Creating your most effective haircare routine not only requires investing in the right natural hair products, but it also involves establishing healthy hair habits when brushing, drying and styling. Unless we are intentional with all elements and steps in our routine, we can’t expect to see our very best hair health results. Our post-shower haircare routine and habits play a significant role in the overall health and condition of our scalp and hair. That’s why we’re breaking down everything you need to do and consider in order to create your best haircare routine.
Why is your post-shower haircare routine so important?
The natural hair products we use to wash, treat and nourish our hair in the shower are vital for achieving a scalp and hair that is clean, hydrated, repaired, conditioned, protected, strengthened, smooth and easy to manage. Products like our shampoo, conditioner and hair mask or treatment will always establish the core foundations of any healthy haircare routine. But unless we care for our hair after washing, as well as when we’re styling, we simply won’t see the best results possible from our haircare products. Unnecessary damage and hair breakage can easily occur after washing if we don’t take the proper care. This means if we’re nourishing and caring for our hair when in the shower, but we’re then causing breakage and damage in our post-shower routines, we are simply not allowing ourselves to see the very best results from our hair products.
Not only do our hair habits play an important role in our hair health and in experiencing the greatest results possible from our hair products, our post-shower haircare routine can also impact our hair when it’s time to style. Our hair can become more difficult to manage and style if we don’t set ourselves up for our best results.
Now we know why our hair habits are just so important, let’s talk about all the steps you’ll want to consider for your post-shower haircare routine. Experiencing and maintaining healthy hair does not need to be complicated or expensive but it does require being intentional with your habits. With the right choices, you can create a healthy and consistent routine that produces your best hair health results.
Step 1: Dry off your hair with a microfibre towel
The very first step in any post-shower routine must always be to dry off your hair with a microfibre hair towel. Our hair is known to be fragile and prone to damage when it’s wet, so using a towel like our Sozo Bamboo Microfibre Hair Towel will always be the most important first step, especially before you even think about brushing or styling. Yes, of course you can allow your hair to air dry. But why wait several hours when you can use a microfibre hair towel that is extremely absorbent, allowing you to significantly reduce your drying time. Drying off your hair with a microfibre towel before brushing will not only limit and reduce breakage, but microfibre material is also known to cause less friction to the hair shaft, which helps to support smoother hair and less frizz when it’s time to style. Your hair doesn’t need to be completely dry before you start to brush; however, it must not be dripping wet or you’ll risk experiencing hair breakage.
Step 2: Brushing with a Detangling Hairbrush
After you’ve dried off your hair, brushing is a very normal step for almost all hair types in order to remove all tangles and knots. Once again, hair breakage can easily occur if you do not use the correct brush or are brushing aggressively. It’s important to invest in a detangling brush that allows your hair to easily detangle and glide through the brush, just like our Sozo Detangling Hairbrush. To reduce breakage, you must also brush starting from your ends then work your way up to your roots. If your hair is particularly knotted or matted, brushing one small section of hair at a time before moving onto the next can allow you to detangle your hair with less damage and discomfort.
Step 3: Hair Serums & Heat Protection
As we all know, our hair can experience great damage when we use heated styling tools. This, of course, means that applying some type of heat protection is essential to prevent unnecessary damage. If you also want to increase shine and smooth your hair to experience less frizz, using a natural hair serum like our ultra-lightweight Sozo Scalp & Hair Health Serum is a great way to do this while also helping to protect against heat damage. Our silicone free, hydrating hair oil has been formulated with natural oils known to help limit damage caused by heated styling tools.
Applying your heat protectants and hair serums for your best results is all about understanding how to use the specific product you’ve invested in. For example, our Scalp & Hair Health Serum is a lightweight hair oil, so it should be applied sparingly to your ends, then gradually apply more depending on your specific hair type. Many heat protectants and serums have been formulated to be applied to your ends instead of directly on your scalp for styling purposes.
With a product like our all-natural hair serum, you can even apply it to your ends before you brush in order to assist with the detangling process. Application and use of post-shower haircare products will depend on your specific hair type, needs and styling preferences.
Step 4: Styling
In addition to potential heat damage, how we style our hair can have an impact on our overall hair health. Although some of us do prefer to allow our hair to naturally air dry without any styling tools, many also enjoy using hairdryers and heated styling tools. Of course, when you limit your use of heated tools, you are reducing your exposure to heat damage, which is going to keep your hair healthy long term. However, hairdryers are a very common part of many haircare routines, which simply means we must always ensure we are using low or medium temperature settings to avoid as much damage as possible and we must not hold the hairdryer too close to our hair. Choosing a lower heat setting is also essential when using curling wands and straighteners.
If you rely on heated styling tools regularly and want to limit damage, or you simply want to avoid heated tools altogether, there are heatless alternatives you can use for styling and curling. For example, velcro rollers are great for adding more body and volume. And of course, you can also try one of the many methods of heatless curls. Although heatless alternatives do not produce the same results as heated tools, they are great for when you want to protect your hair.
Other hairstyles, including tight ponytails and sleek buns, can also lead to breakage, even though they are heatless. So always be intentional with the types of styles you choose on a daily basis and avoid tight styles that can consistently cause breakage. This also includes selecting non-damaging hair accessories, like using soft hair ties and silk scrunchies instead of elastics that cause breakage.
Styling 5: Finishing & Styling Products
After styling, it is very normal to want to reach for your hairspray or other products that hold your style. Although these products are great when styling, we must use them with caution to avoid causing brittle and damaged hair that can occur when we overuse products like hairspray on a regular basis. Often, damage can be caused when we allow a build of product to form, then we find ourselves pulling and tearing our brush through our hair, resulting in breakage.
To maintain a healthy scalp, avoiding overuse of products like dry shampoo is essential. Dry shampoo is great for convenience but can cause scalp problems and irritations as it can interfere with your scalp’s natural sebum (oil) flow.
As you can see, achieving healthy hair requires not only one product or solution. Instead, experiencing your truly healthiest scalp and hair involves establishing your best haircare routine, investing in natural haircare products and being intentional with every hair habit, which includes your post-shower routine. If you want to get the best results from the haircare products you choose to purchase and invest in, then do not allow your hair to become unhealthy and damaged as a result of poor hair habits in your post-shower haircare routine. Even the smallest choices and changes can impact your overall results.
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