Many women choose to workout without underwear as a way to keep things breathable down there. In my 34 years of a mostly active lifestyle, this concept has literally never crossed my mind. In fact, I have always thought the opposite in that wearing underwear will keep my lady parts comfortable, breathable and protected.

Aside from my own opinion on the matter, it is a very common thought process to ditch the underwear during a workout.

According to Alyssa Dweck, MD in a discussion with Shape Magazine, she notes that “some women prefer to go commando during running, elliptical, spinning, kickboxing, etc., which affords less chafing, less visible lines in tighter workout clothes, and gives a sense of more mobility and flexibility."

2. VPL

“I love a visible panty line” said no woman ever. In fact, despising a VPL is a common rumination among circles of women. In all honesty, panty lines are a thing, no matter how much we don’t want them. Not every woman is interested in solving the issue by wearing thongs, and it’s hard to find a fabric that is full coverage and truly line-less.

The next best option, as some would think, is to ditch the panty entirely. Especially when wearing a figure fitting pair of pants. But to be honest, it’s not only in tight clothing where you can see the dreaded VPL. You can also see those lines in that loosely fitting satin slip dress you bought a few months ago, too.

From my experience, the effort to diminish the VPL this is the number one reason that women go commando and I get it. No lines are better than panty lines.

3. GOOD FOR TRAVEL

Less underwear means more room for packing while traveling. When your carry-on bag is literally stuffed to capacity and you realize you can save a little bit of space for your shoes by taking out the couple pairs of underwear for your trip, your priorities are definitely put to the test.

Am I insinuating that shoes > underwear? Possibly.

But space-saving is a real reason that is just a minor detail from the perspective of the female traveler. Benefits to saving on space means more room for the things that will make you happy while away from home.

Additionally, the commando concept while traveling results in less laundry while mid-travel or even worse, upon returning home from days or even weeks away from a washing machine.

4. MINIMALIST LIFESTYLE

Going commando as a minimalist produces two benefits:

Cost-savings

Stuff-savings

By staying within a minimalist budget, some folks choose to save a few bucks and opt out of wearing underwear entirely. Lessening consumption is a golden rule for most minimalists, and why spend money on underwear when your goal is to pursue a life of less stuff while still saving money.

For some people, underwear is not a priority, and for a minimalist especially, it’s just more stuff. While navigating the world embracing a minimalist lifestyle, one has a lightness about themselves that creates happiness. A comfortable space is a safe space, even if that means living a life sans underwear and for women going commando.

5. FOR YOUR S.O.

Another popular reason for women going commando is to add some excitement to their relationship. It’s a fun, flirty and exciting moment when you’re on a date with your SO and you lean over to whisper that you’re not wearing any underwear. A bold move that might end up being a decision that leaves you feeling a bit breezy down there, but it’s also one that will lead to an evening of intrigue.

You can reserve this fun little trick for International No Panties Day, or if you are looking for some time sooner, you may opt in for celebrating #noundiesunday with your date.

7 Reasons Women Should Not Go Commando.

1. SKIN IRRITATION

You can expect a range of skin irritations and even some skin damage when opting to go commando. Without that protective layer between you and your pants, there are some things you’d be putting at risk that you might want to think wisely about before opting for no panties.

Skin chafing is one of them. It’s the annoying and unfortunately painful result of skin rubbing against your clothing causing rashiness and discomfort. Who wants that? This can leave your skin vulnerable to infection, and that is not a pleasant side effect of the commando lifestyle.

As if that was the worst of the skin irritation issues! Going commando can also lead to friction blisters. I’ve experienced these on my feet after wearing not-the-best-fitting shoes for a night out. Hands down, I do not want to feel that as a result of the chafing after going commando.

After all is said and done, and chafing leads to blisters, next you will find yourself with possible damage to the blood vessels. It is here during this phase where you will find blood inside of the friction blister.

2. YOUR CLOTHING WILL GET STAINED

When rocking the commando vibe, an inevitable mess of stains will end up on your clothing due to vaginal discharge. Although a completely normal part of being a woman, your clothing should not have to be compromised when lacking the proper protection between your vulva and your undies.

