Perhaps the notion of “naturist goals” immediately starts you wondering why naturists even need goals. Isn’t naturism supposed to be about simple pleasure and relaxation? Why would a naturist need to have “goals” – which would require planning and exerting some effort instead of simply enjoying any time that can be spent naked?
And the truth is: no, it isn’t absolutely necessary to set goals for yourself, as far as naturism is concerned. If you’re fully satisfied with being naked at home or when you visit a favorite naturist place, that fine. Enjoy it without reservation. Perhaps you don’t need to read any further.
On the other hand, you might want at least to consider why setting goals could allow you to enjoy naturism even more fully, more often, and in new and different ways.
In the first place, unless you were very fortunate to have been born into a naturist family, there was a time before you had any idea what social nudity is and why it’s so enjoyable. Then something happened that stimulated your interest in naturism. Perhaps you read about it online, you learned that someone you knew was a naturist and highly recommended it, or you learned there was a nude beach not too far away and you wondered what really went on there.
What did you do then? Unless the idea just turned you off, you had to set goals like learning more about naturism, finding a place where being naked with others is possible, and finally getting up the courage to actually go ahead and do it. Each step there represents a goal you established and then made some effort to achieve.
The truth is that for everyone who’s already into naturism there are naturist activities they haven’t yet tried and naturist places they haven’t yet visited. Once they’re aware that such things exist, they have a possible new goal to consider. Any one of these possibilities might be a very welcome addition to what they already do as naturists.
Think about other things you do “just for pleasure”. If you enjoy games like chess, poker, or video games you probably want to keep improving your scores or success ratios. If you’re into creative activities like writing, painting, or photography, you probably want to achieve more satisfying results – by your standards or those of others. Perhaps you enjoy sports like tennis or athletic competitions like marathon running. Then you probably have a goal to keep improving your skill and performance level.
Quite generally, it’s completely natural to actively pursue a goal of raising your current level of achievement and satisfaction in most activities – whether for work or pleasure. That should be no different with naturism. Setting meaningful and realistic goals is fundamental to living well.
But setting goals can do more than help you get additional enjoyment and satisfaction from a chosen activity. As with many of the examples, social nudity is by definition something enjoyed with other people. Therefore a number of reasonable naturist goals can significantly benefit naturism itself. Certain goals will help to normalize nudity and make naturism better understood and more acceptable by the general public.
As a result of naturist goals you pursue, others will become interested and involved in naturism. So there will be increased demand for naturist clubs, resorts, and other places where social nudity can be enjoyed. Basic economics holds that greater demand leads to greater supply. And that will benefit you directly, as well as other naturists. So the naturist goals you pursue benefits you and all other naturists.
Don’t worry that your contribution to naturism through the goals you choose will seem small. Every little bit helps. Only a few people aspire to be “stars” in the naturist world. But most writers don’t manage to produce “best sellers” either. Yet there’s still satisfaction in what is accomplished. That satisfaction is a legitimate objective of engaging in the activity, whatever it may be.
One thing is nearly certain. By pursuing one or more of the naturist goals suggested below, you’ll make new naturist friends among current naturists and people who become naturists as a result of your efforts.
Just before the new year, I posted a number of suggested new year’s resolutions that people interested in naturism or social nudity might make. They’re organized by current level of naturist activity. Some are fairly specific, while others are more general. Any one of them might be considered an appropriate goal. But let’s get a little more specific and consider some potential goals that will let you aim for a new level of naturist living.
No matter what your current level of participation in naturism and social nudity may be, there’s always room for improvement and reaching the next level. Taking some of these steps may be challenging – but that’s what makes achieving any worthwhile goal so satisfying. That’s why accomplishment itself gives satisfaction, besides what’s intrinsic to the activity. So let’s look at some examples of naturist goals you might set for yourself.
- Spend more time naked at home.
You may need to persuade others you live with to accept your nudity. There are probably improvements that can be made to your living space so that frequent nudity is more comfortable – such as adding curtains to windows for privacy, providing for a little more heat in certain places, or maybe adding an indoor spa or sauna. With some additional time and expense, you can also make your backyard more private and pleasant for being enjoyed naked. - Let as many people as possible among your acquaintances know you’re a naturist, and be well prepared to explain why.
