Can you shave your face in under a minute? Try these tips from army men

Whenever Mitchell Moses, 40, a one-time drill sergeant now living in Fort Knox, Ky., sees a guy shaving at Planet Fitness, he thinks: “Man, if you were a soldier you wouldn’t be taking that long.” Indeed, men in the military must shave at lightning pace, sometimes twice a day. A hint of stubble is “the first thing that will get you yelled at in the morning,” said Matt Semple, 27, a former Navy officer. “They really drill in: ‘Wake up and shave,’” said Semple, who’s pursuing an M.B.A. at Boston College.

Shaving is “part of maintaining discipline in the ranks,” said Adam Linehan, 40, who deployed to Afghanistan and is now a welder in Brooklyn. “We would trade stories and tips in the unit [about] how to do it better and faster,” said Stephen Wu, 36, a former paratrooper who’s now a senior barber at Fellow Barber in New York.

Even if you don’t have a drill sergeant barking at you to lose the scruff at 6 a.m., you likely still want to complete this tiresome chore as fast as possible—without cutting up your face or suffering razor burn. So we sought timesaving shaving hacks from a bunch of army vets and other grooming pros.

First, some time goals. Moses said it takes him about a minute and 15 seconds to shave these days, “from the time I put the shaving cream on my hand to the moment I rinse my face.” He reckons guys who lather up daily could feasibly wrap up in one minute. Overachievers might look to Semple, who says he needed only 45 seconds to lose his stubble when in the Navy.

To rival these times, you’ll need the right razor. Wu thinks an electric model yields the most efficient, painless shave, at least for guys like him with sensitive skin. While serving in Iraq, he used a Wahl foil shaver, which he says works best for very short stubble (less than 2mm). These days, however, he favors a BaBylissPro. To help the electric razor move more smoothly and prevent irritation, he suggests sprinkling your face with Clubman Pinaud barber powder beforehand.

Those going the manual route, as most soldiers do, should grab a three-blade razor, says Wu. Such models offer precision while not aggravating skin. (Razors with four or five blades can banish hair faster, but more blades increase friction, upping the risk of skin irritation.) Andy Camp, 27, a former serviceman now based in Philadelphia, swears by the three-blade Gillette Mach3. Camp, who with Semple co-founded the razor-cleaning startup Razor Rinser, shaves every day in 90 seconds. Released in 1998, the $8 Mach3 is “still the easiest razor to use,” said Mark Herro, the founder of Sharpologist, a Texas-based shaving website.

In his army days, Semple would often shave immediately post-shower. For speedy results, either do that or just wipe your face with a hot, damp towel pre-shave, says Julien Howard, a barber in Astoria, Queens, who’s known as the Vélo Barber. (He heats wet towels in the microwave, “like a burrito.”) A warm, moist face means “your pores are open, your hairs are relaxed—it’s a bit easier [for the razor] to glide,” he said.

Another tip to prevent a blistering-fast shave from leaving a red rash: Grab a shave cream in a tube or jar, not an aerosol can. Versions in tubes and jars often contain fewer chemicals and lubricate skin better, says Herro. Wu likes Claus Porto’s tube of oil-enriched Musgo shave cream.

Herro recommends using a shave brush with most creams, since it creates a better lather than your fingers do. To avoid that fuss, Camp uses a tube of Kiehl’s Ultimate Brushless Shaving Cream with menthol, designed to apply by hand.

Two passes with a razor should suffice. Most guys interviewed said that following the grain—recommended for sensitive skin—yields smooth results. During his 20-plus years of service, however, Alex Tressler found shaving against the grain truly erased hair, and did so faster, due to the enhanced friction. “I don’t get a five o’clock shadow, I get a five-minute shadow,” said Tressler, who had to shave twice daily. “Every second counted,” added the 42-year-old vet, who lives in Chester, Va.

Rinse with warm water and then again with cooler water to help reduce irritation. Then daub on a serum to rehydrate your face, says Howard. (Clean and dry your razor after each session to keep it sharp, says Camp—a towel wipe will do.)

Though a dry shave—or one using only water—is surely the fastest route to hairlessness, precisely no one recommended this method, which can leave your face raw.

“I figured that out quick when I had to go back to shave once at lunchtime,” said Tressler. “It ended up being a disaster.”