Transitioning 101 by IntelligentBeauty (Part 3)

REGIMEN/ROUTINES

Toward the end of my transition journey, I had develop a way for me to stay organized on what I was doing and with my hair every week, from products I will use to styles I wanted to try. On a regular laid out calendar, I wrote down exactly when I would do my hair and with what products. It was a simple, clear approach to finding and maintaining a good regimen. Regimens can be very simple or quite complex with treatments and different types of rinses. However, for the sake of simplicity, I will write about a regimen that will, over time and with consistency, improve and maintain the health of your hair.

STEP 1---PRE POO- I don't think people would ordinarily recommend this in a simple routine. But I think it is an easy and fabulous way to boost moisture and softness to the hair. Prepooing simply means adding a natural oil of your choice to your entire hair from root to tip and leaving it on overnight or for several hours before rinsing out. Once I started this during my transition phase, my detangling sessions were cut shorter and that was definitely a plus!!!! You can use a little shampoo to rinse out or cowash with conditioner. (I like to cowash out). It is best to do some detangling with your finger hair as you smooth the oil into your hair.

STEP 2---COWASH- Wet the hair thoroughly, pour a dime size amount of conditioner (CO) in your hand and use the pads of your fingertips, apply to one spot of your scalp and massage well, just as you would with shampoo. Repeat until you have scrubbed all over. Rinse ALL the CO out with plenty of water, still gently massaging with the fingertips so the friction will dissolve any residue. Next, pour more CO (use another richer CO) in your hand, rub palms together and apply over the full length of the hair. Leave on for a little while and continue your shower. Then, detangle with fingers or a VERY wide toothed comb in sections, using clips to help separate the sections you have done. Finally, set the water to a cool temp comfortable to you and rinse your hair out and gently squeeze out excess water.

STEP 3--DRYING--Dry hair with a t-shirt or curly cloth. Also micro fiber cloths are good too. DO NOT USE A TOWEL, as using one will use cause frizz to occur.

STEP 4--LEAVE IN CONDITIONER--This is an important step as well. Leave in conditioners are lighter weight conditioners and adds moisture to the hair making it easier to manipulate into the style of your choosing.

STEP 5--OILS--This should be used on top of your leave in conditioner to add shine and reduce any frizz, once styling is complete. Again, these should be natural oils.

Here is another important tip; heavy-handedness with product is usually a problem when first starting out. It is important to curb that tendency to use a lot of a product to see results. The only step where heavy handedness is welcomed is in the prepoo step, to apply the oil to the entire head. Other than that, using more product than normal will cause more harm than good to your end result hairstyle. Also being rough with your hair in the wash and detangle phase can cause unwanted breakage and holes in the hair strand. So be gentle, take your time, and remember the line of demarcation is very delicate.