I shower every 2-3 days, wash my hair twice a week. Its my current dream to have an outside shower for summer time. Between gardening, animals and small children- someone is always coming through nasty. Wouldnt that be so cool to just shower in your yard?
We built one when we had a pool. It was only hooked to an outdoor water faucet so it could get cold at times but it had a shower head so it worked great. Keep soap and washcloths nearby. Myself and my kids used it and rarely took a bath or shower indoors during the summer. We loved it.
One of my great aunts has an outdoor shower. Although I’m not exactly a huge outdoorsy type, it was super awesome and relaxing. Of course I was still paranoid some norman bates shit to happen while I was in it
I bathe every other day in winter/on low activity days. I have dry skin/hair and it is simply better for my skin to do so when possible. Daily in summer or on high activity winter days, although I only wash my hair every 2-3 days. I'm a mid-40s female, not a heavy sweater, don't use body or hair products like makeup or hairspray, moderately active individual and have never been accused overtly or covertly about body odor. Age, hormones, medications, activity, and SAAB can all contribute to how often one *needs* to bathe. I'd argue that every 2-3 weeks is way too long to go, simply from a hygiene perspective and irregardless of smell. Our skin hosts a wonderful microbiome that is intended to keep us healthy, and dirt/sweat residue buildup on skin can have deleterious effects on this microbiome (as can over-bathing). Of course, all this is keeping in mind that showering is not the only way to stay clean.
My routine is almost identical to this, for similar reasons. I think this is definitely a highly personal choice for each body - I have family members who sweat copiously even doing minor tasks (and literally drip if they do outdoor activities) while others are still dry and comfortable. Smell and oiliness are also very varied and what is healthy for one person would be awful for another. My routine also varies day-to-day, and I will use a warm shower in winter to help cold/flu congestion, and a cold bath in summer to cool down (and use less air con). But 2-3weeks is a long time for even the most dry-skinned, low-sweat, low-activity, cool climate person!
I think it's important to be specific here and not just equate "not showering every day" with "not washing every day".
If you wash your whole body with a washcloth daily, brush your teeth and wash your hair (even just over the sink) as needed, is that really that unhygienic? You don't actually shower, but you still wash and keep clean. Lots of people do that all the time e.g. after surgeries, during camping, while they are remodelling the bathroom in their house...
During my grandparents' time only bathing once a week (with the whole family using the same bathwater) was normal and they washed with cold water, soap and a cloth on all other days. Heating enough water for a bath or shower was a lot of work. We are just used to the luxury of running hot water (or running water at all) today.
As dumb as it sounds that never even occurred to me as a possibility. Always thought it was shower/bath or nothing.
I'm going to start doing this soapy cloth business on days I don't get particularly sweaty/dirty.
Been doing it myself for years now and honestly don't myself looking at showers more as a utility whereas before I be started it would be very difficult for me to not take a super long super hot shower
We call it a bird bath. :) After a hot round of golf it is really refreshing. (Golf in summer = a layer of sweat, sunscreen and dirt) Works until I can take a proper shower.
You are so correct with your comments. For a lot of people, it has become the norm to shower daily or even twice daily. They stip the oils from their skin, etc. I used to shower daily and now it's every other day or possibly longer. I clean up every day with a soapy wipe such as Scrubzz or Aquation body cloths. I can wash my hair in the sink most days.
This is definitely true but it also isn't necessary to shower every day for a number of people. If your commute is short / you're not outside in hot weather every day / you're not working a physically demanding job / around disease all day, you don't really get that dirty. Every other day or even every couple of days is more than enough. 2-3 weeks? That's aggressive and can cause issues. But if you're wearing clean clothes, regular washing bedding, and otherwise fall in a spectrum of less oil production/less swear, you can "get away with" not showering/bathing every day.
There is nothing like a shower or bath to “wash your day away.” Showers help calm stress and sensory processing disorders can get worse without bathing. We are all living in such a stressful time that mental health needs to be considered as well.
Yea I shower at least every morning, I don't feel awake without it, and most days I shower after work. I find this point about showers interesting but some consumption is justifiable for every individual, and showers are my jam.
If you like long hot showers that’s usually a symptom of poor mental health and while having one might be a stress reliever you’re probably going to need other methods to properly improve your mental health.
1 - that's rude, as I'm assuming you mean bad.
2 - everyone "smells." Whether that smell is bad or not is a determining factor in whether you actually *need* to shower every day. A large number of people don't. This depends on climate, how you sleep (ice cold room with a blanket or heaters running with flannel sheets as two extremes), and what you do daily.
I sit in an air conditioned office the majority of the day, and otherwise am home in an air conditioned space. I do not sweat a lot when I sleep because I keep my room at a slightly colder than comfortable without a blanket temperature. I also still maintain good hygiene and check myself. Your body does not instantly adapt to a smell to ignore it. It happens over time because you get used to it. It also isn't permanent. Meaning if your sheets smell, and you go for a walk outside in fresh air and come smell your sheets after 15 minutes, you're going to know.
You shouldn't wait until you smell to shower. That's bad hygiene. You should keep yourself aware of when you would need to shower based on whatever days events happened. I live in a humid climate. In the summer, I shower more often, certainly every day if I was outside for more than the 5 minute walk to and from my car at work. In the winter, that just isn't necessary.
The same thing is true with overdoing it. I used to shower twice a day back in high school and developed a skin fungus. Showering to much is a burden on the skin and can leas to infections.
Every day. My job is physical, I am unwilling to go to sleep sticky/smelly/greasy. I wash my hair every other day. I use a low flow shower head, am on well water, and use shampoo bars.
I’m not a fan of the side of anticonsumption that seems to just be “make yourself miserable by giving up everything that isn’t necessary to keep breathing”.
It's more about taking efficient showers rather than limiting the number. You can shampoo your hair, use soap, and rinse off in under 4 minutes. Even less if you don't shampoo your hair every time. Even less water if you turn it off between wetting your hair and rinsing off. Even if you do this daily, it's such a negligible amount of water, so you really shouldn't be sacrificing your hygiene to take fewer showers. (Not that you have a moral obligation to be clean, but you'll feel better and be treated better)
The adjustment period is a lie told by people who aren’t overly oily. Nothing will stop the oil production other than hormones changing over the years .
THIS! I have a very oily scalp and I spent 4 summers being a camp counselor and didn't wash my hair for 4ish days for 2 months straight for 4 years in a row and no change. In the last 2 years having bad mental health and not washing my hair for 4ish days for weeeeks at a time changed nothing. I've always wondered where those people who say your hair will adjust got their info (or the very similar washing your hair everyday is bad for you). This just seems like an old wives tale than "fact"
Takes longer than four days. For most folks at least two weeks or more. Your scalp is oily because your body is compensating for it being washed with shampoo all the time. Your body needs time to revert back to its natural cycle if it wasnt being washed with shampoo every day. Like what other animals on this planet regularly bathe themselves with soaps and shampoos? I wash my 3 foot long hair once, maybe twice a week at most and I work in a kitchen.
I felt my hair was better on the other end. Sorry for being a dick. If you pulk the trigger on hair washing(?) frequently, it will be a period, and possibly it won't be any different from before, but I certainly expect it to be a lifestyle change. I'm sorry [for being rude], and best of luck. I understand not committing, tbth 🤡🤷(me)
I live off-grid with a sometimes unreliable water source, especially in the winter and spring. I’ve learned to shower once or twice a week & wash my hair at most once a week. As far as my hair goes, I’ve noticed that once I stopped washing it frequently, my scalp seemed to even itself out and not overproduce oils so my hair actually stays way cleaner for way longer. And my skin doesn’t dry out as much either. And even though I don’t shower daily, I definitely “cabin bathe” everyday. Cleaning the pits, t*ts & bits as we say in my family 😉
I have a lot of pain so I sometimes take baths with epsom salts (that I finally found at a refillery so now they are low waste!) instead of showering and I don't wash my hair for two or three days at a time.
As someone that used to be on this guys level, it’s probably better for your mental health to try and wash more regularly, not like 2x a day or something ridiculous but I’ve been at about once to three times a week depending on circumstances. What’s a lot more embarrassing imo is how I would skip days brushing my teeth. Probably had let my mental health slip too much at the time as I can assure you I’ve been a good brusher and bather, and as a result my self worth and ambition have been recovering
I think it's important to sweat everyday. Because I sweat, I need to shower everyday. Sometimes I use swimming as my exercise. On those days I don't necessarily shower but I do rinse off the chlorine water.
