During my teenage years, like many young men I would avoid showering nude at the gym/pool showers and would do the towel dance in the changing rooms. When swimming, I would wear baggy shorts and keep them on to shower.
When I was in my older teens, I would occasionally try to shower naked to prove to myself and others that I was 'mature' and couldn't care less about being naked, but I felt uncomfortable and self-conscious.
In my early 20s, though, something clicked and all of a sudden I found myself walking naked to showers, not a care in the world, and showering happily in the buff in the communal showers.
As I've grown up more, I've come to appreciate and enjoy the nude environment of the locker room. Difficult to explain, but it feels like an intrinsically masculine thing to do and is part of a right of passage.
Admittedly, I do have naturist tendencies anyway so that helps. I know a lot of Brits are brought up to be very modest (prudish?) about nudity!
Safe to say, though, when I visit a new swimming pool and hear the dreaded words 'changing village' - complete with single, private cubicles for changing and showering - my heart drops.
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