few ways body hair can affect an athlete’s performance on the field. out of all the reasons, let’s face it that it just doesn’t look nice to have hair on your body no matter if you are a female or a male.
Athletes are some of the most competitive people on the planet. That’s their job. It’s either they are number 1 or they are a loser.
So, they need every legal edge they can get when performing on the field. A smooth clean profile can cut through the wind for some cyclists or reduce water friction for some swimmers.
Majority of swimmers, cyclists, and triathletes may choose to remove hair from all over the body, arm, leg, and pubic region, leaving only hair on top of their hair.
In the Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, they have come to a conclusion that hairless bodies can save in total 0.01 seconds when in a 100m run and in a marathon, they can save up to 5.7 seconds. These precious seconds matter in a competition.
Reasons why some Olympic athletes remove all their hair?
- Better performance: there are studies that were conducted showing swimmers along with runners that perform faster when they are hairless. Some of these athletes would even admit to their body cooling down faster and feeling cooler which can help them perform better.
- Medical purposes: cyclists are known to fall frequently while competing. Therefore, they aren’t strangers to have a few bumps and bruises. Their wounds heal safer because of a low chance of infection and faster healing with hairless wound. Oils and creams can be applied much easier to aid in a massage of the athlete’s muscles. Soccer players shave their legs once asked since hair free skin is easier to treat when an injury happens. Also, because when they do a “slide tackle” their hairs won’t get pulled along the ground (but this may be a myth). Other reasons are they just love the way their legs look. Soccer players have muscular legs and they may just want to show it off.
- Smoother fee: With swimmers their body can feel a new level of comfort because of the exfoliation they receive when shaving. They remove the dead skin cells leaving the skin underneath exposed. Some Olympic swimmers would admit they shave their skin not for an hydrodynamic advantage but just for a smoother feel and their skin feels much better under the water, as Ricky Berens stated in a 2012 interview for Vanity Fair Magazine.
- Comfortability: being comfortable is important while performing. When you have on all this protective gear, compression socks or any other type of accessory it can make the body feel bloated. It can especially add on a different level of comfort. You may have long hairs that can get caught in the crevices of the sport equipment. Make it painful and difficult to remove.
- The beauty or Aesthetics: imagine turning on your TV and seeing a world class athlete wearing very small and revealing outfits since the sport requires it. But they have hair all over. That’s not beautiful to look at. Also, because the sponsors and advertisers all want the athletes to look as clean as possible. Also, a lot of athletes are very strong and have extremely muscular bodies when compared to the average person. They love the way they look. All the muscle definition, so, removing the hair allows for that muscle to show.
- Massaging: A lot of athletes will have daily massages due to the stress they acquire while performing. An oily massage will feel much better when you have a smooth body to rub on.
- Sport Requirements: some sports require that certain parts of the body be hairless. Sports that leave a lot of the body parts open. Sports such as volleyball, swimming, gymnastics, etc. When you compete, you may be required to come, not only to perform, but you must come well-groomed.
- Aerodynamics: there are certain sports where Milli-seconds matter a lot. In swimming and running competition a Milli-second would determine a winner and a loser. Having a hairless body may reduce the friction the body comes with the air and might shave off a few MILLI SECONDS. But in those competitions that matters a lot.
- This is a hit or miss for me. I tend not to believe it. Since the only sports I play are soccer and basketball, but the resistance that there is, is very little or nonexistent at all. But it may be different in swimming and running.
- Hydrodynamics: Any competitive swimmer would know about this. This one is another hit or miss for me. I’m not all to certain hair removal for swimmers can really affect them to a certain degree. Or to a degree that would really matter. But I do know shaving makes their skin more sensitive to the water and that may be a great feeling.
- Placebo effect: removing hair for certain sports might not give a person the edge they may need to win the competition. But it might play tricks on their mind. Thus, pushing them to do better because they THINK they are getting an edge on their opponent.
- Each athlete has his own reasons and mostly whether its because science states that athletes with less or no hair win more competitions, whether its only to look good while performing the sport, or just because the sport requires them remove their hair on certain body parts. It’s their reason.
How Do Athletes Remove Body Hair?
Now, the one question that many of you might be having in your mind is that how exactly do athletes get that smooth and soft hairless body? They use the same methods that any regular person would use.
They are no different. Majority choose waxing, but I believe that would only apply to mostly female athletes. But the men choose shaving or hair removal creams.
I think for some of the more aggressive sports such as football or boxing. Most of the male athletes for those sports choose shaving or hair removal creams.
