My 12 Reasons to Hike Naked

1.It is the best clothing to wear on a hot day. I once read an article in a health and wellness newsletter about the best clothes to wear when exercising in the heat. It was not their conclusion, but it was obvious after reading the article that the best clothing for exercising in the heat was your skin, with sunscreen if out for a bit. Heat is best dissipated by sweating when it is not held on your body by clothing thus dont wear clothes. Forget the expensive high-tech wicking stuff. Let the system work as it was designed. 2.It is how we evolved (corollary to #2). There is evidence that we evolved to be endurance runners so that we could run down our prey, not with speed but by out lasting them. See Christopher McDougalls book Born to Run for an enlightening discussion of this, including an example of it being done. One adaptation associated with this was becoming the hairless ape, able to dissipate heat better than our prey. We could kill them just by running them to heat exhaustion. We evolved to be naked runners, and thus naked hikers. 3.We muffle our largest sensory organ. The skin is our largest sensory organ with more nerve ending that any other sense. Think about how sensitive it is. You can feel the lightest brush of a feather. Sometimes you dont even need to be touched to sense something near you, just the movement of the air is enough. In fairness, this is one reason to cover up if the environment is hostile, but would you go for a hike in the wilderness with ear plugs or blinders? Exposing all you skin to the environment connects you to that environment in the closest possible way. And yes, there are times went you need protection, but if you can hike in a tee shirt and shorts, you can hike naked. The sun on a naked body is more warming than a tee shirt, but you also cool better (see #1). 4.Spiritual connection. At the most basic level we are a collection of elemental particles. Lets call them Elementals. Everything on earth is made of these same Elementals, and only very small differences in how they are arranged account for the diversity in macro forms we see. Particle and quantum physics tells us that our Elementals are not static or solitary. They may be entangled with other Elementals in our world or even other dimensions. This entanglement is a way we are connect outside of our form at a very basic level. We may be connected at an Elemental level to every tree and rock around us. Through quantum interactions, at the Elemental level, we may share Elementals and energy with adjacent media. I dont know about you, but if I am trying to connect with Mother Earth, I would rather be sharing that energy with the natural environment I am trying to connect to, not some manmade fabric. Clothing is a spiritual barrier if you are trying to commune with Mother Earth less is better none is best. 5.Another evolutionary adaptation. Vitamin D is vitally important. The list of issues associated with deficiency is huge and includes, skeletal diseases, metabolic disorders, cancer, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune diseases including most likely MS, infections, and cognitive disorders. In modern society, most people do not get enough without supplements in their food, e.g., milk, or vitamins. Yet, it is one of the easiest vitamins to get for free. Just step out into the sun and let your body make it as we evolved to do. And there is no question about if the vitamin D you make is finding its way to your blood stream and if it is the right form of D. Of course there is a flip side to this skin cancer. 6.Awareness of your environment. When hiking naked, you will likely slow down. By wearing heavy hiking boots, pants, a shirt, and who knows what else, you can pretty much just plow ahead and through whatever is in front of you. If you are naked, you often need to be more deliberate, which unless you need to be somewhere, is a benefit. Here again, you connect with nature better if you slow down and become more aware of your environment. I wear minimalist walking shoes on my naked hikes further increasing contact with nature. I would go barefoot if I could, but I am not there yet. 7.What you need (or dont need) to hike naked. Obviously, what you need depends on where you are going. You should never be unprepared. However, on a good day all you need sunscreen, a water bottle, and probably shoes. For short hikes, you might be able to do without some essentials, but Ive not been able to do a hike of any length without those things. It is minimalism. A note on shoes, I like wearing Vibram Five Finger shoes. They take some time to get accustomed to, but I feel that it is close to my feet being naked as it can be while still protecting them. This approach also slows me down, but is really good for strengthening your feet. I have MS and am forever turning my right ankle in hiking boots. In Five Fingers, I dont have that issue. Here again, Christopher McDougalls book Born to Run has a great discussion on the benefits of minimalist foot ware. 8.Need to cool down? Hiking naked and need to cool down on a hot day? Hop into a creek or lake. No need to stop and strip down, just hop right in. On a hot day in the spring, a snow bath is incredibly refreshing. This is so refreshing and effortless if you are naked, that you dont need to be too hot to justify it. If the sun is out it only takes a couple of minutes to warm up again. This is another reason I like hiking in Five Fingers, if they get wet, they are fine. I usually, just hike right through marshes and streams without worrying about my shoes. 9.Hiking naked mentally challenges you to become more comfortable with nature and yourself. The first-time hiking in the buff is likely challenging for most people. However, I also know that for most people, they get comfortable with it surprisingly fast. Before you know it, you are hiking along not even thinking about being naked, and I think it is because of that being connected to nature thing, you are just more comfortable with nature in general. If you can shed your uncomfortableness about being naked outside, it is good for your confidence and psyche in general. That said, for the first time you may want to be somewhere where a.) nudity is accepted, or b.) you are very sure there are no other people around. I am still quite uncomfortable with the idea of being seen by people who would object to my nakedness. 10.Naked hiking is hiking. This may be the most obvious and lamest reason I have, but it is an important one. A day hiking is better than a day setting at the computer writing lists any day. The reasons for why hiking is just good for your mental and physical health is a whole other list. I like to hike, but I prefer to hike naked. 11.Heck it just feels good. When it comes down to it, without analyzing it like I have, hiking naked just feels good. It may be because of the reasons I have listed, but does that really matter? If it makes you feel good and you arent hurting anyone else enjoy. For me the hardest thing about a naked hike is the end of the hike. And by that I mostly mean having to put my clothes back on. If I have to put them on before I get to the car because I am back on a busy trail, that is torture. I have to admit to driving home naked, because I just couldnt let the day end. 12.Hiking is a way to experience the benefits social nudity. Usually I hike alone, not because that is the way I prefer it, it is just hard to find likeminded people. However, being naked with others outside has a lot of benefits that can be found in many discussions of naturism, and I will not elaborate here. Ill just say that spending the day with naked people of different ages, races, sexes, body shapes, and etc... is healthy for the mind and social barriers disappear. If spending that day hiking, all the better. Finally The Downsides are mostly manageable. This may not be a benefit, but there are downsides. However, most are manageable. Bugs I pick my location and season to…