Swimming and Afro Hair


I have recently gone back to swimming, taking Sebastian with me once a week. For some reason the first week I went I thought I wouldn't get my hair wet. Of course I did. Obviously the Chlorine in pool water can seriously damage our hair in the long term. You really need to be careful when it comes to swimming.


My tips
(this what I do anyway. Tinker with this as you see fit for your hair)
  • Before I leave the house I put a decent lathering of avocado oil on my hair like a pre-poo.
  • Then when I get to the pool I wash my hair through in the shower, if your hair is full of clean water it makes it harder for the chlorine etc. to get into the strands.
  • The alternative would be to wash the hair through and then apply the avocado oil, but this can depend on your pool set up.
  • On leaving the pool I wash it out in the shower straight away
  • Once home I shampoo my hair - twice a month this must be a clarifying shampoo to help remove any excess chlorine or residue.
  • If you go swimming more than once a week it is probably worth co-washing and shampooing only once that week.
  • Then I use the K2H Deep Conditioning Treatment Mixed with the Herbal Essences Hello Hydration. I leave this in for an hour while I sort out the kids etc.
  • In the past I have also deep-conditioned with Coconut milk or mixed in avocado/egg.
Once washed out hair feels amazing and I style as usual. I always air dry when I do this swim regime as i don't want to damage the hair anymore. If you have a swim regime let us know what you do to keep your hair healthy.

Embrace Your Inner AfroDeity 
Leilu

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2 comments

Reni_LTV said...

Hi, I know this post is really old but hopefully you wil see this comment and reply. I'm trying to incorporate regular swimming into my workout regime say twice a week but I'm not sure how my hair would cope, it's usually in a protective style like weave/box braids so would you still recommend the above steps or is there something else I should be doing? Also when my hair is out is simply co-washing instead of shampooing after swimming a good idea? or do I absolutely have to shampoo? I'm currently trying to grow my hair from neck to shoulder length and I'm texturised as well.

Thanks!

AfroDeity said...

Hi Reni,
I have written another few posts on this since I wrote this one. I would say for your box braids or weave, you could use an applicator bottle to apply some oil to the roots and exposed hair before swimming and definitely use a swim cap. Even though your hair is mostly tucked away in these styles you will still need to wash it through after swimming to remove the chlorine from the braids and those parts of your hair that are showing.

http://www.afrodeity.co.uk/search?q=swimming&submit=Search