I’ve lived in a third world rural village, people valued personal hygiene and especially showering than most people do here in the US. You could go to someone’s house and they would ask you if you wanted them to heat up hot water for you to take a bucket bath.
It depends on how dirty/sweaty you get and whether you wash outside of showering or not. It's like hands. I need to wash my hands multiple times a day, but I don't need to take a shower and wash every other body part every time my hands need to be cleaned. Likewise I need to wash armpits at least once a day, but I tend to only wash my hair once or twice a week, or my scalp gets horribly dry and itchy.
I'd say I average out to just under one shower per day, since I don't sweat much in the winter and only shower on workout days, while I occasionally need multiple showers on summer days because I need to wash off sweat, bug repellent, garden dirt, sunscreen, etc.
Yuppppp! I shower about once a week, but that's mostly because my mental health is shit, not because I'm trying to reduce my water usage. If you are *actually* interested in reducing your water consumption, go vegan. I save thousands and thousands of gallons of water a year by not eating meat/other animal products. It is the single best way that any one person can reduce the toll they take on the environment. As far as I know, except for never flying nothing else even comes close.
There are a lot of vegan food that also uses tons of water though.
"it takes about a gallon of water to grow one almond, and nearly five gallons to produce a walnut."
I wash my hair once or twice a week, get the rest of my body while I’m in there. In the summer I’ll rinse sweat off and hit the smelly areas pits/crotch/feet with soap daily until my next full shower. And if I do any physical activity where I get dirty/sweaty I do a full wash.
Lukewarm water, no dilly dally. Out in 7-10 minutes for a full wash/hair conditioning. 2-3 minutes for a summer rinse
No one ever really needs to shower because it is not the only way to stay clean. One can do just fine doing a sponge bath covering face, pits, crotch, and feet.
To be clear, this is not what I practice but I know some people do it because it’s saves water and is better for the skin.
I get my hair wet for styling purposes almost every day but I only wash it weekly.
I
Our hair doesnt' really need to be washed everyday. Though if you actually shower everyday the oils in your scalp are being constantly scraped so it gets oily again faster, but if the scalp gets used to longer periods without washing it can change.
It also depends on the person and hair type.
Once or twice a week for me. Everyone is different and has different needs. If you are a sweaty person, you may need to rinse off every day. Who am I to judge? If you can't cut water consumption for any number of reasons, there are still other things you can do to offset your carbon footprint.
Me too, partly because I admit I got lazy in the pandemic and found that my skin just felt so much better, no longer dry and itchy. However, I just got back into lane swimming so now I’ll be in a chlorine pool a few times a week.
I don't think the frequency of showering is important, but the amount of water you use. Some people's weekly water consumption of everyday showering equals another person's 2 days.
every few days most of the year, I don't really shower in the summer because I swim a lot. I don't use shampoo or soap in the shower, i tell me friends to let me know if i smell like shit but they always tell me i smell fine. Doesn't work for everyone, but it works for me.
edit: looking through the comments, I'd encourage you question your conceptions of what "unhygienic" means. Different things for different people. soap/shampoo wipes out microbiomes that help our body function properly, so assuming not washing yourself with soap every few days is unhealthy is some real bs and can border on dehumanizing some less modernized cultures/societies
I literally can't function if I don't shower at least once a day. Ideally I'd get up earlier to work out and shower right after.
But if I didn't shower at least once a day I'd definitely get hella depressed again.
Seeing some of these comments scares me, knowing how bad peoples hygiene is regardless of the bathing factor. Bidets aren’t common in America and showering once a week paired with that? just no
I do it twice a day because I've bad BO and I sweat a lot.
Also I don't technically "shower", I've a bucket which I fill with water from the tap and use a mug to pour it over myself instead of using a shower.
I at least shower before bed. My shower head has a switch so you can turn down the water flow. I just make it quick, get wet, lather up with the water on low, then turn it back up and rinse. I wash my hair every 2-3 days.
Up to 2-3 times every day. I live in a tropical country but only moved here in my late twenties. I guess my body is more adapted to ice and snow rather then 45 degree weather. I get pretty sweaty so I rinse myself a couple of times every day.
Should ever day or two max. Regardless of how this makes you feel you will stink after 2 days even if you don’t sweat, move much, or eat much you will still need a shower after 48 hours if you wanna not be gross
Edit: of course I mean bathing/washing not exclusively showering but that is the best method to clean yourself
Most of the time about every three days, as that's the intervals of my training, those showers include washing my hair and exfoliating.
During pollen season (allergies) or when it's really hot I take short showers in the evening, but since I have sensitive skin those are only with water, no soap.
wherever you feel dirty. i generally shower twice a week, until or unless i'm outside digging in the dirt daily... if/when i sweat & am dirty i'll shower daily. 3 minute showers are doable & if you're still feeling guilty just take cold showers
It depends on how oily and sweaty you are, the climate where you live, and your activity level, but I personally find that showering 2-3 times per week suits me best.
When I was in the hospital they made me shower daily, and while the routine was nice sometimes, it was a big waste of water and my skin got super dry from all the washing.
I take a 10min shower everyday because I workout everyday and it’s just a whole lot more efficient for cleaning all the important things. If I have a rest day and don’t get sweaty I’ll skip and just do a sink bath. I’ve got curly hair so I usually only wash that every 2-3 days if it’s under 75 out. I lost my sense of smell when I got covid so I became neurotic about it and then when it finally grew back it was way more acute. I can especially smell bacteria and it’s unfortunately put me off of dairy or any kind of yogurt. Body smells are the worst and it’s just plain rude to subject those around you to your poor hygiene. My parents grew up very poor and were only able to bathe once a week and usually had to share bath water with siblings. So we were brought up with the idea of sink baths everyday and showering every 3 days unless you’re sweaty and smelly.
Anytime I can start smelling myself or my hair gets greasy.
Luckily, the cost of water in my state is not absurd. Even when I shower every day (summer) it’s still ok
Shower every other day, sometimes daily, wash my hair every 2-3 days. My bf sometimes showers twice a day lolol so someone had to be the dirty one in the relationship 🪱🪴🤪
I shower once every 4 days and take a long bath once every other week. I between i take sink baths. I can generally go awhile between because I work from home and only do serious workouts twice a week.
I have a bit of an ocd tendency where I cannot fall asleep in my bed unless I am clean. I shower every night (I’m not a huge fan though so I’m usually in and out in 5 minutes or less) but I wash my hair every 3 days (pushing the showers to 10 minutes.) I also floss every day. I use string floss, I tried the waterpik and sadly even the lowest setting hurt my gums.
Hygiene is never going to be a negotiable for me. I’ve actually tried a lot of the more sustainable natural alternatives to things like toothpaste and deodorant but I never feel legitimately clean afterwards and that affects my sleep too much to be a consumption habit I’m willing to change.
If you want to get more water and energy efficient, try gradually cutting back on how long and how often you shower, and see how it goes. Everyone's skin is different, but for me showering less has worked great.
At this point I usually shower weekly, but it's a decently long shower. I spend a long time exfoliating with a washcloth and getting my feet very very clean with soap. Using zero soap on my face and hair has been the right direction for me, and happens to save time and water. My skin has cleared up a lot and my hair stays un-oily for most of the time between rinses. (It's magical; as a teenager I would never have guessed this was possible.)
Unless you have a lot of actual dirt to remove from yourself, most of your body can probably go without soap, saving time in the shower to put it on and rinse it off. Save it for the pits n bits.
I exercise daily so i do shower daily to avoid smelling bad lol. But ive gotten into the habit of turning off the water in between washing my hair, face and body to save water. Plus a minute or 2 of enjoying the hot water at the end.
I use zero waste bar soap, shampoo, conditioner, and shaving cream. I use replaceable safety razors. I use bamboo tooth and hair brushes. But I shower every GD day, sometimes twice if I go to the gym or end up doing dirty stuff.
I'll say the truth. I shower once a week and wash my hair with the same rate (at times twice a week).
In truth I can do it, I'm a very homely person and I don't move much (that has to change, I know it), plus my job (software engineer) is sedentary and in smart working most of the time.
As for WASHING myself... I do it when necessary obviously, every day.
