Interested in keeping your locks long and luscious? Maybe it’s time to improve your hair-care routine by choosing products and tools that can protect your hair properly while avoiding or correcting the ways that lead to damaged hair.
In this quest for tips, we talked with the best hairstylists, nutritionists and product educators to see what are the most important measures you should take to achieve and maintain long hair.
Here are some of the most valuable tips we gathered from them:
Rule #1: Don’t over wash your hair
It is recommended to wash your hair maximum 2 times a week. Excessive washing can lead to dry hair and will make it prone to breakage. If your hair gets oily between washes, you can use a dry shampoo for your roots and soak up that excessive sweat. Also, you can choose to rinse just the mid-length and the ends, especially if you work and want to make your hair look cleaner and fluffier.
Rule #2: Never lighten your hair more than two shades
If you’re bleaching your hair with severe chemical treatments, pursuing a drastic colour change, especially during a grow-out phase you can cause great damage to your hair and scalp that leads to hair loss, breakage and scalp lesion.
Double processing is extremely dangerous and it should be avoided by all means. So, make sure you never use more than one of these chemical processes: perming, straightening and colouring in the same session.
Rule #3: Watch your ponytail holders
Your hair might not grow if you don’t lose your ponytails or braids. Tying your hair with rough accessories like rubber elastic can damage its structure and lead to shedding and breakage. Nobody says you need to give up your ponytail for good but look for a non-abrasive, gentler tie that won’t weaken your strands even if it’s providing a strong grip.
Rule #4: Don’t cut your hair unless is necessary
Stop cutting your hair if you don’t need to eliminate split ends. By cutting the ends you won’t make your hair grow longer and faster. It’s true that if you get a trim, you can reduce hair breakage that usually makes your hair look shorter or thinner but your hair will grow anyway, a quarter-inch every month. If you really want long hair, ask your stylist to only take off the minimum necessary every eight weeks.
Rule #5: Be careful with we hair
When is wet, your hair is weak and vulnerable to damage because the water is absorbed into the cortex making the strand to swell up and stretch. If you leave it soaked for too long, the cuticle begins to deform and cracks. This is why it’s never good to let your hair dry naturally. When it’s saturated with water, your hair becomes fragile and prone to breakage. Before brushing your wet hair, make sure you are detangling your knots with the fingers and only brush it from the roots to the ends. Never twist wet hair or pull it into a pony tails. Extra tension on wet hair can make it prone to breakage as it gets dry.
Rule #6: Use treatments and masks
Prevent split ends by using an intensive hair mask that can replenish the strength and moisture of your hair, especially if you have chemically or colour-treated hair. If your hair is more susceptible to dryness and breakage, a good moisturiser tailored to your hair type can hydrate your strands, protect colour from fading and keep them looking healthy. A good hair treatment can also give you UV protection and stimulate its growth.
Rule #7: Be patient
There’s no magic potion that can make your hair grow faster. Your maximum growth rate is genetically predetermined and it can only reach about six inches per year.
It’s true that during summer your hair can grow faster and that it can also be affected by factors like pregnancy, medication or stress. But mostly these external factors will throw your hair out of balance.
Proper nutrition- rich in vitamin A, D and E is the key to make your hair grow at its optimal rate. Scalp massages can also stimulate hair growth by increasing the circulation to the scalp. And if your scalp is healthy, your hair will be healthy.
But even if you do all the right things, you still need to have patience and consistency. It is important not to get disappointed after a few weeks and to ask your stylist to cut your hair.
In conclusion, if you are determined to get results, you have to make sure you improve your hair care routine by getting rid of your split ends, using only high quality styling tools, drying your hair gently, avoiding harsh chemicals in your hair, wearing better hair accessories and protecting it from external damage. We don’t want to crush your dreams by telling you long hair won’t grow overnight, we only want to reassure you that if you have patience and avoid hair damage and breakage, it’s possible to get Rapunzel-esque strands in time.
