Hesketh Fletcher Gym Team

June - judging from the friends my son has for overnighters, your household and ours are not alone in our sleeping preferences.

Sam, I don't know what year you were referring to when you had your very difficult decision to make, but my experience was the same as the great majority of subscribers. Back in the mid fifties I went from a small primary school where we did basic exercises in our normal school clothes to an all boys grammar school. At the beginning of our first PE lesson we were all told to go to the changing room and ''take everything off including your pants and socks and come back into the gym wearing just shorts and plimsolls''. As we got changed some of the boys were talking and asking whether we were allowed to wear T shirts and we said no, just shorts and plimsolls. We all duly stripped off and trooped back into the gym. Some boys might have felt nervous and shy about going barechested but even if they still felt that way at the end of the lesson we were all told to go back to the changing room and take our shorts off and get in the open communal showers.Having never been naked in public before I was apprehensive, but seeing the other boys going in I realised I had no choice but to join them. We just had to do as we were told and that was how it was and we soon got used to it. We always did PE in the same kit until we left aged 18 and I thoroughly enjoyed having to strip off, especially for a cross country run and feel the fresh air on my bare chest.

Fiona
Glad to hear about nudity in your household. And that we're not alone! As said my three boys went to boarding school where it seemed en vogue to abandon pjs around about the age of12. Of course once the eldest boy discarded them so did his younger brothers. We had no problems whatsovever. Just glad when dressing gowns are worn about the house when grandparents are over!

Josh, I had a similar experience to yours in that I wanted to do PE barechested but was just too nervous and shy about it. For boys it was optional to wear a T shirt or vest in the gym, and probably seven or eight chose to go without, including a couple of my friends. Generally they were the boys who had better bodies and were therefore more confident, while I was slim and pale skinned too.
Then one of the boys who was really skinny, more so than me, joined the topless ranks and I decided, if he could do it, so could I. The problem was, I kept chickening out when we got to the changing room and I'd end up putting my top on after all. So I realised the only solution was to leave it at home, just put my shorts and trainers in my kit bag and then I'd have no option when it came to PE, I'd be forced to go barechested.
It still wasn't easy, I made a pretence of rummaging around my kit bag for the T-shirt I knew wasn't there and telling one of my friends I must have forgotten it. He just shrugged and said it doesn't matter, you don't need it.
And of course he was right, I found that I didn't! Next PE lesson I wore the same kit and the T-shirt stayed at home from then on.

Hi Steve, in your post you talked about the fact that shirtless guys were “tortured” to prove their toughness, and you’re right! I started being shirtless at home and I was very comfortable in that so that after some months I started running and going out shirtless (for example going to my friend’s house near mine one). However, one day, even if I went there always shirtless, that day my friend wasn’t alone but there was his cousin who, I don’t know why, hated the fact I was shirtless. We started arguing because he said “you do that because you want to prove your toughness” and this things but it wasn’t true. I answered that I wanted only to stay free and that yes, I was tougher than him. Maybe I wouldn’t have said this thing, because he wanted to challenge me with punches to show me how tough was him. At first he was tied to a bar and I had to punch him until he said stop. He managed to resist 9 minutes which isn’t a bad result. Then was my turn, I was tied to a bar so that I cannot escape and he started punching me. It wasn’t a problem, because I had great abs so that I resist. The problem was when he wanted to get fun doing other things, like carrying a bucket full of mud and then putting all this mud on my bare chest. I was furious but I was tied and I couldn’t escape. He also “tortured” me with other things, like oil, that made my chest very dirty, oily and smelly. Then, the cowards spit on me and went back his home, only at that point my friend coming out from his home (we were in the garden) saw me in that condition and was very sorry for what was happened. As soon as he cut the rope I shouted with my friends and went back home as I was, with everything on my chest. That is what I was obliged to suffer for loving being shirtless. I don’t know why, but he hated the fact I was shirtless

June - nude has been the default setting for night attire in our house for a number of years, and for me personally since puberty (see my post on that on one of the other threads). My son (now 13) was about about four when he decided that he didn't need pyjamas any more, but he does have, and enjoys wearing, a dressing gown.