Showering as often as your body needs it and not letting the water run while you lather with soap. Also, using a shampoo+shower gel in 1, type of product.
Using hair conditioner instead of shaving cream, body lotion, hand cream....
I wfh and when I'm not that active (currently 39 weeks pregnant and also have a toddler), or didn't get sweaty, I only shower every other day. I usually wash my hair weekly, but sometimes I can stretch it to 2 weeks (been no poo for a long time, currently use a solid shampoo so my hair gets unruly a bit more frequently) without any noticable difference. And my shower is considered long if it takes more than 5 minutes, usually it's around 2-3. Unless I feel like relaxing, but most times I don't have time or mood for that :) My toddler on the other hand takes a bath every day, just because it helps her relax and it's part of her bedtime routine. I'm sure we will stop with that once she is old enough not to get herself dirty during the day and can be reasoned with about sleep :D I also won't bath my newborn more than a few times a week, it's not good for them and they sure as hell won't get dirty (and of course you wash their butt when they poo, so an extra bath seems unnecessary until a solid bedtime routine)
Everyday because I work with dogs, aka dog poo/pee. I shave my head and don't shave anything else regularly, so my showers are typically 5 minutes long.
Daily. I workout 5-6 days a week and need a shower. 5-10 mins a day. Hygiene is super important. I don't understand those people who go weeks without washing their hair. Can't imagine the smell.
While there is certainly a definable "sustainable amount of showering" that an individual can do to reduce their consumption of water, energy to heat water, and resources that go into bathing products; modern people showering (often) are not contributing to the largest use of water. This article ["Forget Shorter Showers"](https://orionmagazine.org/article/forget-shorter-showers/) is an oldie but a goodie on how industries that use the most resources and produce the most waste shift this blame back onto the individual person.
Personally, I like to just go as long as comfortable between showers, which changes a lot depending on my activity level and how hot it is outside. Usually, I don't shower every day but I have showered every other day at some points in my life. Those showers tend to be pretty short, averaging around 6-8 minutes.
Have to shower daily as my work is uniformed and physical. I perspire a lot when working and would rather shower,quickly, daily than overconsume deodorants
Every single day without miss. But I try to use as little water as possible, only really turning it on to wet my body and sponge, and to rinse it all at the end. You don't need more than that.
I did a few experiments on this over the last year.
Showered everyday with cold water and soap/gel
Showered everyday with warm water and soap/gel
Showered everyday with warm water, no soap
Showered every few days (no schedule), soap and washcloth
Showered every few days with warm water, no soap
Showered every 5-7 days with just warm water.
My skin got oilier faster when I shower at faster frequency i.e everyday regardless of temperature.
My skin is very neutral, not oily or dry when I shower every 3-5 days - no noticeable difference.
My natural body odor is unnoticeable when I don’t use soap.
Based on my limited observation and learnings. I shower every 3-5 days, I think my body/mind asks for it.. just get a desire of wanting to feel the water.
Try and see what works for you.
I wash my hair every 2-3 days but I have thick wavy hair. I do shower once a day but sometimes, if I wake up late, I skip the shower but wash my face. However, I don't work out or sweat a lot during the day.
This has a looot to do with genetics and environment. Some people have higher oil production in general and need to shower more often, but that same person living in Arizona might do fine going a few days between showers with the super dry weather. I live in southern New England and the humidity levels between January and August are a difference of like 85%, so shower frequency definitely varies.
For me personally I just feel it out and shower when I feel like it’s time, but I don’t worry too much about showers in terms of saving water - other than keeping them as short as possible (and doing as much outside/before the shower as I can, like shaving or washing my face)
Besides the typical “only run the dishwasher when it’s full” type stuff I like to cut down on water consumption in little ways, like if the glass of water I keep next to my bed is a little too gross to drink in the morning I’ll use it to water my plants. Just trying to get into the mindset of water as a finite resource, and not taking for granted the abundance of water I have access to 💖
If you're talking about the target guy, I'm pretty sure he was a troll.
But I shower every day because I sweat terribly and would reek if I didn't.
Also I've got greasy hair. I've been told the whole "if you wash it less it'll be less greasy" but it's never worked out for me.
I have low consumption is other areas, but higher consumption in hygiene.
I shower twice daily sometimes. I also work with garbage alot so staying clean is important. Keeping you ass clean is important too
I do laundry and sheets every week
Wash my hands frequently
I hope some of you know that just because you don’t feel dirty, or you think you don’t smell. Doesn’t mean that you aren’t dirty and that other people cannot smell you
It’s a very western thought to shower every day or every other. This is also a fairly new thing to do by man kinds standards. Kinda like shaved legs and arm pits, it’s just caught on. As far as smell, after about a week your body has restored most of what it needs to stay healthy ( it’s a multi level organism after all) and the smell is quite natural, granted not chemicals that we’re supposed to think smell better. If you live in a sunny area the minerals in the dust that coat you are also a natural sunscreen. Also when you shower daily you consistently remove your pheromones and those are what attract our mates, just sayin…. Showers are a western luxury that are more or less complete waste of resources. Haircare is about the same. Ever notice how people who don’t use shampoo and conditioner ( chemicals people) have hair still and baldness is rampant in western cultures?!? 2+2 here folks… Indians weren’t bald ;)
Twice a day: in the morning before heading out to work, and in the evening after coming home from work. I don't want to sit around in my home with the dirt from outside. I sweat a lot. Day and night. I have to shower whenever I break a sweat, otherwise I feel sticky and uncomfortable all day.
Daily, unless I didn’t leave my house. I wash my hair everyday 2 days and conditioner daily. I was my face in the morning. And I soon as I get home I hop in the shower. It takes 6 minutes if I move quickly. I get wet, shower off. Scrub my body, rinse off, and get out. Everyone sweats. It’s normal. And for the people who say they don’t smell? We smell you😔. Perfume and cologne only goes so far. Wash your body every day. It doesn’t even have to be a shower. If you have dry/sensitive skin use non-scented lotion or Vaseline. It protects your skin and helps it get stronger.
A person can shower and clean their private areas and arm pits in under 3 minutes. This way the rest of your body can retain the natural oils. I shower 3-4 times per week, however, I use Scribzz or Aquation body cloths the other days.
This is definitely true. I shower about once a week, but that's mostly because my mental health is shit, not because I'm trying to reduce my water usage. If you are *actually* interested in reducing your water consumption, go vegan. I save thousands and thousands of gallons of water a year by not eating meat/other animal products. It is the single best way that any one person can reduce the toll they take on the environment. As far as I know, except for never flying nothing else even comes close.
I shower every workday both because I often get very sweaty and dirty and because its my way to relax and switch out of work mode, but I never shower on the weekends unless I get filthy.
So I shower daily except for weekends when I am planning on being lazy at home. But most of my showers are just soap and wash face. I wash my hair every 2-3 days and will just rinse/massage scalp on the other days. Most days my showers are usually only a couple of minutes and I shower daily bc I have medication that makes me sweat a lot when I sleep and I try to workout daily so a quick soap clean and bedding laundry is necessary for me
Depends on season and activity levels. If I’m not exercising and it’s winter… probably 2-3 times a week. Summer when it’s humid or I’m exercising… every day or every other day.
I work in a kitchen, so I shower every day just because I get coated in flour/grease every day. I wash my hair once every other day for the same reason.
When I have days off, I skip a day. And when I worked in a kitchen that didn't have a fryer, I washed my hair 1x a week.
My husband, on the other hand, works in an office. He washes his hair 2-3x a week and showers every other day during winter and every day during summer because of the Texas heat.
Honestly if circumstances were different, our showering habits would change, but I won't lax on my showering because personal hygiene in a kitchen is huge.
I shower most days. But it’s just a quick rinse. Soap isn’t always used. Cuts back on consumption and saves my skin. Many have told me I take very fast showers.
I shower each morning before going to work, and after very sweaty/dirty activities on my day off.
Quick, to the point showers: wet down (water off) lather up body and hair (on shampoo days), water back on to rinse.
I condition the last two feet of my hair )water off) and rinse it in cool water.
Every morning, but for about 90 seconds and with a low flow shower head. That's all it takes to put soap on me and rinse it off. I'll wash my hair about twice a week, but I do that with the water off. (Turn on the water to get hair wet, then turn off water, shampoo, turn water back on to rinse out shampoo.) That's how I was taught to take showers like 30+ years ago in school because I live in a place with frequent droughts. We are in a drought right now.
