The 11^th commandment, mostly for the male triathlete: thou shalt shave thy legs.  So here it goes.

If you do it right it should be safe and easy with little to no after effects.  If you do it wrong, skip steps or rush the process it may not work out so nicely.  If you don’t like our guide you can use this alternative method.

Okay gear you’ll need;

• Razors.  Yep plural.  We wouldn’t recommend disposable razors, but go for the more expensive cartridge razors and buy a pack of replacement blades.  Gillette Mach3 Turbos (or better) have a good success rate for the furrier legs- Schick Quattros are okay, but barely last one leg a piece.  If you use dull razors there is a greater risk of ingrown hairs and razor burn (which is when the hair gets pulled out a little while it is cut).
  • NOTE If you’re pretty secure in your manliness you could even use a Lady Venus, the narrower blade width is better! So the more macho you are the more feminine the razor, better make that a lavender or pastel blue one to make sure.
  • Clippers; make it way easier and faster for furry dudes, and dudettes.

• Shaving cream or gel: We recommend shaving gel for sensitive skin.  Shaving products with added moisturizers can clog your pores more often and lead to rashes in hot weather or those areas that get cooked when working out (think bike short padding = diaper rash)
• Good tub or shower stall with enough room to get the leg your working on out of the water flow.  You need to let the gel sit on the leg long enough to soften the hairs.  Good water flow is needed to rise out the razor pretty often (every 2-3 strokes is best).  If you’re super furry, 400 psi should clear the razor.  And if you didn’t pay attention earlier- a clogged razor will shave unevenly and put you at risk or cuts and pulling hair out. That was your last warning dumb ass.
• Exfoliant:  You may wan to consider an exfoliant before shaving (i.e. Neutrogena (for men) facial scrub).  The cheap stuff has huge grains as the exfoliant, so if you want to save money on this just go to Kit’s beach and rub sand all over yourself or use a bit of sandstone.  Same as your face, if you gently clean the oils from the skin there is less risk of it clogging the pores.
• A shower puff thing, you know those mesh fabric pompom things?  Get one.
• After shave balm: an essential step to keep you comfortable.  You can use traditional stuff (i.e. Neutrogena (for men) “razor defense”) or use PFB Vanish which is amazing for reducing razor burn
• … a few band-aids and disinfectant until you get the hang of it.  If you’re really dumb, a needle a thread to stitch up the nasty wounds
• A dark towel; dark navy or red is best until you stop slashing yourself, the blood doesn’t show as much

Timing

• Shave 36-24 hours before you plan on racing.  Doing it the night before will take forever and be stressful.  Who wants to race with razor burn and band aids?Sure it will feel soft and silky, but if other competitors are evaluating your performance that way… you’re probably not in an ITU, Tri Canada or TriBC sanctioned event!
• You can use the clippers earlier in the week, then save the final step for say just before the race
• Allow 45-90 minutes for the first try, seriously!
• You may have to deal with razor rash more frequently after shaving 12-24 hours before swimming in heavily chlorinated pools.  Who knows why, maybe related to treated pool water drying skin out faster?

Step by step;

1. Use the clippers first
   • Make sure you have a garbage bag or lined bin close by.  No one likes the “I killed a hamster” look to the bathroom (except maybe Steven King); fur and blood everywher… yeesh!  Guys with partners- this may be divorce material so clean up the crime scene well!
   • An extension cord on the clippers is useful.
   • Ignore the attachments those are for trimming hair, you’re shearing. Baaaaaa!
   • If you look carefully the hairs usually grown / lie from head to toe and middle of a limb to edges (the grain).  Maybe in prehistoric times (for many guys, but not all) it helped rain run off a thick pelt?
   • With the clippers, cut the hair against the grain moving in slow steady strokes.
   • Keep the strokes to 5-10 cm long to start.
   • Start at the knee and work up
   • Then go to ankles and work up.
   • Resist the temptation to start high and go down to finish off smoother- it rarely ends well until you know the territory! Wait until you go ‘Pro’
   • You may need to go back again over tricky sections.
   • Be extra careful behind and in front of the knees and around the ankles.  Bony areas or where tendons are close to the surface are hard to shave due to the tight angles.  When you do your knees, flex to stretch the skin before you cut the hair.
   • Hamstrings are very tricky and you may need to put your foot up on the toilet and bend through from the front.  Not easy!
   • If you go above mid thigh be very, very aware that the clippers can savage your scrotum and groin something nasty.  Enough said, you were warned!
2. Shower in good hot water.  This will soften the hairs nicely and you’ll need at least 5 minutes to get this softening started.  While this is going on soap your legs well and lighty exfoliate the target area.  We suggest exfoliating one leg at a time as you will sweat a little while shaving the other leg,
3. Get the target leg out of the flow of water,
4. You can begin shaving with the razor from knee to mid-thigh then work from the front to outside then inside and end with the back.  Watch out as the grain of the hair may change on inner thigh and hamstring.  Can’t say we’ve seen any surveys, but it’s a high “rash risk” area if you don’t watch it!
5. You may not want to go above mid thigh to begin with- make sure you go 5-10 cm above the edge of your shorts.  The “hair shorts” look while easier can be a… self confidence test at the pool if you wear a speedo…  Shudder!
   • If you get carried away, watch out for shaving around your stomach as this is a another huge “rash risk” area
6. You may need to re lather as you move from upper to lower leg.
7. After your thighs, go to the ankles then work up towards the knees
8. With the razor be extra careful around knees and ankles and shins.  If the razor stops, don’t pull harder!  It’s not a freakin’ cheese slicer! Stop, then back it down gently.  Laugh all you want until you do it, almost every guy I know who shaves as a scar or two the first year; Achilles, shins, ankles- you’ll see…
9. Use the pompom thing we suggested with a little soap.
10. Dry off carefully, don’t rub but dab, watching out for cuts (remember that the dark towel? Yep.)
11. Apply the after shave balm or PFB stuff, especially around knees, front and back, glutes if you went higher- hip flexors and any areas where the skin flexes a lot.

There you go, enjoy the feeling!  Please post any suggestions or comments to any blog post and we’ll update the content of this page!