I’ve played a variety of sports over the years and I know first hand what some players do to get rid of hair, because I would ask for advice on what my teammates do to remove hair.
I also would gain friends from different sports that I have never played and we would speak on how athletes remove hair.
Football, Soccer, Rugby, and Basketball players = They are more geared towards shaving or using depilatory creams. Some go the extent of getting laser hair removal. No so much waxing with NFL or NBA players because waxing may seem as though a woman’s “thing.”
Gymnast = They are more geared toward shaving, waxing, and laser hair removal.
Cyclist, swimmers = they are more into shaving off their hair and laser hair removal
Tennis players (female) = are more inclined to undergo waxing treatments.
Tennis player (male) = are more inclined to undergo shaving.
Volleyball players = are more into waxing and shaving. Some may get laser hair removal to get rid of the hassle altogether.
Are there any SUPERSTAR athletes that have a favorite type of hair removal? If so who are they and what is their method of hair removal?
Athlete’s most commonly use waxing and shaving to get rid of their body hair. Waxing is more common among female athletes. On the other hand, shaving is common among male athletes as in this case they just need a razor or an electric shave to get rid of their body hair.
It is more of a universal way for hair removal as with it you don’t have to put in a lot of effort and there is less pain in it.
- Gabby Douglas who is an Olympic gold medal gymnast has her favorite hair removal method of shaving. In fact, her favorite razor to use is the Gillette Venus Swirl. Many other Olympic gymnast also choose shaving as their preferred hair removal method.
- Serena Williams, Simona Halep, and Angelique Kerber (all world-class tennis players) all choose waxing as their hair removal method. So, I think it’s safe to safe that it comes down to either waxing or shaving for most athletes. In some rare cases you’ll have other athletes choosing to go with laser treatments.
- Louise Victoria Hazel who is an Heptathlon Olympian underwent a full body laser hair removal treatment just to get rid of the hair completely.
- Sydney McLaughlin, Hurdler swears by NAIR. Even though it comes with a strong smell it works effectively. She avoids shaving because she cut herself with a razor once.
- Katie Zaferes, Triathlete uses a man’s razor, the Men’s Schick Hydro 5. She stays away from shaving prior to the race, then on the day of the race, she shaves. This is so her skin can feel nice and sleek on the race day.
A few Hair removal items used by athletes.
Almost all athletes will be using regular shaving items just like the regular person. But mostly they’ll use big brand names such as Gillette. Most likely since they may have certain endorsements and sponsorships with them.
So here are few items you may want to try out for your self.
Women have the Gillette Venus Women’s Swirl 5 Contour or the, Gillette Venus Women’s Sensitive 3 Blades
Men have the Gillette Mach3 Men’s Disposable Razor, or the BIC Flex 5 Disposable Razor
Some even resort to waxing. You can try out a professional wax warming kit.
Maybe that’s not your forte. So you can settle for sugar waxing kit instead. Or just the jar itself
Do swimmers remove body hair for a specific reason?
Yes, swimmers do remove body hair for a specific reason. One word: HYDRODYNAMICS. You see according to science removing the hair on your body has a very big impact on your swimming performance.
There was a survey conducted in the form of a competition between those swimmers who didn’t shave and those who had freshly shaved. The result came out as expected that the ones with no hair on their body were able to have longer strokes and they were swimming on a quicker pace than those who had hair on their body.
Also, it’s proven that hairless swimmers tend to have an increase of stroke length, lower blood lactate levels and their bodies take in less amount of oxygen.
But with this whole hydrodynamics stuff, I don’t think it would work the way many people would think. It would only give you nanoseconds or milliseconds of time to win in a race. But with competitive swimmers that’s all you need. And at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.
Another reason which seems more reality based. Is the feeling they get in the water. See, when you shave you’re shaving off a layer of skin with the razor. This leaves a new layer of skin open to the environment. That new layer is exposed to the water. And its responsible for the swimmers incredible feeling of relaxation and speed while they race.
Its makes them feel like they are moving through the water as fast as possible which can increase their performance. But it’s not just hydrodynamics, you must also worry consider fluid density, friction coefficients, and different speeds. There isn’t any quantitative estimate as to whether the actual swimmer’s performance improvement is due to hydrodynamics
There are a couple of studies that were concluded about shaving and swimmers.
But this one study is the one that I’ve found would most benefit this article I’ve written.
Sharp & Costill in 1989 concluded a study verified the impact of swimmers shaving and how it affected their performance. The swimmers were studied while swimming the breaststroke and streamline.