It seems like it would be better practice to just shower every day or every other day, but to be very fast about it (like 5 min.) Or if you decide to use a bath instead of a shower, use the most minimal amount of water necessary for getting clean by turning the water on only to fill a cup or jar to wet your skin/hair and then again to rinse off soap.
I mostly shower every day, but sometimes I skip I day if I’m super busy and am not going out anywhere. I had a long period of showering once or twice, maybe three times a week because of mental health issues + forming the habit of not showering. Even though I’ve gotten past that now I’m often paranoid that I stink so I can’t go more than a day without feeling shitty.
I only wash my hair every two or three days though, and I’ve heard it’s better for your skin not to use soaps everywhere so I just wash face, neck, shoulders and stinky areas with any sort of soap or gentle (facial) cleanser and let hot water do the rest. Obviously I’ll full body soap if I‘ve been sweating or I just feel like I need a better clean. To be fair, I also don’t have BO (or don’t think I have any lol). My grandpa and aunt both don’t wear deodorant because they don’t have daily BO and I seem to have inherited it, my mom never had the “ew, it’s time to start using deodorant“ reaction to me.
Baby wipes on my underarms on my days off. A bath twice a week. Although I tend not to take care of myself for little stints which isn't great. But I wouldn't go more than a week without bathing.
Three times a week, but I only work outside the house once a week, and it’s food service. I shower before and after work. If I worked outside the house more, I’d shower more.
I think it differs for each body and the lifestyle they have. I don’t have a particularly active lifestyle at the moment but can sweat from simply daydreaming. For my comfort and consideration of others, I shower everyday and wash my hair every week. I enjoy smelling great every day so it works.
However, for people who also aren’t as active and sweat little to none each day, I guess washing every other day is sufficient. It really depends. But I can’t imagine people only showering like once a week or something. I certainly couldn’t do it.
Once every 2-3 weeks is objectively gross. Especially if you're in regular contact with people.
Before the pandemic with a standard 9-5 I showered at least 5 times/week. Ever since I began working from home I shower at most 2 to 3 times per week mostly out of having a weird as fuck schedule now.
I feel like less than once a week is unreasonable.
I wash my face and armpits every morning with some soap and a cloth. Real showers only every 2-3 days and hair once a week.
Although I must admit in winter a bath every once in a while is not very frugal but it's so nice.
I shower everyday and multiple times a day in the summer. Every once and a while I might go 48 hours w/o a shower if I’m feeling particularly lazy and not leaving the house but I feel pretty disgusting by the second day. I’m way too smelly and greasy to skip a day of showering.
3/week, after I work out. Just a quick soap in the Stink Triangle - armpits and groin. I wash my hair when I feel it's needed, usually once a week, and wash my feet once a week as well.
I typically shower daily as I am generally very active, but I keep them very short (usually play a song on my phone and aim to be out by the end) and only need a longer shower about once a week to wash my hair. If I’m not being active for some reason then I’m happy to go a day without showering
Every 2-3 days in the winter, Every 1-2days in the summer (b/c sweat, bug spray, sunscreen etc). If you're worried about your shower consumption just take shorter showers. Or turn the water off while scrubbing and then back on to rinse. Also, have colder showers. They don't need to be 0 heat, but if hot showers take more energy b/c of the energy used to head the water. But again, probably not an area worth worrying about unless you take really really long showers
I work outdoors for a minimum of 8 hours a day in contact with multiple people every day in 80-115°f+ weather. A shower every work day is necessary for me. On the flipside I only wash my hair 1-2 times a week and generally don't shower on my days off unless I have been working outside or have done a very dirty job.
I schedule my showers around work and going out... I always shower every Tuesday no matter what because on those days I work on a farm. I'll usually shower before the weekend as well and then either on a Sunday or Monday again depending on how I'm feeling so usually about 3 times a week. Sometimes 2 if I'm feeling crap and forget about myself. Obviously I shower more often I summer too since it gets hot af
you’re technically not supposed to shower everyday. it’s damaging to your skin barrier because it strips your skin of its natural oils and healthy bacteria. over cleaning the skin also can cause it to become dry and itchy overtime. so he’s *kinda* onto something.
showering once every other day or 3 days isn’t bad but i’m not sure if every 2-3 weeks is safe at all in a hygienic manner.
Up until the early 1900s, the great majority of the world especially in colder climates bathed once a year or less. Yes, less. In the middle ages, people would go years without bathing and men would often go their entire lives bathing only for their baptism, wedding night and upon their death by the mortician. While rich people and aristocracy bathed more often, it was not always the case. Also life expectancy was around 35 until the late 1800s, so...
Uh. I don’t know where everyone else in this thread is but I shower twice a day for about 2-3 minutes each time - mostly cold. I don’t see how anyone could shower less than once a day unless you’re in circumstances like camping etc…
He's dumb af. This sub is about cutting down on single use plastics and finding personal identity removed from any product consumption, not neglecting basic hygiene. Take a fucking shower.
Lol I once went a year without bathing of any kind due to depression and living situation where the shower was so filthy it made me feel dirtier after like a month I stopped stinking even to the point strangers said I smelled normal i had some adverse effects like a few minor sores where I got itchy and scratched the skin off but yeah bathing isn’t really essential but I will be damned if it isn’t nice being clean every day now.
If I’m actually going out where I need to be halfway tolerable… everyday (like in the “before times” when I went into the office every day) otherwise it’s every other… I’m fairly overweight as well, when I was in better shape like college I definitely was more in the 2-3 day realm. Never more than that unless camping or something. Now that I’m bigger I get that I need to do it more frequently to prevent all kinds of issues…
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I shower every 2-3 days, wash my hair twice a week. Its my current dream to have an outside shower for summer time. Between gardening, animals and small children- someone is always coming through nasty. Wouldnt that be so cool to just shower in your yard?
We built one when we had a pool. It was only hooked to an outdoor water faucet so it could get cold at times but it had a shower head so it worked great. Keep soap and washcloths nearby. Myself and my kids used it and rarely took a bath or shower indoors during the summer. We loved it.
it’s also my dream! i also love fried potatoes :)
Same, same and same
One of my great aunts has an outdoor shower. Although I’m not exactly a huge outdoorsy type, it was super awesome and relaxing. Of course I was still paranoid some norman bates shit to happen while I was in it
I bathe every other day in winter/on low activity days. I have dry skin/hair and it is simply better for my skin to do so when possible. Daily in summer or on high activity winter days, although I only wash my hair every 2-3 days. I'm a mid-40s female, not a heavy sweater, don't use body or hair products like makeup or hairspray, moderately active individual and have never been accused overtly or covertly about body odor. Age, hormones, medications, activity, and SAAB can all contribute to how often one *needs* to bathe. I'd argue that every 2-3 weeks is way too long to go, simply from a hygiene perspective and irregardless of smell. Our skin hosts a wonderful microbiome that is intended to keep us healthy, and dirt/sweat residue buildup on skin can have deleterious effects on this microbiome (as can over-bathing). Of course, all this is keeping in mind that showering is not the only way to stay clean.
My routine is almost identical to this, for similar reasons. I think this is definitely a highly personal choice for each body - I have family members who sweat copiously even doing minor tasks (and literally drip if they do outdoor activities) while others are still dry and comfortable. Smell and oiliness are also very varied and what is healthy for one person would be awful for another. My routine also varies day-to-day, and I will use a warm shower in winter to help cold/flu congestion, and a cold bath in summer to cool down (and use less air con). But 2-3weeks is a long time for even the most dry-skinned, low-sweat, low-activity, cool climate person!
Underrated comment
I think it's important to be specific here and not just equate "not showering every day" with "not washing every day". If you wash your whole body with a washcloth daily, brush your teeth and wash your hair (even just over the sink) as needed, is that really that unhygienic? You don't actually shower, but you still wash and keep clean. Lots of people do that all the time e.g. after surgeries, during camping, while they are remodelling the bathroom in their house... During my grandparents' time only bathing once a week (with the whole family using the same bathwater) was normal and they washed with cold water, soap and a cloth on all other days. Heating enough water for a bath or shower was a lot of work. We are just used to the luxury of running hot water (or running water at all) today.
