shave or wax?
- Thread starter n_sumo23
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mattjf said:
Really need to be more thorough than a squirt of water to clean up a gravel rash. Vigorous scrub with a fingernail brush and antiseptic at minimum. Betadine surgical scrubs work well. Anything that is embedded in the wound will probably get infected.
The modern wound / burn dressings are brilliant. Dont know where you live but dressings like HYPAFIX, any of the plastic film occlusive dressings or the latest in burn dressings are best for "road rash". There is no reason to be plauged by scabs and hairs pulling these days.
Dressing stays on 7-9 days, soak with baby oil to "undo" it and peel off to reveal nice bright pink new flesh - no scab - no scar - hairs that survived do not get caught in anything.
Therefore no need to shave for this reason anymore.
I am speaking from experience. Crash 14 days ago and have pink elbow and butt cheek to prove that it works.
Hope that you never need the info
Cheers
Hugh
Because I was genuinely interested in why men do this. Trust me, the majority of people think that men shaving their legs is ridiculous or gay. I'm not making this up; people actually think it's bizarre for men to shave their legs whether or not they are cyclists or not.mdbiker said:
I have a better idea now. It makes them belong to part of a group. Kind of like how military people or military wannabes will give themselves buzz cuts, wannabe pro cyclists will shave their legs. I still think it's ridiculous and would look absurd in a pair of shorts.
I am not here to troll or flame the thread. I just think we need a better balance of opinion here. I am a cyclist too, and go on club rides. For the record, I have not noticed any men with shaved or waxed legs in the club yet, though we're a touring club and not a racing club. I mean, let's face it, it's bad enough that we have to wear cycling shorts to avoid saddle sores; to wear cycling shorts AND wax/shave one's legs, sorry but I just don't have quite thick enough skin to go that far. Thank you.
The hair remover simply does not work. It might work the first time you remove the hair. I used NAIR for men the first time I removed leg hair and it got ride of much of the hair. However, for 'touch-ups' it does absolutely nothing. It seems like the hair has to be pretty long and thick for it to work. So now I simply shave each time.Lepanini said:I was wondering the same thing. I was thinking about using "hair remover". Shaving every second day or so is not a plan for me. Anyone else use hair remover?
No need to shave every second day. Every week is sufficient. And I have super hairy legs.
li0scc0 said:
Veet is better then Nair. I shave (well, I Veet) once a week and don't really have any problems..
As for touch ups, if I missed a spot, the razor is the tool of choice... Touching up with a 'chemical' can burnnnn.
since you're wearing cycling shorts havent you noticed how your leg hair puffs out from your shorts and socks. that looks very silly to me. i like the sleek look, but i honestly do it for the wrecks. if you ride your bike you will go down. its not a matter of if, but when. er nurses are not gentle while cleaning road rash. add nasty ape legs to the situation and it increases the pain. if you need stitches, or have bad road rash (like a fall on a descent) they are going to shave that area anyway (ever shaved a road rash section of your leg, ouch)ABG said:
despite the fact that i do shave for a reason, i still subconsciously realize the right of passage that shaving is.
cPritch67 said:
You need to exfoliate, or scrub off some of your excess epidermis. I had some ingrown hairs and it led me to do a bit of research.
Either a coarse washcloth or a good scrub with the fingernails after soaping up did the trick for me. Maybe try it on just one leg....I am no dermatologist and do not know if my problem cleared up for some unrelated reason.
I shave, just don't think I could face the pain of waxing. The main reason I do it is the image, it just looks better on the bike.
snaps10 said:
Nurses not gentle enough! Thats why I explain the dangers of dirt in a wound, give the brush to the patient, and tell them to keep scrubbing until told to stop. Oi you missed a bit there.
Thers is so much numbness and pain shutdown going on that the brush is not felt past the initial touch. Yes it does bloody hurt but its hurting anyhow.
If hair is remaining around an area that needs stitches then the skin must be sound and can be shaved if the Dr. wants to, usually hair is all ground off. Sometimes now they use adhesive instead of stitches.