The tests that Sharp & Costill did found that shaving lowered the swimmer’s blood lactation, and oxygen consumption. The swimmers would now have longer strokes because of this.
But the study is a little unspecific since they didn’t mention any other necessary variables, such as active drag.
Swimmers will shave their palms and soles of their feet. No, they don’t have any hairs. But they are still removing the dead skin cells from those areas and improving their feeling in the water.
Whenever swimmers have a meet they do RE-SHAVE. Since those cells can desensitize fast. They don’t use any sort of lotion after they finished shaving. The lotion can act as a barrier between their skin and their sensors.
It also clogs up their pores. This reduces any sensitivity they are looking to get. Instead of the lotion, they’ll use some rubbing alcohol. And this can disinfect the cuts if they have any. And it opens their pores, which can increase their sensitivity.
Do male/female swimmers shave or wax? If so, then how do they shave?
Well, both male and female have their own priorities when it comes to shaving off the hair on their body. However, if we analyze it on general basis then as said earlier, females opt for waxing and males opt for shaving with razor or shavers.
In waxing, a thick melted hot wax is applied to the part of the body and then it is pulled off quickly with a cloth on it. This way all the hair comes off the body with the cloth.
Shaving on the other hand is done with the use of razors and shavers. This method takes a lot of time and athletes need patience. You just need a little care when it comes to the use of blades because the chances of injuries and cuts are high especially if you are shaving in a rush.
But you may find that many swimmers on the Olympic level would choose to shave. It has very much to do with how the swimmer looks as well as how it will help them perform. Shaving takes off the smallest layer of dead skin that will make the swimmer more sensitive in the water.
Why would a soccer player shave his/her legs?
Soccer players shave their legs once asked since hair free skin is easier to treat when an injury happens.
Also, because when they do a “slide tackle” their hairs won’t get pulled along the ground (but this may be a myth). Other reasons are they just love the way their legs look. Soccer players have muscular legs and they may just want to show it off.
Do gymnasts get laser hair removal? If so, then why and does it improve their performance?
Yes, gymnasts also remove their body hair and again every one of them has a choice of his/her own when it comes to the way they need to get their hair removed.
Gymnasts also use the laser hair removal therapy, and this works fine for them. Some even choose to do the application themselves and use a home laser hair removal device. I’m not to certain that it can improve their performance by making them swing higher in the air or do more back flips.
But what it can do I believe is all physiological. They remove the hair and may feel a certain rise in their level of confidence. A level of confidence that wouldn’t be there with all the hair. This new confidence will allow the gymnasts to push their limits by themselves and only then they will perform better.
Also, you may have to look at the SPORTS REQUIREMENTS. Their may be certain hair requirements. There is a reason why so many gymnasts don’t really have hair on them, whether it be their legs, arms, etc.
You don’t really see it much. There’s more to it than just a competitive advantage. Also, laser therapy is preferred by those who are sensitive to the pain of removing the hair on their body, so most gymnasts use the laser therapy to avoid the pain and not worry about constantly shaving off hair when it grows back.
Is there an NBA armpit hair rule?
No there is no NBA armpit hair rule yet. I would think so since from this article
In that article it may seem there may be a rule of some sorts describing how players feel about armpit hair. Its embarrassing for some and make them feel self-conscious. However, there are players who don’t shave their armpits and then there are those players who do shave their armpits completely as they think of proper hygiene to be a necessity.
The players judging by the article would want jerseys that are more like shirts or just cover their underarms.
The people that run the NBA aren’t as willing to change the jerseys because it would take away from the long classic jerseys that have been worn since the game began. So, there is a big chance that the armpit rule would be from the players and not the actually owners.
Do basketball players shave body hair? If so then, why?
Not all that much. The only parts of the body that are revealed for a basketball player are the face, arms, legs, and parts of their back.
There isn’t much of a hairy arm trend going on in the NBA. Its mostly their underarm as you can read it here. I find that there may be a lot of players that will not get any hair removed. Simply to annoy their defenders.
See, in basketball the opponent will often have to guard you and try to take the basketball from you. I’ve seen players with hair all on them irritate their defender because who wants to get up close on a hairy sweaty person. So that is one reason why some ballplayers WON’T SHAVE.
You see athletes get their hair removed because there is a lot of rubbing and chaffing during the game which is why the hair needs to be removed. And sometimes it’s just for aesthetic reasons.
