For the last few months I have had an itchy back, which is annoying, as I can’t quite reach the itchy parts without first stretching and warming up with a full Yoga practice. Instead I’ve learned to scratch using the corner of a table, like a dog.

To help my skin I switched to using a non-soap body wash. If you don’t know, a non-soap body wash is one which doesn’t produce a lather and is meant to be kinder on your skin. The only side effect is that it’s impossible to tell which parts of your body you’ve washed as there no suds to wash off. You might as well be rubbing your body with an invisible gel. There’s nothing to see. How can I be clean if there’s nothing to wash off?

While the non-soap body wash helped reduce my itching I thought it would be an idea to check with my GP if there was anything else I could do. And he told me something I never thought I would hear. He said:

“Wash less.”

“Like don’t take a shower?” I asked

“You need to shower less,” he said, “washing too much can dry your skin out and you only need to shower a few times a week, not every day.”

I might have fibbed. When he asked “Do you shower every day?” I said “yes” because I didn’t want him to think I was a dirty stopout. But, with a shower every two days and often more than one shower in a day as I might shower in the morning then shower again after doing some execise, I probably do average 7 – 8 showers a week.

“It’s too much,” he said, “I can see from your back and neck that your skin is not getting enough moisture. Just use some moisturiser and don’t worry about washing every day.”

Like I said I never thought a doctor would want me to be less hygienic but, according to him, washing less is more hygienic than washing more.

Of course, if you start to smell, or start looking like you’ve spent all day jumping up and down in muddy puddles, you should still wash. Washing less may improve your skin, but it’s not going to improve your social skills if no one will venture near you.

So, if you’re currently on a training programme for a summer event and training most days, then remember that it’s okay to not wash. Not washing may be the key to getting you the start line fit and healthy (if not smell free)!