05/18/09
So, What's with the Shaved Legs?
Many athletes shave their legs, and most have their own reasons. Here are a few reasons to consider shaving down this summer.
Category: Your Body
Posted by: ryan
As a male triathlete, I’ve often been questioned about the motivation for taking up a personal grooming habit that has traditionally been reserved for those with two X chromosomes. Most non-triathletes assume that we shave our legs to decrease drag from water resistance in the pool. But wait, we most often where a wetsuit when we compete (in fact, there are few races in North America where wetsuits are not used), so that can’t be it. Ahh, so then it must be for decreasing wind resistance on that 180km bike ride, right? Nope. That’s not it either. Those small wisps of hair would need to be a lot thicker and stiffer to provide much of a performance decreasing effect for the average age grouper on the bike. So then, what is the reason?
Truth is, when I started in triathlon I didn’t really know. It just seemed like a rite of passage – all the guys I was swimming with shaved their legs, and one felt a little out of place without trimming down before dawning a Speedo and jumping into the pool. It can be a little daunting joining that “triathlon” club – first I had to trade in my Bermuda swim trunks for a Speedo, and now I had to break out a Bic and use it from heel to hamstring! I asked around my local club for the reasons why, but there never seemed to be a great answer. At 18 years old though, I decided to be one of the club rather than the, er, odd man out.
Years later as a sports chiropractor, I understand that there is a method to the madness. Many athletes shave their legs, and most have their own reasons.
At a national or level or higher, swimmers shave every surface that is will be in touch with the water and not covered by a speed suit or swim cap. At their level, it is all about water resistance and drag coefficients. A set of extra hairy legs could tack on an extra hundredth of a second or two, and in this world of ultra-competitive athletes, that could be the difference between finishing atop the podium or a couple of steps down.
For the triathlete, this isn’t much of a consideration with wetsuits being worn in every race. Fittingly, there are three benefits I can come up with for shaving down.
First, and probably most important, is on the bike...or rather, for coming off the bike. We’re not talking about wind resistance here, we’re talking about pavement resistance. Consider the unshaved leg when a triathlete crashes on the asphalt – as the legs contact the road, the hair gets caught between the skin and the road, causing more road rash than necessary as the hair is pulled out as the skin abrasion is formed. With shaved legs, the abrasion will still occur, but the skin slides across the asphalt creating more of a friction burn than a tearing force. In the aftermath of a crash, cleaning the wound is far easier and healing happens much more rapidly. The risk of infection also drops when hair is not around to attract critters that can hinder healing.
Reason two comes from le Tour, where riders are routinely given rubdowns to flush and relax their legs after hard days of racing. For the soigneurs doing the massage work, smooth, hair free legs are far easier to work on than furry quads and hairy calves.
And the last consideration for manscaping more than just facial hair? Psychology and vanity. It’s that simple. You just feel faster. You slip through the water in the training pool. Your muscles look leaner. The definition in your quads and calves is that much more evident as you swim, bike or run. When you feel fast, you’re likely to go fast.
So, if you’re feeling a little sluggish as the sunny season arrives, try shaving your legs for a little extra boost of speed and self-confidence. You’ll decrease your road rash and heal quicker should you come off the bike (heaven forbid!), put yourself in the good book of your local sports massage therapist, and you’ll “look” the part of a “serious” triathlete.
Your speed increases are often linked to your positive mental attitude, so if smooth legs get you thinking fast and going fast, then you’ll prove Rene Descartes right when he claimed, “I think, therefore, I am.”
Truth is, when I started in triathlon I didn’t really know. It just seemed like a rite of passage – all the guys I was swimming with shaved their legs, and one felt a little out of place without trimming down before dawning a Speedo and jumping into the pool. It can be a little daunting joining that “triathlon” club – first I had to trade in my Bermuda swim trunks for a Speedo, and now I had to break out a Bic and use it from heel to hamstring! I asked around my local club for the reasons why, but there never seemed to be a great answer. At 18 years old though, I decided to be one of the club rather than the, er, odd man out.
Years later as a sports chiropractor, I understand that there is a method to the madness. Many athletes shave their legs, and most have their own reasons.
At a national or level or higher, swimmers shave every surface that is will be in touch with the water and not covered by a speed suit or swim cap. At their level, it is all about water resistance and drag coefficients. A set of extra hairy legs could tack on an extra hundredth of a second or two, and in this world of ultra-competitive athletes, that could be the difference between finishing atop the podium or a couple of steps down.
For the triathlete, this isn’t much of a consideration with wetsuits being worn in every race. Fittingly, there are three benefits I can come up with for shaving down.
First, and probably most important, is on the bike...or rather, for coming off the bike. We’re not talking about wind resistance here, we’re talking about pavement resistance. Consider the unshaved leg when a triathlete crashes on the asphalt – as the legs contact the road, the hair gets caught between the skin and the road, causing more road rash than necessary as the hair is pulled out as the skin abrasion is formed. With shaved legs, the abrasion will still occur, but the skin slides across the asphalt creating more of a friction burn than a tearing force. In the aftermath of a crash, cleaning the wound is far easier and healing happens much more rapidly. The risk of infection also drops when hair is not around to attract critters that can hinder healing.
Reason two comes from le Tour, where riders are routinely given rubdowns to flush and relax their legs after hard days of racing. For the soigneurs doing the massage work, smooth, hair free legs are far easier to work on than furry quads and hairy calves.
And the last consideration for manscaping more than just facial hair? Psychology and vanity. It’s that simple. You just feel faster. You slip through the water in the training pool. Your muscles look leaner. The definition in your quads and calves is that much more evident as you swim, bike or run. When you feel fast, you’re likely to go fast.
So, if you’re feeling a little sluggish as the sunny season arrives, try shaving your legs for a little extra boost of speed and self-confidence. You’ll decrease your road rash and heal quicker should you come off the bike (heaven forbid!), put yourself in the good book of your local sports massage therapist, and you’ll “look” the part of a “serious” triathlete.
Your speed increases are often linked to your positive mental attitude, so if smooth legs get you thinking fast and going fast, then you’ll prove Rene Descartes right when he claimed, “I think, therefore, I am.”