I didn't how in the world to word this but basically I am mixed and my hair is generally washed only once a week. ANyway with working out as hard as I do it obviously gets washed more. I go into the gym with my hair wrapped up (as much as I hate it) but it the onyl way to keep my hair somewhat decent. I was wondering what the other ladies with similar does to keep smelling good and looking presentable. I hate putting heat on my hair every single day. I am basically flat-ironing everyday and i don't really want braids ....that is why I have a haircut I love along with color. ANy suggestions...please
Although, I am not mixed I do have the same problem as you. I wrap my hair because it is the easiest thing for me to do. My hair is getting long enough that I can put it behind my ears. But I use a mild relaxer to straighten my hair because its curly (not kinky) and it helps alot when I am exercising. When I sweat, I sweat in my head.
hmmm i dont have a relaxer and i have curly hair too but i straighten it most of the time.
i love color and refuse to get another relaxer sooo i usually wear a sew in weave. right now i do not have a weave and i am not sure what i am going to look like after a full week of how i usually work out but i try to keep my hair wrapped up when i workout really tight and leave it like that until it dries then i take it down and either flat iron the edges or put some Elasta QP glaze on them. and touch up any parts that are really bad with the flat iron. i am praying this works cause black hair and working out is a STRUGGLE!
i am hoping my hair will grow out a bit and i can go back to wearing it curly in the summer. i would do it now but this weather is too cold for a wet head ugh.
i say all the time that black women come out fighting. we fight with this hair from the day we are born till the day we die lol
I'm crashing! I have been wanting to ask this question the entire time I have been on here..lol..Okay...I am black, obviously, I get relaxers and at this point I just wrap my hair up really tight. I sweat a lot, especially in my head. I usually wash my hair twice/wk, but at this point, I can't keep doing that, its getting too dry. I am going to have to get a sew in at this point just to keep up with how much I work out.
yup a sew in works wonderfully. i had one nov - jan and feb - apr and had no issues with the gym.
have u tried shampooing just once a week. with a relaxer you should be able to. because i can wash my hair twice a week but thats cause its natural and i wear it curly when i do that. and i put massive amounts of oil in it to keep it healthy.
EXACTLY. I ususally do what Brie does and wrap it REALLY tight and then leave it that way until it dries. My hair is curly as crap if I don't let it dry flat. The problem is when I have somewhere to go after the dang on gym. It is a struggle and there have been days I didn't workout cause I JUST GOT my hair and I didn't wanna mess it up already! I guess I just have to deal with because I really don't want a sew-in. I don't feel like it...whine
I don't get relaxers that often and my hair is so thick my hairdresser said it was safe to wash it twice a week, just on that second time, don't wash it too thoroughly. I usually do well with it wrapped tight and brushed back. IDK..I am going to see her this week and see what we come up with.
well whatever ya'll come up with ....don't forget to post it here. My hair is pretty thin so twice a week is like..whoa and I only get relaxers twice a year maaaybeeeee three
Ok... I have had every hair style there is- excluding a Jheri Curl. I've had realized hair and I have natural hair now. The reality is, something's gotta give. You can't expect to have Farrah Fawcett hair when you leave the gym no matter what type of hair you got. If you wanna keep it straight, wrapping it tightly is pretty much all you can do. And please ya'll try to wear a fashionable scarf/headwrap.
Cake: I guess your options depend on what your hair texture is. Do you prefer to wear it straight? If you're ok with your curly texture then washing it isn't a big deal. I was my hair a lot, but I only was it with shampoo every week or so. I just wash it with conditioner. Conditioners still have mild cleansers, so you don't have to worry about your hair being dirty. Devsmama, this might work for you too if your only issue with washing frequently is the dryness.
Also don't sleep on wigs. You can have your hair braided underneath. They've come a long way from what you used to see your grandma wearing to church. I have a couple. I do braids and 2strand twists a lot too. I guess this is where I slip my plug in for natural hair... just let your hair do what it do. Then you wouldn't have to fight with it.
I do braids and 2strand twists a lot too. I guess this is where I slip my plug in for natural hair... just let your hair do what it do. Then you wouldn't have to fight with it.
This is exactly what I do, I usually will do a bunch of two-strand twists or braid my hair prior to working out.
I'm not a fan of the creamy crack, my life is easier that way as it relates to working out.
Beaka I guess my deal is I don't want stinky hair. I can wrap it tight and wash it once a week but i don't want sweating smelling hair....any suggestions...I need to just stop being lazy, wash my hair every five days and be done with it. I am sorry I am whining this crap be getting on my nerves. BTW my hair isn't kinky just curly and really soft. But I like to wear my hair straight...the curly looks "undone" on me
I'm white, but I have quite dry hair and only like to wash it once or twice a week. It's shoulder length and what I started doing a few years ago is sectioning off a think section all along the hairline (bangs, side, and back) and washing them every day (put hair in pony tail or bun in shower - pull that hair out and wash). That helped me a lot with it looking fresher without having to wash the whole head. Still though I know what you mean about just feeling like it might smell sweaty.
I wonder what Oprah does - she works out every day. She should have a beauty workout show that deals with all these types of problems.
This subject is one that REALLY touches a nerve with me. People of color tend to be extremely hard and unforgiving on one another about hair. To add insult to injury, doing hair isn't in my repertoire of God given talents - so I try wrapping, but I can't ever get my hair wrapped nice, tight, and straight like my hairdresser. And I wish I had the money to drop $100 every week on getting it done, but I dont. *Sigh*.
I CONSTANTLY struggle with what to do with my hair to keep it from looking a hot a** mess, especially because I sweat in my hair really bad when I exercise, and I exercise A LOT. For the last two to three months, I discovered these fake ponytail thingies at the beauty supply store. After I work out, I wash my hair, moisturize it, pull it back, and before I leave for work, I put on one of the ponytails. They keep me from looking totally crazy at work. Beaka has a good point too, don't sleep on the wigs. I do wigs also, especially if I'm going out and want to have "jazzy hair", even more so now since I'm taking a break from weaves.
I love weaves, but they don't love my hairline and edges, so I've been taking a break from them for a while.
I'd love to go natural (and believe me I've tried) - but there are some "political ramifications" behind going natural at work that I'd rather not deal with (or maybe, I'm just not strong enough emotionally to deal with).
Cakebatter, feel free to whine away - this is one of my favorite soapbox topics.
/rant off (FOR NOW)
Last edited by grneyedmustang; 04-14-2009 at 08:48 PM.
I only wash mine once a week too. Mine is waist length, THICK, super heavy, and naturally wavy, but I straighten the ever loving crap out of it.
I try to keep the direct heat use down to once a week. To keep it fresh and looking nice I dot monoi oil (which is not only good for the hair, but smells heavily of gardenia) on my fingertips and rub my scalp with it, rub some onto the ends, and the remainder throught the rest. Then I put it into pin curls on the back of my head, so it just looks like an intricate bun with lots of pins. You have to have some really long layers to pull it off though. Working out generates enough heat to set the curl and spread the scent so when I take it out it usually smells good and looks fairly good. LoL.
Hair Maintanence for women of color