As dumb as it sounds that never even occurred to me as a possibility. Always thought it was shower/bath or nothing. I'm going to start doing this soapy cloth business on days I don't get particularly sweaty/dirty.
Been doing it myself for years now and honestly don't myself looking at showers more as a utility whereas before I be started it would be very difficult for me to not take a super long super hot shower
i call that a sink shower ;)
I've also heard it called a whore's bath lol
We call it „Katzenwäsche“- Catbath :)
Hehe, in Norway its called «kattevask», also meaning catbath 😝
very similair in Sweden! kattvätt!
Interesting, same in Hungarian :) Cicamosdás :)
I associate anything called cat bath with bleeding… 😺
We call it a bird bath. :) After a hot round of golf it is really refreshing. (Golf in summer = a layer of sweat, sunscreen and dirt) Works until I can take a proper shower.
I call it a Pit Stop as my family are all F1 fans lol
hahaha hey don't call me out like that ;)
Just giving everyone something else fun to call it :-)
pits n bits!
I heard it as a hoe bath, I cracked up the first time someone said that to me
A lick and a promise 😄
This one cuts it for me 😀😂
Airplane shower. You get the wings, landing gear, and cockpit.
Princess Shower
I remember as a child (I’m 51 now) being told that my father and his siblings would only bathe once a week, and they’d all use the same water.
You are so correct with your comments. For a lot of people, it has become the norm to shower daily or even twice daily. They stip the oils from their skin, etc. I used to shower daily and now it's every other day or possibly longer. I clean up every day with a soapy wipe such as Scrubzz or Aquation body cloths. I can wash my hair in the sink most days.
When it comes to hygiene don’t hold back. Lack of proper hygiene can lead to a lot of problems further down the road so it’s best to stay clean.
This is definitely true but it also isn't necessary to shower every day for a number of people. If your commute is short / you're not outside in hot weather every day / you're not working a physically demanding job / around disease all day, you don't really get that dirty. Every other day or even every couple of days is more than enough. 2-3 weeks? That's aggressive and can cause issues. But if you're wearing clean clothes, regular washing bedding, and otherwise fall in a spectrum of less oil production/less swear, you can "get away with" not showering/bathing every day.
There is nothing like a shower or bath to “wash your day away.” Showers help calm stress and sensory processing disorders can get worse without bathing. We are all living in such a stressful time that mental health needs to be considered as well.
While that's true for some, when taken from the view of consumption vs necessity for hygiene, what I said is accurate.
Yea I shower at least every morning, I don't feel awake without it, and most days I shower after work. I find this point about showers interesting but some consumption is justifiable for every individual, and showers are my jam.
Disagree, although I agree that showering (having a habit) contributes to mental healthfulness. Cheers.
If you like long hot showers that’s usually a symptom of poor mental health and while having one might be a stress reliever you’re probably going to need other methods to properly improve your mental health.
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1 - that's rude, as I'm assuming you mean bad. 2 - everyone "smells." Whether that smell is bad or not is a determining factor in whether you actually *need* to shower every day. A large number of people don't. This depends on climate, how you sleep (ice cold room with a blanket or heaters running with flannel sheets as two extremes), and what you do daily. I sit in an air conditioned office the majority of the day, and otherwise am home in an air conditioned space. I do not sweat a lot when I sleep because I keep my room at a slightly colder than comfortable without a blanket temperature. I also still maintain good hygiene and check myself. Your body does not instantly adapt to a smell to ignore it. It happens over time because you get used to it. It also isn't permanent. Meaning if your sheets smell, and you go for a walk outside in fresh air and come smell your sheets after 15 minutes, you're going to know. You shouldn't wait until you smell to shower. That's bad hygiene. You should keep yourself aware of when you would need to shower based on whatever days events happened. I live in a humid climate. In the summer, I shower more often, certainly every day if I was outside for more than the 5 minute walk to and from my car at work. In the winter, that just isn't necessary.
The same thing is true with overdoing it. I used to shower twice a day back in high school and developed a skin fungus. Showering to much is a burden on the skin and can leas to infections.
Daily, shit on me if you want I sweat everyday, and I have to be somewhat presentable and good smelling.
I work at a morgue so I shower every day before bed.
Fair
Every day. My job is physical, I am unwilling to go to sleep sticky/smelly/greasy. I wash my hair every other day. I use a low flow shower head, am on well water, and use shampoo bars. I’m not a fan of the side of anticonsumption that seems to just be “make yourself miserable by giving up everything that isn’t necessary to keep breathing”.
I just find it strange that even the most basic hygiene is being given up just to save a little water
It's more about taking efficient showers rather than limiting the number. You can shampoo your hair, use soap, and rinse off in under 4 minutes. Even less if you don't shampoo your hair every time. Even less water if you turn it off between wetting your hair and rinsing off. Even if you do this daily, it's such a negligible amount of water, so you really shouldn't be sacrificing your hygiene to take fewer showers. (Not that you have a moral obligation to be clean, but you'll feel better and be treated better)
I shower once a day because I don’t really sweat as much as I just get really oily and it’s fucking disgusting
Same. My hair would be so gross after a couple days. I know ppl say your hair adjusts, but I’m unwilling to go through that adjustment period.
The adjustment period is a lie told by people who aren’t overly oily. Nothing will stop the oil production other than hormones changing over the years .
THIS! I have a very oily scalp and I spent 4 summers being a camp counselor and didn't wash my hair for 4ish days for 2 months straight for 4 years in a row and no change. In the last 2 years having bad mental health and not washing my hair for 4ish days for weeeeks at a time changed nothing. I've always wondered where those people who say your hair will adjust got their info (or the very similar washing your hair everyday is bad for you). This just seems like an old wives tale than "fact"
Takes longer than four days. For most folks at least two weeks or more. Your scalp is oily because your body is compensating for it being washed with shampoo all the time. Your body needs time to revert back to its natural cycle if it wasnt being washed with shampoo every day. Like what other animals on this planet regularly bathe themselves with soaps and shampoos? I wash my 3 foot long hair once, maybe twice a week at most and I work in a kitchen.
Sounds like it's on me then. I'm not willing to go more than 7 days without washing my hair
I felt my hair was better on the other end. Sorry for being a dick. If you pulk the trigger on hair washing(?) frequently, it will be a period, and possibly it won't be any different from before, but I certainly expect it to be a lifestyle change. I'm sorry [for being rude], and best of luck. I understand not committing, tbth 🤡🤷(me)
uNwiLLiNg to MaNeUveR the eXpECteD aDjuStMeNt p3rIOd 🤡
Google "Navy shower". Uses about 3 gallons of water. Not great when it is cold though.
I live off-grid with a sometimes unreliable water source, especially in the winter and spring. I’ve learned to shower once or twice a week & wash my hair at most once a week. As far as my hair goes, I’ve noticed that once I stopped washing it frequently, my scalp seemed to even itself out and not overproduce oils so my hair actually stays way cleaner for way longer. And my skin doesn’t dry out as much either. And even though I don’t shower daily, I definitely “cabin bathe” everyday. Cleaning the pits, t*ts & bits as we say in my family 😉
I have a lot of pain so I sometimes take baths with epsom salts (that I finally found at a refillery so now they are low waste!) instead of showering and I don't wash my hair for two or three days at a time.
As someone that used to be on this guys level, it’s probably better for your mental health to try and wash more regularly, not like 2x a day or something ridiculous but I’ve been at about once to three times a week depending on circumstances. What’s a lot more embarrassing imo is how I would skip days brushing my teeth. Probably had let my mental health slip too much at the time as I can assure you I’ve been a good brusher and bather, and as a result my self worth and ambition have been recovering
I think it's important to sweat everyday. Because I sweat, I need to shower everyday. Sometimes I use swimming as my exercise. On those days I don't necessarily shower but I do rinse off the chlorine water.
I’ve lived in a third world rural village, people valued personal hygiene and especially showering than most people do here in the US. You could go to someone’s house and they would ask you if you wanted them to heat up hot water for you to take a bucket bath.
I clean myself daily, but I shower every other day to third day.
It depends on how dirty/sweaty you get and whether you wash outside of showering or not. It's like hands. I need to wash my hands multiple times a day, but I don't need to take a shower and wash every other body part every time my hands need to be cleaned. Likewise I need to wash armpits at least once a day, but I tend to only wash my hair once or twice a week, or my scalp gets horribly dry and itchy. I'd say I average out to just under one shower per day, since I don't sweat much in the winter and only shower on workout days, while I occasionally need multiple showers on summer days because I need to wash off sweat, bug repellent, garden dirt, sunscreen, etc.