There is no need to shave an area that is going to have an occlusive dressing applied. Thats the big benefit with them. The wound and hair just need to be prefectly clean.
The days of weepy smelly dressings, ungvita ointment and 1/4 inch thick bleeding itchy scabs are gone. So really, shaving for the wound reason is now "optional"
Cheers
Hugh
Who doesnt shave legs because he would rather be out riding his bike than mucking around in the bathroom.
First shave of the year, and I use "Neat", or "Nair". I usually cake it on, and leave it on for about 50% more time than recommended. I rinse it all off, and finish it with a Gillete Mach III razor. Once a week maintenance is all I need for the rest of the year.
As for the troll who insists he needs leg hair to feel like a man, try coming off your bike at 35mph and see how messy and infected your leg/hips will get with leg hair in the way. After my first bad crash, I started shaving.
Rinsing a wound with water is about all you can do on the scene, I doubt any of us carry antiseptic on a ride. Once you are home, or in the hospital, then the wound can be cared for properly.
As for the troll who insists he needs leg hair to feel like a man, try coming off your bike at 35mph and see how messy and infected your leg/hips will get with leg hair in the way. After my first bad crash, I started shaving.
Rinsing a wound with water is about all you can do on the scene, I doubt any of us carry antiseptic on a ride. Once you are home, or in the hospital, then the wound can be cared for properly.
i think i will do what iceman did. Crash, rip hairs and skin off, think, **** that hurt, and its really infected with alll those hairs, then shave, after I learnt my lesson.IcemanYQQ said:
I just cant shave my legs yet, but I fully understand why you all do it. It does look good on the bike too. Makes you look more serious. All my rides are in the dark, so no one can see if im serious or not....
in saying that, I used to shave my arms....
Yeah, who here shaves their arms for the same reaseon, the infection etc. When you crash you also land on your arms, not just your legs (well more your elbows, but people can have hairy elbows ) So who shaves their arms? cause just from watching the tour I noticed a few pro's that have hairy arms...
) So who shaves their arms? cause just from watching the tour I noticed a few pro's that have hairy arms...
Perhaps it has different popularity in different parts of the world. The majority of the riders I ride with have hairless legs. Perhaps I look ridiculous having hairy legs.ABG said:
I am considering shaving after a recent crash. I used tegaderm a excellent transparent bandage that stays on for seven days. The transparent film worked great and adhered nicely on my hip where there was no hair. On the knee and side of my leg, I had problems with it staying on. I ended up shaving the area around the road rash anyway so the bandage would stay put. Surgeons shave the area around where they are about to cut you open. I don't normally plan on crashing and being cut to shreds but I may shave to save the hassle later. Besides it looks cool. You can the muscles in your legs so much better. You don't see any hairy body builders, do yout?HughMann said:Really need to be more thorough than a squirt of water to clean up a gravel rash. Vigorous scrub with a fingernail brush and antiseptic at minimum. Betadine surgical scrubs work well. Anything that is embedded in the wound will probably get infected.
The modern wound / burn dressings are brilliant. Dont know where you live but dressings like HYPAFIX, any of the plastic film occlusive dressings or the latest in burn dressings are best for "road rash". There is no reason to be plauged by scabs and hairs pulling these days.
Dressing stays on 7-9 days, soak with baby oil to "undo" it and peel off to reveal nice bright pink new flesh - no scab - no scar - hairs that survived do not get caught in anything.
Therefore no need to shave for this reason anymore.
I am speaking from experience. Crash 14 days ago and have pink elbow and butt cheek to prove that it works.
Hope that you never need the info
Cheers
Hugh
Exfoliation will not take effect so fast that it matters precisely when you do it.zachlail said:
If you have a problem with ingrowns, you'll stop getting new ones after you keep it up for a week or so. It will not make old ingrown hairs go away.
BTW I think I have my terminology wrong. "epidermis" is the dead layer of skin which is supposed to be there, you don't want to remove it! However, as it keeps growing you want to scrub the outside off.
I don't know much about the other stuff.