Stains are especially challenging when wearing light colored clothing because they will become more apparent and harder to wash out over time. Especially if you have been sitting in your pants while panty-less and building up a myriad of female discharges.

Simply put, if you want to properly maintain your stain-less clothing for some years to come, its smart to treat your garments right and opt for moisture absorbing underwear as a protective barrier between you and your clothes.

3. VAGINAL FISSURES

When there is a constant, irritating motion of clothing on your skin, painful micro-cuts can develop in the labial or vaginal areas, called Vaginal Fissures. If you are one of the many women going commando while working out, walking to work, or anything in between, you could be causing some serious damage to a very sensitive and sacred part of your body.

These micro-abrasions are painful splits, cracks and breaks in the delicate skin that you should be protecting. As a result, bacterial infections could surface, leading to some uncomfortable symptoms such as burning, itching, pain and discomfort that you would not wish upon your worst enemy.

For the most part, Vaginal Fissures can heal pretty quickly, but they're as painful as a paper cut and super annoying to deal with. Especially since they can become infected without even knowing they’re there.

4. PERIOD PROTECTION

Whether your menstrual maintenance methods involve tampons, pads or a diva cup, I think all women can agree that anything can happen at any time. Who hasn’t had their period begin a few days before planned?

It’s good to have that extra layer of protection, even if your trusted period tracker has proven to (mostly) be on point. You can run the risk of staining your underwear during a heavy flow, or even when your timing is off for changing your tampon.

During your menstrual cycle, going commando is just not practical, and it’s definitely a best practice to wear some comfortable, breathable, protective underwear.

5. INCREASED RISK OF INFECTION

UTIs, Yeast Infections, and Vaginitis are just a few of the infections that can surface after not wearing a natural, breathable pair of underwear. Many people think that going commando is the best solution to these common problems that are part of being a female. If we were to choose this option, our free flowing vaginas would be hanging out some of the more common clothing items that we wear, which are A) not absorbant materials and B) mostly synthetic.

Nylon, lycra, polyester and other elastane fabrics found in everyday clothing such as yoga pants and leggings, are petroleum or coal based synthetics. They do not have breathable qualities and each of these fabrics are a nasty breeding ground for moisture collection that leads to bacterial growth.

Do not go commando in these fabrics, especially if you are prone to infections already.

6. UNPLEASANT ODOR

Natural vaginal fluids and discharge can build up in your not-so-protecive or moisture absorbent pants, resulting in a nasty smell that starts to develop. Don’t get me wrong, vaginal odor happens, and regular vaginal odor is normal. But these unpleasant odors are gross and offensive, so don’t ask questions when you’re not invited to happy hour bowling with the crew.

Unpleasant odor is not normal, and it can be a signal from your body trying to tell you that something is wrong down there.

So if you are not putting the pieces together and you end up calling the doctor because you smell down there, don’t be surprised when it’s due to going commando.

7. MORE LAUNDRY

The more you go commando, the more you will have stinky clothes, resulting in less clothing wears per wash. Going commando will definitely up your laundry frequency, resulting in lots of water use and potential breakdown of the fabrics you’re wearing.

On average, you can wear a pair of jeans ten times before washing. That definitely feels like a good time frame because I try and stretch out the number of wears until there is a smell, a stain or if I catch a cold while wearing said clothing.

Dress suits can be worn 3-4 times before washing and natural, and cotton or linen pants can wait a few wears to be washed as well.

CONCLUSION

You don’t want to have to face any of the repercussions associated with an irritation or an infection due to joining the commando tribe. As convincing and hyped up as it may seem for women going commando with no panties, can we just agree that the negative outweighs the positive.

Sure, try and workout sans undies to see if it’s for you or even dip your toes into the commando game for a little excitement with the hubby. But if you choose to go commando, don’t let it be a regular thing.

It’s always safe to take care of yourself, and that means practicing good hygiene and choosing the right fabrics when wearing underwear. Now that we have covered the good and the bad, what is your opinion on girls going commando?