I'm a guy who has too much leg hair for my liking. I'm 19 and summer is here, which means lots of water parks and hanging out with friends and such. I would like to look a bit more "normal". My legs are bright white because I pretty much only wear jeans, but then that is only if you can see the skin through the hair. Anyone have some tips on getting it under control? Is too much leg hair a result of unusually long hairs, or more hairs per square inch? Would using hair clippers with a certain length guard look normal? Once I trim it, I'm going to try and get some sun to darken up my legs. If there were some way to make the hair thinner or finer that would be good too.

your best bet is just trimming with a beard trimmer. Thats what i do and get a fairly natural look. Don't go too short though, then it becomes noticeable that that is what you're doing

I used to do that before I decided to shave mine clean. Try the 3/8" inch setting first and if you're not satisfied try the 1/2" setting. It is a viable method and will give you good results. The good thing about it is you only have to do it about every 2-4 weeks. My legs are not extremely hairy though just average so you may have to trim more often.

I eventually got tired of that and decided to just go clean shaven and I have never regretted it. Going clean shaven makes the muscles look much bigger and well defined.

RJC2001

Get an electric hair clipper kit and use the 3/8" or 1/4" attachment. Or you can start with the 1/2" and go from there. Your legs should still look quite "normal" when you're done because the remaining hair is actually longer than 3/8" or 1/4" since it usually doesn't grow at a 90 degree angle in the first place.

So what you end up doing is pretty much getting rid of the curly hair ends that make your hair "mass" look thicker than it probably is.

I've been doing this with the 3/8" attachment for over a year and no one has ever noticed. Plus a tan looks a lot better now and it's not as messy to put on suntan lotion!

I do my arms too and it looks fine. I've got an electric Wahl clipper that works great and a Conair battery operated one that does not. I've read good things on this site re: a beard trimmer - Remington w/ ceramic blade? - but I'm not sure if it can leave hair as long as 1/2".

And hey, it's only hair. If you don't like it short, don't worry - it will always grow back!

i dissagree with all you,

get a rotary epilator and run it quickly over the leg,

it works the best.

totally thins out the hair, but leaves the length long and uncut

and you can thin it to your liking

I don't know what type of epilator you got.

The epilator I got any hairs over 6mm will temporary hang on the tweezers before removing the hair, however, for hairs shorter than 6mm it will take all the hair.

Tiny is trying to be funny, but he isn't.

Hey all. Good stuff here. I've got lots of hair below the waist line and I am a bit self conscious about shaving my legs completely in the midst of summer. However, I do go to the gym and see that I am a little too hairy in relation to everyone else.

I have Sterling 2 Plus clippers by Wahl but the attachments i have go s-1, s-2, s-3, s-4 etc. I know the lower the number, the more hair you eliminate, but could someone tell me what level i should be using to get the 3/8 or 1/4" that everyone seems to be recommending. Are these clippers sufficient or should I get something more advanced? Should I ask for different attachment heights at the store I bought the clippers?? Also, what level do you recommend for arm hair so i leave the hair thin but don't get rid of it all in one shot?

Good question, Cleancut1.

A #4 is a 1/2" attachment, #3=3/8" and #2=1/4". The numbers go up and down in 1/8" increments. So a 5=5/8", etc.

I use a #2 (1/4") all over, but you might want to start with a #4 (1/2") on your legs and arms and see what you think. Depending on the angle of the hair, more or less will be cut with the same attachment.

It's easy to then go to a lower number, but not so easy to go to a higher one! No need to get more attachments - you should have enough choices with the regular ones that came with the Wahl.

Those clippers should be fine. This is easy work for clippers - they are used to much denser hair on your head than on your body.

Patrick, thanks for the conversions. I figured I would live up to my name and ended up trying the #2 - it worked very well. I've been working out my legs for a couple of years now and I can finally see some of the definition. Also, I tan fairly easy so I am eagerly awaiting the sunshine to see what I can do. It appears that the hair covered my legs to such a degree that they are a little on the light side.

I think its only a matter of time before I just trim it all, but its a decent start given that I have to put up with family in the summer. I trimmed in an upwards fashion and ended up getting the hair pretty short and even. Is this the method generally used or does it even matter? Also, post-shave, I hear people using Aloe Vera Gel to eliminate itching. Any thoughts on post-shave gels/lotions that could help?

How frequently do guys generally shave the legs? For me, once every month would be great. Don't think I am ready for laser - I hear too many mixed opinions on the technologies but I am going to see a dermatalogist or two to see what they think.