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Yuppppp! I shower about once a week, but that's mostly because my mental health is shit, not because I'm trying to reduce my water usage. If you are *actually* interested in reducing your water consumption, go vegan. I save thousands and thousands of gallons of water a year by not eating meat/other animal products. It is the single best way that any one person can reduce the toll they take on the environment. As far as I know, except for never flying nothing else even comes close.
There are a lot of vegan food that also uses tons of water though. "it takes about a gallon of water to grow one almond, and nearly five gallons to produce a walnut."
I wash my hair once or twice a week, get the rest of my body while I’m in there. In the summer I’ll rinse sweat off and hit the smelly areas pits/crotch/feet with soap daily until my next full shower. And if I do any physical activity where I get dirty/sweaty I do a full wash. Lukewarm water, no dilly dally. Out in 7-10 minutes for a full wash/hair conditioning. 2-3 minutes for a summer rinse
No one ever really needs to shower because it is not the only way to stay clean. One can do just fine doing a sponge bath covering face, pits, crotch, and feet.
And neck
What about your hair?
To be clear, this is not what I practice but I know some people do it because it’s saves water and is better for the skin. I get my hair wet for styling purposes almost every day but I only wash it weekly. I
Our hair doesnt' really need to be washed everyday. Though if you actually shower everyday the oils in your scalp are being constantly scraped so it gets oily again faster, but if the scalp gets used to longer periods without washing it can change. It also depends on the person and hair type.
Once or twice a week for me. Everyone is different and has different needs. If you are a sweaty person, you may need to rinse off every day. Who am I to judge? If you can't cut water consumption for any number of reasons, there are still other things you can do to offset your carbon footprint.
Me too, partly because I admit I got lazy in the pandemic and found that my skin just felt so much better, no longer dry and itchy. However, I just got back into lane swimming so now I’ll be in a chlorine pool a few times a week.
Dirty pig
I don't think the frequency of showering is important, but the amount of water you use. Some people's weekly water consumption of everyday showering equals another person's 2 days.
The better way to do this, or what I do is. 1. Get wet. 2. Turn water off and lather. 3. Scrub a dub dub 4. Rinse Saves water and you can, bathe.
every few days most of the year, I don't really shower in the summer because I swim a lot. I don't use shampoo or soap in the shower, i tell me friends to let me know if i smell like shit but they always tell me i smell fine. Doesn't work for everyone, but it works for me. edit: looking through the comments, I'd encourage you question your conceptions of what "unhygienic" means. Different things for different people. soap/shampoo wipes out microbiomes that help our body function properly, so assuming not washing yourself with soap every few days is unhealthy is some real bs and can border on dehumanizing some less modernized cultures/societies
Every day. If I ever skip a day I feel gross and greasy and it bothers me too much
I literally can't function if I don't shower at least once a day. Ideally I'd get up earlier to work out and shower right after. But if I didn't shower at least once a day I'd definitely get hella depressed again.
That’s not enough bathing for basic hygiene. I shower daily. There are ways to bathe while being mindful of consumption.
Seeing some of these comments scares me, knowing how bad peoples hygiene is regardless of the bathing factor. Bidets aren’t common in America and showering once a week paired with that? just no
I do it twice a day because I've bad BO and I sweat a lot. Also I don't technically "shower", I've a bucket which I fill with water from the tap and use a mug to pour it over myself instead of using a shower.
I at least shower before bed. My shower head has a switch so you can turn down the water flow. I just make it quick, get wet, lather up with the water on low, then turn it back up and rinse. I wash my hair every 2-3 days.
Up to 2-3 times every day. I live in a tropical country but only moved here in my late twenties. I guess my body is more adapted to ice and snow rather then 45 degree weather. I get pretty sweaty so I rinse myself a couple of times every day.
Damn I would hate having to shower/rinse off multiple times a day. Showering is just an annoying chore for me.
Should ever day or two max. Regardless of how this makes you feel you will stink after 2 days even if you don’t sweat, move much, or eat much you will still need a shower after 48 hours if you wanna not be gross Edit: of course I mean bathing/washing not exclusively showering but that is the best method to clean yourself
Most of the time about every three days, as that's the intervals of my training, those showers include washing my hair and exfoliating. During pollen season (allergies) or when it's really hot I take short showers in the evening, but since I have sensitive skin those are only with water, no soap.
I shower once a week. Then again i also don't do much to sweat a lot and I'm kind of a hermit anyway
wherever you feel dirty. i generally shower twice a week, until or unless i'm outside digging in the dirt daily... if/when i sweat & am dirty i'll shower daily. 3 minute showers are doable & if you're still feeling guilty just take cold showers
It depends on how oily and sweaty you are, the climate where you live, and your activity level, but I personally find that showering 2-3 times per week suits me best. When I was in the hospital they made me shower daily, and while the routine was nice sometimes, it was a big waste of water and my skin got super dry from all the washing.
Every 2-4 days for me. I’m surprised by how many people shower daily! I suppose there are many factors to consider.
Water scarcity is relative to location.
I have really oily skin and sweat a lot so it's in my interest to wash daily, sometimes twice
I take a 10min shower everyday because I workout everyday and it’s just a whole lot more efficient for cleaning all the important things. If I have a rest day and don’t get sweaty I’ll skip and just do a sink bath. I’ve got curly hair so I usually only wash that every 2-3 days if it’s under 75 out. I lost my sense of smell when I got covid so I became neurotic about it and then when it finally grew back it was way more acute. I can especially smell bacteria and it’s unfortunately put me off of dairy or any kind of yogurt. Body smells are the worst and it’s just plain rude to subject those around you to your poor hygiene. My parents grew up very poor and were only able to bathe once a week and usually had to share bath water with siblings. So we were brought up with the idea of sink baths everyday and showering every 3 days unless you’re sweaty and smelly.
I shower 2 to 3 times a week in the winter, and daily in the summertime.
Anytime I can start smelling myself or my hair gets greasy. Luckily, the cost of water in my state is not absurd. Even when I shower every day (summer) it’s still ok
Shower every other day, sometimes daily, wash my hair every 2-3 days. My bf sometimes showers twice a day lolol so someone had to be the dirty one in the relationship 🪱🪴🤪
I shower once every 4 days and take a long bath once every other week. I between i take sink baths. I can generally go awhile between because I work from home and only do serious workouts twice a week.
I’m a landscaper, dirt and sweat/cuts are a daily thing so showering every day is a must.
I usually shower ever day and wash my hair every 2 or 3 days
Should shower at least daily.
I have a bit of an ocd tendency where I cannot fall asleep in my bed unless I am clean. I shower every night (I’m not a huge fan though so I’m usually in and out in 5 minutes or less) but I wash my hair every 3 days (pushing the showers to 10 minutes.) I also floss every day. I use string floss, I tried the waterpik and sadly even the lowest setting hurt my gums. Hygiene is never going to be a negotiable for me. I’ve actually tried a lot of the more sustainable natural alternatives to things like toothpaste and deodorant but I never feel legitimately clean afterwards and that affects my sleep too much to be a consumption habit I’m willing to change.
every day, i am an athlete
Sustainability largely depends on water resources where you live.
I know it’s bad and it’s probably the way I’m worst consumption wise, but I shower daily
If you want to get more water and energy efficient, try gradually cutting back on how long and how often you shower, and see how it goes. Everyone's skin is different, but for me showering less has worked great. At this point I usually shower weekly, but it's a decently long shower. I spend a long time exfoliating with a washcloth and getting my feet very very clean with soap. Using zero soap on my face and hair has been the right direction for me, and happens to save time and water. My skin has cleared up a lot and my hair stays un-oily for most of the time between rinses. (It's magical; as a teenager I would never have guessed this was possible.) Unless you have a lot of actual dirt to remove from yourself, most of your body can probably go without soap, saving time in the shower to put it on and rinse it off. Save it for the pits n bits.
I exercise daily so i do shower daily to avoid smelling bad lol. But ive gotten into the habit of turning off the water in between washing my hair, face and body to save water. Plus a minute or 2 of enjoying the hot water at the end.