This issue was already thoroughly covered here: Why should naturists be as open as possible about it?. Of course, there are probably many reasons you’re hesitant to let others know you enjoy nudity. There are also a number of reasons you definitely should tell others you’re a naturist.The article cited goes into the details, but it boils down to two things: (1) You’ll benefit by “coming out” as a naturist, since finding other naturists will be easier – quite possibly people you already know. So there’ll be more people to enjoy nudity with. (2) Naturism itself benefits when more people realize that others they know are naturists. What naturism really is and why it’s good will be more widely known. Restrictions on where naturism can be enjoyed will be relaxed. More people will decide to experience naturism for themselves. And eventually there will be more private and public places for enjoying social nudity. (Here’s an article with advice on how to “come out”.)
- When you’ve found among your friends some who accept and are unbothered by your nudity, get their permission for you to be naked during visits with them, either in your home or theirs.
The idea, of course, is to be able to enjoy nudity other than in your own home or places where nudity is customary, such as naturist resorts and clothing-optional beaches. The result is being able to spend more time comfortably naked. As a bonus, you might be able to interest others in trying social nudity as well. - Invite other important people in your life to participate with you in social nudity.
Nudity is much more enjoyable if it can be shared with others. Even if it’s not of interest to those you live with, discuss naturism with open-minded friends and invite them to enjoy nudity with you. Since you already have several things in common with such people, why not add one more thing to make the relationship even better? - Find ways to be naked while engaged in activities you enjoy, such as hiking, camping, exercising, your favorite sports, artistic pursuits, or making music.
You can do some of these things by yourself, in private. Then all you need to do is decide to be naked in that activity, and find a suitable place for it. Other things are best done together with or in the presence of others. You might, for instance, run in naked marathons or perform your talent for an audience that isn’t fazed by nudity. That may take a bit of courage – but will be even more satisfying. - Find naturist camps, resorts, or other facilities that are best suited to your personal preferences.
Established naturist facilities of this sort may not be conveniently located for you. Therefore you need to learn which offer the most for you, so they’re worth the time and expense of visiting more often. That means you’ll have to check them out in person. It’s really the only way to discover what each has to offer – both in terms of the physical characteristics and the other naturists who’re present. Obviously, almost everyone at naturist places will be comfortable with nudity – and therefore might become good friends if there are other interests in common. - Join a nearby non-landed naturist club, if there is one.
Any group of people who enjoy social nudity together qualifies as a non-landed naturist club. Such groups can take various forms. Some are affiliated with regional or national naturist organizations, such as AANR or TNS. Others may be informally associated with landed naturist clubs and resorts, or with nearby clothing-optional beaches and skinny-dipping places. Still others are simply ad hoc groups of naturists who know each other and like to get together at private homes or other suitable places. Meetup is an online service that’s helpful in organizing any group of people in the same area who have common interests – such as naturism. The Meetup site makes it possible to search for naturist groups that choose to be open for new members. - Start a local naturist club that expands opportunities for naturists in your area to socialize together.
Grassroots organizing of people who enjoy social nudity is the future of naturism. It’s really the best way for people in a particular area who like being naked at home or occasionally in landed naturist facilities to get together simply to enjoy social nudity – for parties, swimming in backyard pools, naked hiking or camping outings, or any other typical naturist activities. If there’s not already such a group in your area, you can be the one to organize it. Meetup can be used for this purpose, or naturists you already know from landed clubs or your own social network can be invited to join and share the planning and expenses of activities. - Develop creative ideas for local events in your area that allow for nudity and might interest anyone not averse to being naked themselves, or even simply being in the presence of naked people.
There are many possibilities for arranging one-off nonsexual events for people who don’t mind being naked with others or at least have no objection to the presence of naked people. The events need only allow for nudity and be of interest themselves – with no expectation that participants consider themselves naturists. Examples include visits to local museums; body-painting sessions; swap meets, yard sales, or craft fairs (on private lands); clean-up days at local parks, campgrounds, or beaches. Basically, any nonsexual activity where nudity is welcome but not required. Besides the inherent value of such events, publicity about them helps promote recognition of nudity as “normal”. - If there are nearby public places where nudity is already tolerated (e. g. beaches, skinny-dipping sites, hiking trails, park areas), persuade local officials to confer legal clothing-optional status.
