Do any of you guys out there know how to keep yor hair realy healthy.Im growing my hair out down to my back like I had it two years ago.But two years ago my hair always was dry and shitty looking.Is there anything that you guys do to keep your long hair helthy looking other then using shampoo
deep conditioners... olive oil treatments... not washing the hair unless it is really needed. Not using any "products" or using any heat styling equiptment.
I don't use shampoo. I wash my hair a couple times a week with very dilute baking soda solution, and then rinse with even more dilute lemon juice. My hair has never been healthier, even considering I bleached stripes white (I have naturally very dark brown hair) before dying it purple last year. I think you should check out the body care forum, there's probably several threads on this topic already.
Don't use shampoo! I use an apple cidar vinegar rinse maybe once a month to get rid of buildup and add to shine. You'd be amazed at what conditioner can do! I use Suave naturals as a conditioner wash, which basically I just use as a shampoo. And I use a ton of products and it cleans them all away. It's really awesome. My hair is still clean but much softer, more wavy/curly (which I had lost due to shampoo), and crazy shiney. Also, a bit of leave in conditioner (or just your own conditioner that you don't rinse out) does wonders! The only thing is that if you do that, you can't use products with silicone in them as they need harsher sulfates in shampoos to get them out. But other than that, conditioner gets everything. It's even gotten rid of olive oil treatments which used to take me 2 or 3 shampoos!
Mane N Tail shampoo works great....if you're not into that whole no shampoo thing. Head and Shoulders is awesome too.
make sure that you go and get a trim regularly. So many people think, "why would I get a trim if I'm trying to grow it out?" Trims keep your hair from splitting and looking unhealthy. If you don't, the ends will start to split and will generally only grow to a certain length, and then just "stop". You know when you see those girls who have fairly long hair, but it's all dfferent lengths and it goes really thin at the ends? They didn't trim theirs. Where as the girls who always have even, thicker looking long hair went in for regular trims. There's always an exception to the rule, and some women are just lucky and don't need the trims, but I'd say to do it if you really do want it to look nice. You'll only have to go in every 2-3 months or so, and take off about an inch. Sometimes a little more if it's damaged. But try to keep the styling products and straigtening/curling irons and the blow dryers away from it. That will only enourage more damage, making you have to chop more off. If you keep it under an inch every 3 months, it will still take a while to grow out, since hair, on average, grows about 1/2 inch/month. But you'll have much healthier, better looking hair in the long run. And yes, only wash your hair as often as it really needs it. I wash mine about once a week or so and rarely brush it at all. It looks better than it ever has.
I keep my hair really healthy by not washing it all the time, but when I DO wash it (which is every other day or so because it gets greasy), I use a small amount of shampoo; like, less than what seems right for my mid-back-length hair. It keeps my hair just clean enough, without stripping out all of the natural oils. ~Nova
im a beauty student so i can go on and on about this. but yes, a bit from everything said here. DEFINITLY get it trimmed. you dont understand all the damage your hair is constantly taking in. ideally, youd get a trim every 6 weeks, 3 weeks for men. shampooign doesnt damage your hair is you use the right stuff. a lot of people just buy generic 'whatever' brands that they 'trust' because its on tv/natural/smells good. if your hardcore about your hair, researching and choosing teh right shampoo will not improve your hair with using it. also, try not to color your hair and if you go swimming a lot, use a conditioner that will undo some of the chlorine damage.
Eating a healthy diet and taking a hair supplement (basically a really good multi-vitamin) along with evening primrose oil works for me. I also deep condition often, wash my hair every few days, let it air-dry and wear it up most of the time (which helps prevent it from getting beaten up by the wind and other elements). Since I don't allow a lot of damage to occur to the ends, I find that I only really need a trim every six months, which is nice considering I'm trying to grow out a painfully short cut. My new hair is coming in really healthy..and fast.
Have a mother whose native american. Sorry, its just that those indians sure have some good hair genes. Thanks mom!!
here's a good article why not to use commercial shampoo... http://reactor-core.org/shampoo-scam.html Shortly after I stopped using shampoo, I gave up on the "no-poo" method. I used some regular shampoo, the kind I used to use all the time. It made my scalp itch and burn and caused lots of little bumps to appear. I'll never ever do that again. It just took some time to figure out the cleaning routine that works best for my hair and my local tap water. Vinegar didn't work at all for me, left my hair feeling slimy. Have heard that's because we have hard water, vinegar reacts with the minerals in the water and causes something like soap scum to form. eeeeeeeeewwwwwww... native american genes might also be part of why my hair is so thick and healthy, though.
Definitely teh right idea with regular trims/cuts. Ditto for not blowdrying it when you have enough tie ot let it airdry. My hair gets super frizzy if I blowdry it instead of airdrying. i use back to basics raspberry/almond for dry/damaged hair shampoo and conditioner, the stuff works like gold for me. I also have dyed/bleached hair usually since, well, Im no ta huge fan of hte totally natural colour I was given and tend to get hihglights or lowlighs done. When my hair is being particularly tangly, I use a small spritz bottle of mostly water and a little bit o fmy conditioner (shake befor eusing) as a leavin conditioner, works fabulously. Also, beware of s/c's like Pantene that dont actually a mke your hair healthy, they just put a shiny coating on you rhair that you can scrape off with a nail after like, two or three days of use. Creepy. Lastly, dont s/c your hair every day. Every second or third day is usually good enough for most hair, if that. My hair doesnt get grody until the fifth day of not washing it (well, the tips usually get wet in the shower still, but I dont bother mushing product into it)
use leave in conditioner after regular conditioner and don't wash your hair everyday also if you have a really good blowdryer and leave in conditioner the heat will be good for your hair and the negative ions from the dryer will make your hair even healthier looking.
Don't use shampoo if you don't know what all the ingrediants are in it... Natural oils are good and a lot of commercial shampoos strip the oils right from your hair... Use a natural bristled brush/comb, it will make your hair "break" less. Don't shampoo a lot...shampoo just when you really need it...the longer you let it go...the better it looks after you actually do wash it. Don't put it in a ponytail a lot...and if you do, don't use the ponytail holders with the metal part on it...it will make your hair weak in the area where the ponytail holder is...and more apt to break. To keep it out of your face, braid it in one loose braid, instead of putting it into a ponytail. Watch out for shampoo buildup...and conditioner build up in your hair.