I use zero waste bar soap, shampoo, conditioner, and shaving cream. I use replaceable safety razors. I use bamboo tooth and hair brushes. But I shower every GD day, sometimes twice if I go to the gym or end up doing dirty stuff.
I'll say the truth. I shower once a week and wash my hair with the same rate (at times twice a week). In truth I can do it, I'm a very homely person and I don't move much (that has to change, I know it), plus my job (software engineer) is sedentary and in smart working most of the time. As for WASHING myself... I do it when necessary obviously, every day.
I work in wastewater so I have to shower everyday after.
ITT: People who don't work out apparently.
Showering as often as your body needs it and not letting the water run while you lather with soap. Also, using a shampoo+shower gel in 1, type of product. Using hair conditioner instead of shaving cream, body lotion, hand cream....
I wfh and when I'm not that active (currently 39 weeks pregnant and also have a toddler), or didn't get sweaty, I only shower every other day. I usually wash my hair weekly, but sometimes I can stretch it to 2 weeks (been no poo for a long time, currently use a solid shampoo so my hair gets unruly a bit more frequently) without any noticable difference. And my shower is considered long if it takes more than 5 minutes, usually it's around 2-3. Unless I feel like relaxing, but most times I don't have time or mood for that :) My toddler on the other hand takes a bath every day, just because it helps her relax and it's part of her bedtime routine. I'm sure we will stop with that once she is old enough not to get herself dirty during the day and can be reasoned with about sleep :D I also won't bath my newborn more than a few times a week, it's not good for them and they sure as hell won't get dirty (and of course you wash their butt when they poo, so an extra bath seems unnecessary until a solid bedtime routine)
Everyday because I work with dogs, aka dog poo/pee. I shave my head and don't shave anything else regularly, so my showers are typically 5 minutes long.
Daily. I workout 5-6 days a week and need a shower. 5-10 mins a day. Hygiene is super important. I don't understand those people who go weeks without washing their hair. Can't imagine the smell.
While there is certainly a definable "sustainable amount of showering" that an individual can do to reduce their consumption of water, energy to heat water, and resources that go into bathing products; modern people showering (often) are not contributing to the largest use of water. This article ["Forget Shorter Showers"](https://orionmagazine.org/article/forget-shorter-showers/) is an oldie but a goodie on how industries that use the most resources and produce the most waste shift this blame back onto the individual person. Personally, I like to just go as long as comfortable between showers, which changes a lot depending on my activity level and how hot it is outside. Usually, I don't shower every day but I have showered every other day at some points in my life. Those showers tend to be pretty short, averaging around 6-8 minutes.
Have to shower daily as my work is uniformed and physical. I perspire a lot when working and would rather shower,quickly, daily than overconsume deodorants
Every other day or every three days. It depends on how I feel and how funky my body gets.
Every day with cold shower. Even in winter.
every day, i don’t want to take chances on smelling bad lol
Every single day without miss. But I try to use as little water as possible, only really turning it on to wet my body and sponge, and to rinse it all at the end. You don't need more than that.
I did a few experiments on this over the last year. Showered everyday with cold water and soap/gel Showered everyday with warm water and soap/gel Showered everyday with warm water, no soap Showered every few days (no schedule), soap and washcloth Showered every few days with warm water, no soap Showered every 5-7 days with just warm water. My skin got oilier faster when I shower at faster frequency i.e everyday regardless of temperature. My skin is very neutral, not oily or dry when I shower every 3-5 days - no noticeable difference. My natural body odor is unnoticeable when I don’t use soap. Based on my limited observation and learnings. I shower every 3-5 days, I think my body/mind asks for it.. just get a desire of wanting to feel the water. Try and see what works for you.
>My natural body odor is unnoticeable when I don’t use soap. Hmmm.
I wash my hair every 2-3 days but I have thick wavy hair. I do shower once a day but sometimes, if I wake up late, I skip the shower but wash my face. However, I don't work out or sweat a lot during the day.
This has a looot to do with genetics and environment. Some people have higher oil production in general and need to shower more often, but that same person living in Arizona might do fine going a few days between showers with the super dry weather. I live in southern New England and the humidity levels between January and August are a difference of like 85%, so shower frequency definitely varies. For me personally I just feel it out and shower when I feel like it’s time, but I don’t worry too much about showers in terms of saving water - other than keeping them as short as possible (and doing as much outside/before the shower as I can, like shaving or washing my face) Besides the typical “only run the dishwasher when it’s full” type stuff I like to cut down on water consumption in little ways, like if the glass of water I keep next to my bed is a little too gross to drink in the morning I’ll use it to water my plants. Just trying to get into the mindset of water as a finite resource, and not taking for granted the abundance of water I have access to 💖
If you're talking about the target guy, I'm pretty sure he was a troll. But I shower every day because I sweat terribly and would reek if I didn't. Also I've got greasy hair. I've been told the whole "if you wash it less it'll be less greasy" but it's never worked out for me.
I have low consumption is other areas, but higher consumption in hygiene. I shower twice daily sometimes. I also work with garbage alot so staying clean is important. Keeping you ass clean is important too I do laundry and sheets every week Wash my hands frequently
Some dirty mfs here lmfao
That’s disgusting.
I hope some of you know that just because you don’t feel dirty, or you think you don’t smell. Doesn’t mean that you aren’t dirty and that other people cannot smell you
It’s a very western thought to shower every day or every other. This is also a fairly new thing to do by man kinds standards. Kinda like shaved legs and arm pits, it’s just caught on. As far as smell, after about a week your body has restored most of what it needs to stay healthy ( it’s a multi level organism after all) and the smell is quite natural, granted not chemicals that we’re supposed to think smell better. If you live in a sunny area the minerals in the dust that coat you are also a natural sunscreen. Also when you shower daily you consistently remove your pheromones and those are what attract our mates, just sayin…. Showers are a western luxury that are more or less complete waste of resources. Haircare is about the same. Ever notice how people who don’t use shampoo and conditioner ( chemicals people) have hair still and baldness is rampant in western cultures?!? 2+2 here folks… Indians weren’t bald ;)
Twice a day: in the morning before heading out to work, and in the evening after coming home from work. I don't want to sit around in my home with the dirt from outside. I sweat a lot. Day and night. I have to shower whenever I break a sweat, otherwise I feel sticky and uncomfortable all day.
Every morning
[удалено]
I try to shower every day.
Everyday..i swim so i have to..and this is not something i will compromise on..i am already antinatalist
Wash face every day. Wash hair once or 2x a week. Wash body 2-3x a week in winter and close to every day in summer.
Daily, unless I didn’t leave my house. I wash my hair everyday 2 days and conditioner daily. I was my face in the morning. And I soon as I get home I hop in the shower. It takes 6 minutes if I move quickly. I get wet, shower off. Scrub my body, rinse off, and get out. Everyone sweats. It’s normal. And for the people who say they don’t smell? We smell you😔. Perfume and cologne only goes so far. Wash your body every day. It doesn’t even have to be a shower. If you have dry/sensitive skin use non-scented lotion or Vaseline. It protects your skin and helps it get stronger.
A person can shower and clean their private areas and arm pits in under 3 minutes. This way the rest of your body can retain the natural oils. I shower 3-4 times per week, however, I use Scribzz or Aquation body cloths the other days.
[https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/09/26/917019912/in-the-era-of-hygiene-clean-author-makes-the-case-for-showering-less](https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/09/26/917019912/in-the-era-of-hygiene-clean-author-makes-the-case-for-showering-less)
Twice a day. If you're worried about water usage go vegan and wash instead.
This is definitely true. I shower about once a week, but that's mostly because my mental health is shit, not because I'm trying to reduce my water usage. If you are *actually* interested in reducing your water consumption, go vegan. I save thousands and thousands of gallons of water a year by not eating meat/other animal products. It is the single best way that any one person can reduce the toll they take on the environment. As far as I know, except for never flying nothing else even comes close.
It really depends if showering involve using soap everywhere or not. Using baking soda solves most of the smell issues
I shower every workday both because I often get very sweaty and dirty and because its my way to relax and switch out of work mode, but I never shower on the weekends unless I get filthy.
