Do i really need to wear flip flops?
October 27, 2006 10:57 AM Subscribe
Will anything bad really happen if I don't wear flip flops in the gym shower?
I'm pretty new to the whole going-to-the-gym thing. My coworkers think it would be insane to use the gym showers barefoot. Besides maybe some psychological skeevyness, is there any real danger? Also, FWIW, it's a relatively new, very clean looking gym.
I'm pretty new to the whole going-to-the-gym thing. My coworkers think it would be insane to use the gym showers barefoot. Besides maybe some psychological skeevyness, is there any real danger? Also, FWIW, it's a relatively new, very clean looking gym.
Second, athlete's foot and such. Its really gross and uncomfortable.
posted by stormygrey at 11:01 AM on October 27, 2006
posted by stormygrey at 11:01 AM on October 27, 2006
4thing gross athlete's foot, which I got when I used to take showers at the gym sans flip-flops.
posted by The Gooch at 11:05 AM on October 27, 2006
posted by The Gooch at 11:05 AM on October 27, 2006
Flip flops cost ninetynine cents a pair. Athlete's foot, while not fatal, is inconveinient. Decision?
posted by fixedgear at 11:06 AM on October 27, 2006 [1 favorite]
posted by fixedgear at 11:06 AM on October 27, 2006 [1 favorite]
Is athlete's foot something men get more than women?
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 11:06 AM on October 27, 2006 [1 favorite]
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 11:06 AM on October 27, 2006 [1 favorite]
Verrucas. Eeeew. Nasty things. Also, the rubber soles prevent slipping on tiled floors.
posted by essexjan at 11:08 AM on October 27, 2006
posted by essexjan at 11:08 AM on October 27, 2006
no,tps, anyone can get it. It spreads in warm, moist places, like between toes (athletes foot) and in between legs (jock itch)
posted by stormygrey at 11:11 AM on October 27, 2006
posted by stormygrey at 11:11 AM on October 27, 2006
I only recently started wearing flip-flops to the gym shower after a couple decades of not doing so. Had one plantar wart. Have had athlete's foot forever. We'll see if it make any difference. Seems more cultural/personal than anything else.
posted by GuyZero at 11:11 AM on October 27, 2006
posted by GuyZero at 11:11 AM on October 27, 2006
Athlete's foot can progress so that your whole foot looks dry and scaly. The lesions between the toes can expose you to bacterial infections as well. If you don't wear flips flops be sure to dry your feet off very well and perhaps use alittle antifungal powder.
posted by stormygrey at 11:18 AM on October 27, 2006
posted by stormygrey at 11:18 AM on October 27, 2006
When I was in middle school I got a fungal infection that gave me horrible boils about two and a half inches in diameter on my feet. I couldn't walk, and tottered around on crutches.
All from being barefoot in the shower/pool.
And yeah, having boils lanced really sucks, as does being "that kid with boils on his feet." I'm not saying that I scrupulously avoid being barefoot now, but I am more careful.
posted by klangklangston at 11:23 AM on October 27, 2006
All from being barefoot in the shower/pool.
And yeah, having boils lanced really sucks, as does being "that kid with boils on his feet." I'm not saying that I scrupulously avoid being barefoot now, but I am more careful.
posted by klangklangston at 11:23 AM on October 27, 2006
I had plantar warts removed two days ago, which my doc said are caused by walking around public showers and pools without flip-flops. I don't really go to those places, so I think it was from a pedicure or something. Anyway, it still hurts like a mother and I can't walk well. If you can avoid them by wearing flip flops I would advise doing so.
posted by ml98tu at 11:29 AM on October 27, 2006
posted by ml98tu at 11:29 AM on October 27, 2006
Plantar warts are quite painful, sandals are comfortable. Do it.
I got them at a soccer camp once... no real cure for plantar warts, just a host of well-this-sometimes-works suggestions ranging from duct tape to liquid nitrogen or acid compounds to a whole host of other things you wouldn't even expect the derranged grandfather living in your basement to suggest.
But really, sandals, easy.
posted by eleongonzales at 11:33 AM on October 27, 2006
I got them at a soccer camp once... no real cure for plantar warts, just a host of well-this-sometimes-works suggestions ranging from duct tape to liquid nitrogen or acid compounds to a whole host of other things you wouldn't even expect the derranged grandfather living in your basement to suggest.
But really, sandals, easy.
posted by eleongonzales at 11:33 AM on October 27, 2006
Is athlete's foot something men get more than women?
Do you think men's feet are likely to be nastier than women's? I sure do.
posted by sonofsamiam at 11:45 AM on October 27, 2006
Do you think men's feet are likely to be nastier than women's? I sure do.
posted by sonofsamiam at 11:45 AM on October 27, 2006
Your feet can easily get infected, and anything that touches the moisture on your feet and then touches, say, your groin can spread that infection.
From personal experience: I would never recommend using a public shower/changing room without flip flops.
posted by rxrfrx at 11:48 AM on October 27, 2006
From personal experience: I would never recommend using a public shower/changing room without flip flops.
posted by rxrfrx at 11:48 AM on October 27, 2006
Jeezus, you're all freaking me out. I've been showering at the gym for years without ever wearing flip-flops, and have suffered no ill effects whatsoever.