As to the different comments, no, I wasn’t allowed a dressing gown, I never even had one but if I had had one, I am sure my dad would have ripped it of me. He was quite straightforward in many ways, I remember him telling me that I had a choice of stripping, getting ready for bed and being allowed to stay up, like my siblings, or going to bed early. Of course, I stripped down to my briefs and just got on with it. However, I would never have been allowed to sleep naked or walk around the house naked. There was a hell of a difference between being in briefs and being naked. For my dad, a boy just did not need more clothing than a pair of briefs in the evening and for sleeping but he definitely needed to be covered.
And yes John there was certainly an intention to toughen me up. I also remember the unlucky boy who wore his pyjamas for camp and didn’t have the reflex of at least getting rid of his top. Sleeping in briefs only made you part of the tough boys and boy did we torture that poor soul to prove our toughness.

Steve
My three boys were sleeping in the nude by the age of 12 each in turn. Never mind wearing briefs! They picked up this habit up at boarding school. They might wear a tshirt if the nights got very cold and I did insist they wear their pjs however when their grandparents were staying over ... lol

We had different PE teachers in different years, late 60s grammar.

By reputation one was much stricter than others, indeed we saw his cross country boys on a run, so knew what to expect. We did 2 pe lessons a week, one inside, one a run

At the start of the 2nd year we got timetables and saw his name as our pe teacher. Up to then we had been allowed T-shirt’s and plimsolls, but not any more.

Once we got to the changing rooms, we were told cross country, just shorts boys. We knew this, but it was still a shock to be made to run bare foot and stripped to the waist. No other kit allowed no matter how cold or wet it was.

We caned hard as well, always 6 strokes.

Steve, interesting comments because it was similar for me.In the 60's I akso was told no more pyjamas. In the summer not a problem, because I would not get undressed until I went to bed. However, in the winter(we had no central heating of course) I was expected to undress in the living room where we hard the open wire to keep warm. I did have a dressinggown to put on, but the worst part for me was that I lived with my dad (my mum having passed away) and also in the home was nan and a maiden aunt. So stripping down to my briefs was embarassing because we were all in the room togehter and I got into my dressing gown as soon as possible. Of course nowadays most lads wear the boxers which are just like walking about in shorts. However I prefer the briefs/slips.
In my mid teens at Secondary school we were due for our medical examine and we knew from other lads that this would include stripping and the drop & cough. Parents could attend but I don't think any did and I had to really work hard to ensure my nan that she did not need to attend(that would have been embarrassing) as dad was at work. Luckily I did go on my own.

How thing have changed. At High school my son wears track suits in winter for outside games along with a rugby shirt. There are no showers and they no longer have medical check ups.

Steve,
You had a great dad. I wish that my dad had taken my pyjamas off me and made me sleep shirtless at 10 years old. When I was 12 I went on school camp and slept in a tent with a large group of lads, my mum made sure that I packed my pyjamas. The first night away when the teacher told us to get ready for bed I had to endure the embarassment of discovering that most of the lads slept shirtless.

Not wanting to be different myself and the other non barechested lads quickly took off our pjj jackets and slept shirtless for the rest of school camp. When I got home I carried on sleeping barechested.

Steve - didn't you have a dressing-gown that you could wear until bedtime?

Interesting stories here about being made to sleep shirtless. My dad also took away my pyjamas when I turned 10 insisting that I should stop sleeping like a little kid. He had quite a go at my mother when she pointed out that I might get cold and told her (and me) that I needed to become a man and stop complaining and hiding behind her.
From that night on, my sleepwear was just briefs. However my parents had this rule that us kids were allowed to stay up after diner but that we needed to get changed and ready for bed. My little brother and my sisters changed in to their pyjamas but for me this then obiously meant briefs only. At the beginning I was quite self conscious about being the only one that had to be 'on display' but it soon just became normal. However, I was quite happy when my brother was made to join me a few years later.

James R, I'm sure you looked great topless when you fought. You certainly didn't deserve pointless comments about your chest!

I'd just turned 10 and left my kit at home. I was simply given shorts and told 'vest off" Others were given a choice to strip or not, over half my class did and the others kept their vests on to run.

Claire, James R - If my son and his friends are anything to go by, many pre-teen and teenage boys (not to mention a surprising percentage of girls, too), sleep topless, or even completely naked, at least some of the time, and a fair number seem to sleep that way all of the time.

