Internet Culture

Washing your legs in the shower has ignited a fierce Twitter debate

How did we get here?

Photo of Stacey Ritzen

Stacey Ritzen

wash legs in the shower

There’s never been a definitive answer to the question of how often human beings should bathe. Some people may take showers twice per day while others shower only twice per week, but it generally boils down to an individual’s lifestyle and skin type. What is not usually on the table of discourse, however, is what body parts one is supposed to wash while showering—hair not included, obviously, because that’s why god invented dry shampoo.

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But that’s precisely what happened when a since-deleted tweet set off a firestorm of a debate on Twitter, when a woman admitted that she doesn’t wash her legs in the shower. The argument for not washing your legs in the shower is evidently the theory that the soapy water runs down and cleanses your limbs by proxy.

A very scientific poll was even conducted, with a disturbing 13 percent of people (out of over 40,000, at the time of this writing) conceding that they do not, in fact, wash their legs in the shower.

https://twitter.com/Arpwel/status/1126594900055793671

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The thing devolved into a whole other level when journalist Sophie Weiner admitted that she only washes her armpits and face in the shower, and only showers once or twice per week.

I think this probably also has to do with the fact that I don’t exercise much,” she added. “I was sweating a lot I’d prob want to shower more. But you also don’t need soap to get off sweat! Your body is fine without constant soap.”

https://twitter.com/sophcw/status/1126647888635785216

Weiner went on to associate cleanliness with class and privilege, which is where things took a sharp left turn:

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https://twitter.com/sophcw/status/1126650420250562560

At any rate, the ensuing madness has inexplicably turned into class and race issue, with Black Twitter being firmly on Team Wash Your Damn Body Parts:

https://twitter.com/theNCMmm/status/1126703681204670464

https://twitter.com/BigHPrivateEye/status/1126722505878589440

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https://twitter.com/baldbaefong/status/1126730074223333377

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And of course, the debate was ripe for a variation on the “I don’t know who needs to hear this” meme.

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But at least a few Caucasians were brave enough to come forward and take a pro-leg washing stand:

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https://twitter.com/modernistwitch/status/1126690255308877824

https://twitter.com/AdamWeinstein/status/1126861395612643330

https://twitter.com/THEkarliehustle/status/1126854540362493952

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While there is no definitive ruling on whether or not you should wash your legs in the shower, the biggest takeaway here is that this website continues to be free:

https://twitter.com/pattymo/status/1126689303105380352

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