Currently, basketball players are more aware of the way they look than ever before. So, they take the time out to look good on the court and even off the court. Hair is properly trimmed, armpit hair on a few players is gone, etc.
Do NFL players shave their legs? If so, then why? Is there a specific purpose for this?
Yes, NFL players do shave their legs. I can only assume so when they go for a tackle and hit the ground the hair doesn’t pull along the ground. Also, the amount of athletic tape that football players may put on, then must take off. Ever took tape off your skin. It hurts. Also, football is a sport that is played in all types of weather.
So sometimes NFL players will find themselves playing in the rain where mud accumulates on their body and by the time they get a chance to remove it, the mud has dried. So, removing hair also helps with getting the dirt of their body, since the mud won’t have anything to latch onto.
Why do bodybuilders have no hair?
For this sport, the only reason is for aesthetics. It’s so the bodybuilder can show off each muscle fiber that they’ve been working on push through their skin. Having all that hair on their skin does no good for the sport. I also believe the sport requires no body hair. Bodybuilders are being judged by the shape, size, and the definition of their muscles.
A bodybuilder wouldn’t do well in a competition when trying to show their muscularity. They won’t go far, matter of fact they won’t be in any competition if hair is covering up their muscles.
Also many bodybuilders believe having no hair also aids in their massage therapy. Their muscles need a lot of massaging after spending hour and hours in the gym and hair will only get in the way.
Other reasons why bodybuilders are hair free
Aesthetics: its to show off their body and their muscles. Hard to see when it’s covered in hair.
Tanning: A lot of bodybuilders spray themselves with tanning solution to make it look as though they tanned and give themselves a brown goldish look on their skin. It helps to improve the definition of their muscles.
Do bodybuilders shave or wax?
This is a personal preference, so, you would find that the answer will vary depending on the actual person. Depending on that bodybuilder. Some will steer more towards waxing due to last a bit longer. And the fact that a professional is performing it on you. But others will steer more towards shaving due to how cheap it is and a lot more convenient than waxing.
Why do cyclists shave their legs?
Now I’ve done some research and there seem to be a few consistent reasons as to why cyclists shave their legs. That being massaging, aerodynamics, road rash or cuts from cycling, tan lines (for aesthetics), some think of it as a fashion sense, others think its tradition or a rite of passage.
Here I go into detail about THE REASONS why cyclists shave their legs.
Massage
If you’re lucky enough to get a few massages, then you better have your hair removed. They feel a thousand times better. Massages are known for relieving any tension, soreness, or tightness in your muscles.
And cyclists get a lot of the above. They help move the flow of blood, this flow of blood helps with moving the lactic acid along with many other toxins that lay in your blood.
You might find your partner, either from training or your spouse is more willing to give you a massage when properly shaved. Also, when you get these massages, they give you some sort of oil that they’ll massage it with, if you have a lot of hair, the hair absorbs it.
If you don’t remove the hair the skin (which is the target) gets to absorb it.
Aerodynamics
This one is the one that I’m most skeptical about. But let’s dive in. Often people will ask the question “Can shaving your legs make you faster when cycling?
This is an often common and skeptical argument among cyclists and in the community. You have people from both sides arguing for and against the aerodynamic benefit of shaving your legs.
You can check out this video for the results of aerodynamics and its claim on cyclists.
These guys ran a test in its “win tunnel.” They tested a bunch of athletes. Some were already shaved before the test started and some shaved after the test began. But they concluded that leg shaving saved the athletes about 70 seconds. Not bad. Because in competition seconds matter a lot. Their tests also concluded that the individual gains were different from athlete to athletes.
Some saw a gain of 50 seconds to 82 seconds. In a bike race and certainly for these triathlons that people compete in. These races are won by seconds and in rare cases, they are won in a hundredth of a second. Which is crazy. But not all cyclists follow this claim for aerodynamics.
Road rash
I take it you may have never been cycling before. But even if you were on a bike and you ride a lot. Guess what? You may have fallen off your bike or run into another rider and suffered a nasty road rash.
This is what happens when you go cycling sometimes. Then you would have to pick out any dirt or grit that may have been stuck on your skin when you got hurt.
Then apply some antiseptic cream. Keep that road rash covered so its dry.
But that picking the dirt and grit out of your skin is the bad part. And also, can be quite painful, but you know what makes it even more painful is having a bunch of hair on your skin. It’s like having to search for that grit and dirt through a forest of hair.
