Everyone always talks about the best hairstyles, the best hair products, the best hair care routines, but no one ever talks about the basics of hair care like how to properly wash your hair. How you wash your hair has such a big effect on how your hair looks, how well products work in your hair, and the overall quality of your hair and scalp. So if you want to know how to properly wash your hair for beautiful, healthy hair, then keep reading!
P.s. you can shop my favorite products here.
Check these out, too!
- Exactly How I Grew My Hair 5 Inches in Just 2 Months
- The Best Conditioners for Curly Hair
- Why You Need to be Using Dry Conditioner
Let’s get right into how to properly wash your hair!
Picking the Right Products for Hair Washing
Before you wash your hair, make sure you’re using the right products for you because if you’re using products that aren’t meant for your hair type, it won’t matter how well you wash your hair.
- If you have thin, fine hair try using a clarifying shampoo and a voluminizing conditioner.
- If you have thick hair use a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner.
- For dry hair, try a hydrating shampoo and deep conditioning hair mask.
- For oily hair, try a clarifying shampoo and lightweight daily conditioner.
Hair Washing Steps
1. Thoroughly Rinse Hair
The worst thing you can when washing your hair is to directly apply shampoo on dry hair. Instead, rinse and soak your hair in water until it’s fully wet because shampoo lathers best on wet hair.
To make sure your hair is thoroughly rinsed, soak it for at least 1 minute, though if you have thick hair it might take you about 2-3 minutes.
While you’re under the shower and soaking your hair, gentle lift up your roots with your fingertips to make sure that water is getting all over your hair and not just on the top of your head.
Not only will shampooing fully wet hair make lathering easy, it also opens up your hair cuticles and will make absorbing other products more easy.
Try to avoid using very hot water in the shower – lukewarm is great and cold is ideal.
2. Rub Shampoo Between Hands and Dilute
No one else I know uses this trick and they’re missing out because rubbing shampoo between your hands before apply it to your hair helps emulsify the product, lather it up, and makes it a lot easier to distribute evenly all over your scalp. I noticed that after using this shampoo trick, my hair wouldn’t feel greasy as fast as it used to. If you want to know how to properly wash your hair, this tip is a game changer!
If you use concentrated shampoos, then diluting them with a little of water before applying it to your hair will lessen any harsh effects and reduce damage to your hair.
The amount of shampoo depends on how much hair you have, but for short to medium length hair a nickel size is appropriate, and for longer hair double the amount.
3. Focus on the Scalp
When you’re shampooing your hair, the only place you should be focusing is the scalp.
Your your finger tips or a scalp massager to massage the shampoo all over your scalp, and don’t worry about the ends of your hair because left over product will clean it well enough. This also prevents your ends from getting too dry and brittle from over-shampooing.
Be gentle when massaging the product into your scalp, and remember to massage and be gentle instead of using your nails or harsh movements that can cause irritation and infection.
Massage the shampoo into your scalp for at least 2 minutes and avoid circular motions if you’re using a scalp massager because this can tangle your hair and lead to breakage.
4. Let the Shampoo Sit and Then Rinse
After massaging the product in for a couple of minutes, let the shampoo sit for another one to two minute so it can properly cleanse and clean your scalp, before thoroughly rinsing your hair for another minute to make sure all the shampoo has washed away.
One of the worst things you can do in your hair washing routine is to leave shampoo in, because this can cause product buildup, which will clog your pores and make it very difficult to grow in longer, healthier hair.
5. Conditioner
The most important rule of conditioning: never apply to your roots.
Apply conditioner to the ends of your hair and work your way up the hair shaft, making sure to stop at least 6 inches away from your roots. Applying conditioner to your roots will make your hair greasy and can clog hair follicles.
Let the conditioner sit for about 5 minutes, and in the meantime use a wide tooth comb to detangle your wet hair.
6. Rinse Conditioner
Make sure to thoroughly rinse out the conditioner from your hair to avoid leftover residue and greasiness and end your shower with cold water to seal your hair with moisture and shine.
7. Dry with a Microfiber Towel
End your hair wash with a microfiber towel and make sure to squeeze the water out instead of rubbing it – this can cause breakage.
Continue styling your hair as normal.
How to Properly Wash Your Hair – The Best Tips
Don’t Wash Your Hair Everyday
Washing your hair everyday can strip it of it’s natural oils and disrupt your scalps natural sebum production, which might just end up making your hair oilier because your scalp will get signals that there isn’t enough oil so it will produce more.
So if you’re wondering, “how many times a week should you wash your hair?” then that depends on how oily your hair is. If you have very naturally oily hair, then try to keep washing your hair to a maximum of 3 times a week and try to finds ways to prevent your hair from getting greasy and bring it down to washing it twice a week once your hair adjusts.
I have very oily hair naturally, but was able to prevent greasiness and now wash my hair once a week (sometimes twice if it feels very greasy).
Try to use dry shampoos to prolong the time between hair wash days.
Don’t Use Hot Water
Whenever you’re washing your hair, try to use lukewarm or cold water and avoid hot water.
Hot water is extremely damaging to your hair and can cause split ends, dry, brittle hair, and frizziness. Not only is hot water bad for your hair, it’s also very bad for your scalp because it can lead to irritation and flakiness.
Oil Your Hair Before Washing
I am a strong believer in hair and scalp oiling before washing your hair for shinier, softer, longer, and healthier hair.
In fact, using oils on my hair is the biggest reason why I was able to grow my hair 5 inches in just 2 months.
I hope this helps you learn how to properly wash your hair for amazing hair all day long!
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