For whatever that's worth.
posted by Dr. Wu at 11:58 AM on October 27, 2006
For whatever that's worth.
posted by Dr. Wu at 11:58 AM on October 27, 2006
Same here, Dr. Wu. I've never ever worn flip flops in a shower about 15 years of going to gyms two to three times a week, using showers at KOA, showers in the locker rooms at work, etc etc. Maybe I have feets of steel.
posted by spicynuts at 12:06 PM on October 27, 2006
posted by spicynuts at 12:06 PM on October 27, 2006
I started wearing flip flops a few years ago after an amazingly nasty bout of athletes foot. I had to take some pretty strong drugs to kill it that potentially can harm the liver.
posted by substrate at 12:17 PM on October 27, 2006
posted by substrate at 12:17 PM on October 27, 2006
what everybody said: athelete's foot, warts, various fungal infections. probably even foot herpes, and toe AIDS. you'll need the CSI (Las Vegas) team to figure out what the fuck happened to your feet. buy the damn flip flops already, you'll thank us
posted by matteo at 12:17 PM on October 27, 2006
posted by matteo at 12:17 PM on October 27, 2006
Are flipflops really that significant a preventative against feet infections? If you are in the shower everything is going to get wet anyway, and the foam of flip flops seems like it would be the perfect place for a fungal infection to take hold.
posted by afu at 12:27 PM on October 27, 2006
posted by afu at 12:27 PM on October 27, 2006
i always roll sandal free in the gym (which would be off and on for 10 years or so now) and I've never had a serious problem, besides the usual athlete's foot. FWIW, I pretty much had regular episodes of athletes foot *before* i frequented gym showers - I figure since I'm the dude spreading it, I'm probably safe.
Never had a plantar's wart due to being unshod, but if I did I'd get on some sandals stat -- those things suck.
posted by fishfucker at 12:33 PM on October 27, 2006
Never had a plantar's wart due to being unshod, but if I did I'd get on some sandals stat -- those things suck.
posted by fishfucker at 12:33 PM on October 27, 2006
I didn't, and now I have plantar's warts, and wish I'd read this previously.
posted by Rash at 1:30 PM on October 27, 2006
posted by Rash at 1:30 PM on October 27, 2006
My first thought was of the risk of slipping on wet tiles, not potential foot-phenomena. Athlete's foot and the like never occurred to me.
posted by nickmark at 1:35 PM on October 27, 2006
posted by nickmark at 1:35 PM on October 27, 2006
just reiterating the plantar warts thing... took almost a year to get rid of one :(
wear them
posted by blueplasticfish at 2:09 PM on October 27, 2006
wear them
posted by blueplasticfish at 2:09 PM on October 27, 2006
AIDS!!
</frist>
Pretty much athlete's foot, but I never got it. I shower every time I work out—barefoot—and have never got it. Hell, I even showered barefoot in the dorms in college, and we had all sorts of nastiness in there. I could never get cheapo flip-flops in my size, so I just gave up.
I'm still alive.
posted by symphonik at 4:14 PM on October 27, 2006
</frist>
Pretty much athlete's foot, but I never got it. I shower every time I work out—barefoot—and have never got it. Hell, I even showered barefoot in the dorms in college, and we had all sorts of nastiness in there. I could never get cheapo flip-flops in my size, so I just gave up.
I'm still alive.
posted by symphonik at 4:14 PM on October 27, 2006
I'm still alive.
Of course you are- the people who died from shower AIDS can't post here.
Seriously, though, just wear sandals. It's so much cheaper and more comfortable than lumps, bumps, and sores.
posted by fake at 5:53 PM on October 27, 2006
Of course you are- the people who died from shower AIDS can't post here.
Seriously, though, just wear sandals. It's so much cheaper and more comfortable than lumps, bumps, and sores.
posted by fake at 5:53 PM on October 27, 2006
I figure everyone else is wearing flip-flops, so I don't have to.
posted by davey_darling at 6:45 PM on October 27, 2006
posted by davey_darling at 6:45 PM on October 27, 2006
Plantar warts can be really painful. And as other posters have echoed, they are difficult to get rid of.
Wear flip-flops.
posted by anjamu at 7:05 PM on October 27, 2006
Wear flip-flops.
posted by anjamu at 7:05 PM on October 27, 2006
Stinky feet
(The original seems gone; this is the Wayback Machine's version. Not all the pictures are there, unfortunately... Or perhaps fortunately.)
posted by event at 7:05 AM on October 28, 2006
(The original seems gone; this is the Wayback Machine's version. Not all the pictures are there, unfortunately... Or perhaps fortunately.)
posted by event at 7:05 AM on October 28, 2006
I picked up a nasty case of althete's foot and can't shake it. It has spread to the top my foot and itches like hell. I tried multiple OTC remedies and home remedies with no luck. My doctor prescribed Lamisil pills and they didn't work either. Last week she prescribed something stronger but when I tried to fill it my pharmacist informed it cost $450 (after my insurance was applied!), so now I need to go back to my doc and get something that will cure me and allow me to pay my mortgage.
In other words, wear something on your feet at the gym.
posted by bda1972 at 10:28 PM on October 28, 2006
In other words, wear something on your feet at the gym.
posted by bda1972 at 10:28 PM on October 28, 2006
If I forget my sandals then I'm guaranteed to get Athletes Foot. Takes about a week to cure, since I apply the treatment religiously once I feel the itching.
I don't forget my sandals as much anymore.
I think it really depends on the gym. I've been a member of other gyms for years where I took showers barefoot (and played barefoot sports) with no fugus issues. That gym didn't seem particualrly cleaner, but it was less frequented, so perhaps the fungus died when the water dried up each day?
posted by Four Flavors at 10:31 AM on October 31, 2006
I don't forget my sandals as much anymore.
I think it really depends on the gym. I've been a member of other gyms for years where I took showers barefoot (and played barefoot sports) with no fugus issues. That gym didn't seem particualrly cleaner, but it was less frequented, so perhaps the fungus died when the water dried up each day?
posted by Four Flavors at 10:31 AM on October 31, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by unixrat at 10:59 AM on October 27, 2006