Tan lines (maybe they think it’s cool)
check out the body for any serious cycler and you would see that they have very serious tan lines. They have secured these hard to get tan lines by riding over and over in the sun with the exact same clothing on the same spot.
A rite of passage (for new cyclists)
Let me ask you something, let’s say you’re really good at something and so are your friends.
So, you form a group since you’re good at this one thing. And another person comes into the group, but you can immediately notice that they aren’t serious nor good at the group’s talent. It could be because they don’t practice enough, or they don’t do a certain task enough as a person who is serious at it.
Alright, that was a little confusing. But you can get my drift. A serious cycler can spot a non-serious cycler from afar.
And in this cycling community, the obvious sign would be hairy legs. So, you can think of it as a rite of passage for yourself to shave your legs. Because not many men do, or women do it. Especially other athletes.
Fashion sense
Think of it as the same when people like to wear socks over leg warmers. Some people don’t wear black dress shoes along with white socks. It’s just a thing.
Where do cyclists stop shaving on their legs?
You’ll be stopping when you get to your leg grippers or right at the upper thigh. You don’t have to remove any hair from under the skin suit. Think about it. There’s no benefit for that. Anything near your crotch is for some other benefit and not necessarily for your chances of winning a cycling competition.
Why do cyclists shave their balls or butt?
There is really no reason why cyclists shave their balls and butt. Some do and others don’t. This is more of a personal preference that a competitive advantage or sports requirement.
Cyclists as far as competition is concerned are more concerned with shaving their legs. Cyclists will shave areas near their privates mostly because of hygienic purposes, aesthetic purposes (hair sticking out the cycling shorts), and comfortability while riding.
Should cyclists shave their legs?
That is all up to them. The theory is that the hair on their legs causes some level of resistance and that is not needed when it comes to cycling.
On the elite level of cycling, then maybe the amount of hair you have can slow you down. Some cyclers will tell that they may feel slower when they look down at their own legs and see that they have hairy legs.
Maybe the hair leg sight is playing some sort of placebo effect. In 1987 aerodynamic engineer conducted a study on the effectiveness of hair removal and its effect on aerodynamics.
To sum up the entire thing (just in case you don’t want to read it), he found that there was an improvement with the aerodynamics of about .6 percent. That small percentage could result in saving 5 seconds if you were competing in 40 km race.
Also like I spoke about up above the massages you get can become even better. Some massage techniques may not involve a lot of oil, so having no hair on your legs can feel a lot better.
And also, it can be an etiquette thing. Make like a tad bit easier for your masseuse. In theory, your wounds can be taken cared of a lot more effectively. You’re a cycler, then you better believe that you will crash at some point.
Either from the road is unstable, you can crash into another competitor. When you crash you can scrape off a lot of your skin. The hair will just collect more of the dirt and make it harder to clean out.
It’s not good to bandage that. A lot of cyclists use Kinesio tape. Have you ever used tape on your skin when there’s hair? Makes it difficult to stick to and hard to remove a lot of. So, a lot of cyclists like to use this type of tape. Having hair buildup on their leg is not good.
Do triathletes shave their legs?
Yes, I believe for the same reasons that cyclists do. When it comes to athletes, they all cherish certain parts of their body.
Bodybuilders cherish arm part with visible smooth muscle on it, tennis players cherish their arms and legs, basketball players cherish arms and legs. Cyclists cherish their legs just as much as their silly bike.
Their legs are a very important part of succeeding in this sport. Not only keeping them strong and able to endure long terms of stress. They also need to be smooth and good-looking, that’s where the shaving comes into play. Hairy legs are just a no-no for the sport whether it’s for the healing of wounds or getting necessary massages. It’s just a no-no.
Why wrestlers remove their hair?
Wrestlers are also associated with being smooth. Having no hair on their skin. Well, at least the WWE version of wrestingling are associated with that. They rub on each other a lot and removing their hair prevents chafing and rashes.
I can attest to this since I’m a runner. It’s more about the comfort of having no hair. Hair is helping the heat by locking it in. and when you’re running the last thing you really want is to be hot.
Some more reasons i believe that runner like to remove body hair is
No chafing & No rubbing of the clothes:Between the clothes you wear and your contact of your skin. It can cause some problems. Chafing and rubbing is one of them.
Smell better: Dirt and sweat gets locked into the hair causing a nasty smell.
Conclusion: So, after reading this article I’m sure you can pretty much assume that body hair removal is for everyone, even athletes. Now all athletes remove body hair for a variety of reasons. Some professional, some personal. Just like everyone else. No one is different.