From naked gardening to Zoom yoga sessions, here’s how nudists managed to stay connected during lockdowns
- Like other organizations and social communities, naturists have shifted to a virtual platform during lockdowns.
- From nude gym classes to World Naked Gardening Day photo contests, nudists around the world have connected on a new platform.
- The associations have witnessed a spark of interest during lockdowns and continued membership growth over the past few months.
While clothing might be optional, masks are not.
As the world begins to reemerge from lockdown, people are flocking to restaurants, beaches, nature trails, and resorts.
Among those crowds are naturists and nudists, reuniting and shedding clothes for the first time in months.
People partake in the naturist way of life for a variety of reasons. Some people join to discover a newfound sense of freedom, a way to promote body acceptance, and some go nude to eliminate materialistic barriers.
“You can actually feel the weight of the clothes,” Laurent Luft, the Association des Naturistes de Paris president, told Insider. “You know how liberating it is to be without clothes, and when you actually put them on again, you feel their weight. It’s not just the weight of the clothes themself, but everything associated.”
Whatever the reason is, naturists, too, faced canceled events and postponed trips due to lockdowns and stay-at-home orders.
“You can actually feel the weight of the clothes,”
Laurent Luft, the Association des Naturistes de Paris president
For the American Association of Nude Recreation, all of its 180 clubs and resorts closed at some point this year, said Jeff Baldasarre, the director of marketing and communications.
ANP also had to close down its facilities. The association was created in 1953, and today it offers access to a complex with a pool and gym, and the group hosts external events. All of those events, from singing classes to yoga sessions, were canceled and the facility shut down in March.
“For us to be put out of action, it’s a huge punch,” Luft said. “We’re so used to having that direct social contact with people.”
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Source: Insider
Original publication 25 June, 2020
Posted on NatCorn 17th July 2020
Reference to an article does not infer endorsement of any views expressed.