Stuart. Your comments reminded me of my schools PE and games lessons and one boy we had. He wasn't a close friend but he was very athletic he even ran o the cross country team. Thomas he was called and he by his own choice always did PE in his shorts and nothing else. Always shirtless and always barefoot even in xc meets he was shirtless and barefoot. It was quite good actually but he was the only one that ran this way by choice unless someone forgot their kit.

Hi Stuart, yes, it happened to me. When I was 15, in fact, we started doing a lot of run due to the change of pe teacher. However he didn’t order us to strip to the waist, maybe because he knew there was someone shy like me ahah. But the problem was that, while the former teacher prohibited to run shirtless, this one gave the opportunity to do so, and so it was. My school mates were happy and took off their shirt, but I was shy and I didn’t want to do so. I have to say, I wasn’t obliged by the teacher, but by the situation. In fact, I was the only one with a shirt on. I asked my teacher how I could to do to overcome the problem and he told me that the key was not to take any shirt. So, next time, I put in my bag only shorts, and when we started pe I cannot hide that I was embarrassed, but I cannot do anything else a part from running bare chested. The funny thing was that day it started raining a lot and the other boys took their shirt on, I would have done, but I couldn’t. So the situation was the opposite one, everybody were with a shirt a part from me. But I managed to get confidence and even if I get dirty with mud, I was happy for having overtaken that problem

Claire,
I completely agree with everything that you’ve said. Most males like to exercise shirtless if they are allowed to experience it.

Did anyone have a situation with PE or cross country where they were allowed to wear shirts, shorts, socks and plimsolls, but some, or most, boys decided to strip to the waist or go bare foot ?

If so, I wonder how popular it was, thus if a boy decided to run in only shorts, did he keep doing so, one out of the rest wearing shirts/plimsolls.

My brothers were encouraged to sleep topless too from the 12yr old.Being stripped to box is a good thing, I've never seen the point in boys/men wearing vests to exercise.

From what I recall the boys themselves decided to be stripped to the waist

John, it was crazy that early morning lesson could be affected, but although tops were expected in later years it wasn't uncommon for us to break that rule sometimes and some teachers turn a blind eye to it.

Afterall, if we didn't bring a top (or at least claim we didn't claiming we thought it was an indoor lesson) we weren't prevented from going outside.

My dad made me go topless as much as possible and had me sleep topless when I turned 9. Out of school I was made to box. Nearly all lads trained topless, a few wore vests. When we were in the ring you always fought stripped to the waist regardless of your age or level of experience. I boxed from the age of 8 to 27 and some of the remarks directed at you were amusing. From not having tattoos to my naturally hairless chest but women enjoyed seeing you stripped off and see how you looked as you fought.

Hello Roy, Until the whole class stripped to the waist did the teachers decide who stripped off, like skins Vs vests?

Andrew,
I would have thought that if lads had an outdoor PE lesson in summer starting at 09.00 and finishing at 10.00 they would have been safe from getting sunburnt. It seems a shame that lads cannot enjoy the freedom of exercising shirtless during spring, summer and autumn.

Fiona,
That's what I was thinking. I went to an all girls school too, but that was well before sports bras were invented!

Certainly when I was at secondary school in the 1960's there was no specific rule about wearing or not wearing tops for PE.In the first three years-Years 7-9 -in today's parlance - a few boys stripped to the waist both in the gym and outdoors.
However in Years 10 and 11 all boys stripped to the waist. This started when a new boy joined the school and went bare-chested.The next lesson we all joined him and went stripped to the waist.
This continued into Sixth Form(Years 12 and 13).

Fiona, all is good if your son is happy with that kit. My school was mixed although PE wasn't, but your brothers kit sounds identical to ours- so I am guessing no later than 1980s?

Andrew - my son is more than happy with his present PE kit arrangements. After his years at primary school doing PE in t-shirt and track-suit bottoms, being allowed to wear just a pair of shorts for PE is his idea of heaven. He's never liked wearing a lot of clothing, and even in winter will usually go to school without his coat, with just a shirt under his blazer, and in summer, he's topless for as many of the 24 hours as he can get away with