Generally, you’ll need to find users of such places to work with you on this effort. The more such places are used clothesfree by naturists without interference, the more nudity will be normalized there. In turn, that will make it easier to convince local authorities that laws should be interpreted – or changed if necessary – to allow for nude use. The argument that naturism is good for local businesses and can even attract naturist visitors from elsewhere will help make your case. Local businesses and chambers of commerce may be your allies. - Join a regional or national naturist organization, and become active in it.
The organization may have online activities, such as video events or discussion forums. If not, volunteer to help provide such things. Participate in real-world gatherings and events the organization may arrange. Make an effort to persuade the organization to do what it can to encourage grassroots efforts that promote naturism. The argument is simple: the more people there are who find ways to enjoy nudity in their own lives the more people will start to think of themselves as naturists, consider joining and supporting naturist organizations, and becoming members of existing landed and non-landed naturist clubs. - Start a successful naturist blog, website, or other online tool to promote naturism.
There have been naturist websites almost since the earliest days of the Web, around 1995. Blogs appeared in 1999 (e. g. Blogger, LiveJournal). Other places for online naturist discussions (such as Usenet and Compuserve) existed even earlier. But a blog allows individuals or small groups to present their personal experiences and opinions, generally in more depth than in other forums (like Facebook groups or Reddit). Blogging is a little more work, because posts are typically longer than a few sentences. Posts are basically short essays that are better than brief comments for communicating organized thoughts. That’s important for naturism, since there’s so little reliable information concerning naturism available to other naturists or the general public.Sadly, there are fewer active naturist blogs these days than even a few years ago – probably because of the extra effort compared to using Facebook, Reddit, etc. The value to a blogger is being able to organize and communicate thoughts and experiences about naturism to others. The value to naturism itself is providing information that readers can find in hardly any other way. Probably the most difficult part of having a blog is coming up with new things to say, or new perspectives on common topics. You can find lots of suggestions for naturist blogging here: How to blog about naturism.
- With interested local artists and photographers, organize events (that may be clothing-optional for participants) to help others gain skills in drawing, painting, or photography of nude models.
Artistic representations of the nude human form – as drawings, paintings, or sculptures – go back to the origins of “art” itself. Photography is just a modern technology for the same purpose. Classes in any of these arts are available at many educational institutions and some community organizations.But there’s no reason that individual naturists can’t organize such things themselves – in private homes, at naturist resorts, in suitable rental spaces, or outdoors anywhere nudity is possible. An organizer need not have artistic teaching experience, since many experienced artists also teach (for a reasonable fee). Experienced nude models for such events can be found through teachers or places where classes are held. But any willing naturist can also model – probably for free. And there’s no reason anyone at the event can’t be clothesfree as well.
- Organize naked body-painting sessions at naturist facilities, in non-landed club events, or in private homes.
Painting on naked bodies is a legitimate art form in itself – and enjoyable for both the artist and the canvas. While there are rather few teachers of body painting, there are numerous YouTube videos that offer excellent ideas and demonstrate techniques. Check out some of those videos to see the possibilities. (Great places to start: here, here) Even if the results aren’t great art, the experience is fun for all. With enough practice, it’s not difficult to produce excellent results. Becoming known as a capable body painter is an excellent way to meet other naturists. - If you’re interested in learning and practicing yoga, persuade a local yoga studio to offer clothing-optional yoga instruction sessions.
At present, few yoga studios offer naked yoga classes on a regular basis. Many yoga teachers aren’t keen on leading naked classes – but some are. Enquire at local yoga studios for teachers they know who might hold naked yoga classes in suitable private homes or other places. Some yoga classes are now available online in live or recorded video sessions. (British Naturism has online sessions most days of the week.) Consider finding a suitable place for people interested in naked yoga to get together for video lessons. For live online sessions, teachers may be able to watch students and offer advice – and may be fine with the nudity. If you are or become skilled at yoga, consider organizing classes yourself. - Travel to places around the world that offer naturist experiences that aren’t available where you live.
If you live in most parts of the U. S. – or, really, most other countries – top-notch naturist destinations are few and far between, unfortunately. The world’s best naturist places are in countries like France, Spain, Germany, Croatia, and a few others – occasionally places you’d hardly expect. A few of these places are true naturist communities, with a wide variety of lodging and retail facilities. If you have the budget for it – or are able to save carefully – experiencing naturism in the best places is a great goal.