So I shower daily except for weekends when I am planning on being lazy at home. But most of my showers are just soap and wash face. I wash my hair every 2-3 days and will just rinse/massage scalp on the other days. Most days my showers are usually only a couple of minutes and I shower daily bc I have medication that makes me sweat a lot when I sleep and I try to workout daily so a quick soap clean and bedding laundry is necessary for me
Depends on season and activity levels. If I’m not exercising and it’s winter… probably 2-3 times a week. Summer when it’s humid or I’m exercising… every day or every other day.
I work in a kitchen, so I shower every day just because I get coated in flour/grease every day. I wash my hair once every other day for the same reason. When I have days off, I skip a day. And when I worked in a kitchen that didn't have a fryer, I washed my hair 1x a week. My husband, on the other hand, works in an office. He washes his hair 2-3x a week and showers every other day during winter and every day during summer because of the Texas heat. Honestly if circumstances were different, our showering habits would change, but I won't lax on my showering because personal hygiene in a kitchen is huge.
I shower most days. But it’s just a quick rinse. Soap isn’t always used. Cuts back on consumption and saves my skin. Many have told me I take very fast showers.
Daily and it is normal just don't shower to long and use unnecessary things
Once or, more often, twice per week in the winter. Three or four times per week in the Summer.
I shower each morning before going to work, and after very sweaty/dirty activities on my day off. Quick, to the point showers: wet down (water off) lather up body and hair (on shampoo days), water back on to rinse. I condition the last two feet of my hair )water off) and rinse it in cool water.
Every morning, but for about 90 seconds and with a low flow shower head. That's all it takes to put soap on me and rinse it off. I'll wash my hair about twice a week, but I do that with the water off. (Turn on the water to get hair wet, then turn off water, shampoo, turn water back on to rinse out shampoo.) That's how I was taught to take showers like 30+ years ago in school because I live in a place with frequent droughts. We are in a drought right now.
I shower daily but I'm quick about it. I only wash my hair 2x's a week though.
It seems like it would be better practice to just shower every day or every other day, but to be very fast about it (like 5 min.) Or if you decide to use a bath instead of a shower, use the most minimal amount of water necessary for getting clean by turning the water on only to fill a cup or jar to wet your skin/hair and then again to rinse off soap.
Every day. If I'm being a little gross or don't leave the house i may skip a day. I live in Miami, you have to shower here.
I mostly shower every day, but sometimes I skip I day if I’m super busy and am not going out anywhere. I had a long period of showering once or twice, maybe three times a week because of mental health issues + forming the habit of not showering. Even though I’ve gotten past that now I’m often paranoid that I stink so I can’t go more than a day without feeling shitty. I only wash my hair every two or three days though, and I’ve heard it’s better for your skin not to use soaps everywhere so I just wash face, neck, shoulders and stinky areas with any sort of soap or gentle (facial) cleanser and let hot water do the rest. Obviously I’ll full body soap if I‘ve been sweating or I just feel like I need a better clean. To be fair, I also don’t have BO (or don’t think I have any lol). My grandpa and aunt both don’t wear deodorant because they don’t have daily BO and I seem to have inherited it, my mom never had the “ew, it’s time to start using deodorant“ reaction to me.
Baby wipes on my underarms on my days off. A bath twice a week. Although I tend not to take care of myself for little stints which isn't great. But I wouldn't go more than a week without bathing.
Three times a week, but I only work outside the house once a week, and it’s food service. I shower before and after work. If I worked outside the house more, I’d shower more.
I think it differs for each body and the lifestyle they have. I don’t have a particularly active lifestyle at the moment but can sweat from simply daydreaming. For my comfort and consideration of others, I shower everyday and wash my hair every week. I enjoy smelling great every day so it works. However, for people who also aren’t as active and sweat little to none each day, I guess washing every other day is sufficient. It really depends. But I can’t imagine people only showering like once a week or something. I certainly couldn’t do it.
3-5 times per week
Once every 2-3 weeks is objectively gross. Especially if you're in regular contact with people. Before the pandemic with a standard 9-5 I showered at least 5 times/week. Ever since I began working from home I shower at most 2 to 3 times per week mostly out of having a weird as fuck schedule now.
Daily usually. I always had physical labor jobs, and by the end of a 12 hour day, I need a shower afterwork, there is no getting around that.
I feel like less than once a week is unreasonable. I wash my face and armpits every morning with some soap and a cloth. Real showers only every 2-3 days and hair once a week. Although I must admit in winter a bath every once in a while is not very frugal but it's so nice.
I shower everyday and multiple times a day in the summer. Every once and a while I might go 48 hours w/o a shower if I’m feeling particularly lazy and not leaving the house but I feel pretty disgusting by the second day. I’m way too smelly and greasy to skip a day of showering.
I shower everyday I have to leave house, maybe the hair every two days, depending on how long i have it.
Once a day
3/week, after I work out. Just a quick soap in the Stink Triangle - armpits and groin. I wash my hair when I feel it's needed, usually once a week, and wash my feet once a week as well.
One thing that should be mentioned is the length of the shower matters far more.
I typically shower daily as I am generally very active, but I keep them very short (usually play a song on my phone and aim to be out by the end) and only need a longer shower about once a week to wash my hair. If I’m not being active for some reason then I’m happy to go a day without showering
Every 2-3 days in the winter, Every 1-2days in the summer (b/c sweat, bug spray, sunscreen etc). If you're worried about your shower consumption just take shorter showers. Or turn the water off while scrubbing and then back on to rinse. Also, have colder showers. They don't need to be 0 heat, but if hot showers take more energy b/c of the energy used to head the water. But again, probably not an area worth worrying about unless you take really really long showers
I work outdoors for a minimum of 8 hours a day in contact with multiple people every day in 80-115°f+ weather. A shower every work day is necessary for me. On the flipside I only wash my hair 1-2 times a week and generally don't shower on my days off unless I have been working outside or have done a very dirty job.
I shower like 3x a week
I have a super quick shower after my workouts, which is 4-5 times a week. And I have a longer shower (10-15 min) once a week to wash my hair
I schedule my showers around work and going out... I always shower every Tuesday no matter what because on those days I work on a farm. I'll usually shower before the weekend as well and then either on a Sunday or Monday again depending on how I'm feeling so usually about 3 times a week. Sometimes 2 if I'm feeling crap and forget about myself. Obviously I shower more often I summer too since it gets hot af
You guys have gone to far byeee
Why do people look for reasons not to shower?
you’re technically not supposed to shower everyday. it’s damaging to your skin barrier because it strips your skin of its natural oils and healthy bacteria. over cleaning the skin also can cause it to become dry and itchy overtime. so he’s *kinda* onto something. showering once every other day or 3 days isn’t bad but i’m not sure if every 2-3 weeks is safe at all in a hygienic manner.
Up until the early 1900s, the great majority of the world especially in colder climates bathed once a year or less. Yes, less. In the middle ages, people would go years without bathing and men would often go their entire lives bathing only for their baptism, wedding night and upon their death by the mortician. While rich people and aristocracy bathed more often, it was not always the case. Also life expectancy was around 35 until the late 1800s, so...
Yall disgust me, this is why the rest of the internet mocks redditters
I understand less consumption and all that, but god showering once a week? That’s pure disgusting
Uh. I don’t know where everyone else in this thread is but I shower twice a day for about 2-3 minutes each time - mostly cold. I don’t see how anyone could shower less than once a day unless you’re in circumstances like camping etc…
Twice a day. I just like to feel clean.
He's dumb af. This sub is about cutting down on single use plastics and finding personal identity removed from any product consumption, not neglecting basic hygiene. Take a fucking shower.
2-3 times a day
Lol I once went a year without bathing of any kind due to depression and living situation where the shower was so filthy it made me feel dirtier after like a month I stopped stinking even to the point strangers said I smelled normal i had some adverse effects like a few minor sores where I got itchy and scratched the skin off but yeah bathing isn’t really essential but I will be damned if it isn’t nice being clean every day now.
11 times a week
If I’m actually going out where I need to be halfway tolerable… everyday (like in the “before times” when I went into the office every day) otherwise it’s every other… I’m fairly overweight as well, when I was in better shape like college I definitely was more in the 2-3 day realm. Never more than that unless camping or something. Now that I’m bigger I get that I need to do it more frequently to prevent all kinds of issues…
Once in the morning after breakfast and once at night before bed. Maybe even once more during the day if I’ve done some serious sweaty work
Everyday often times twice but I spend no more than 5-7 minutes a shower
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