The Structure Of My New Healthy Relaxed Hair Regimen

This feels way overdue. It’s been a while since I’ve done a blog post about my hair regimen. Probably because I haven’t really had a solid one for the last couple of years.

You read right, over the last few years I’ve been flying without a set hair regimen. I’m not sure why considering for the first three years of my healthy relaxed hair journey I was very big about having and following my hair regimen.

I guess I got lazy which can happen. I think the fact that I also got a lot of free hair products to try in 2018 made it harder to really follow a structured regimen.

Starting today, all of that is changing.

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I shared previously that one of my 2020 relaxed hair goals is to finalize my hair regimen. To make the task less overwhelming and hopefully speed up the process I decided to break it into two parts - determining the structure of my regimen and then selecting the products that will be in my regimen.

When figuring out my hair regimen structure I wanted to make sure I had a full wash and a co-wash regimen both figured out. As well as everything that comes between my washes.

I also wanted to think about the types of products that I would be using at each step. Will it be protein-free, sulfate-free, moisturizing, etc.

All right, let’s start with the full wash day

Full wash day

I’ll start each wash day with a pre-poo using natural oils. While I’ll be looking to see the same oils each week, over time the natural oils could vary based on what I have on hand.

Next, I’ll shampoo my hair. I want to have two shampoos on hand, both of them protein-free. One should be more a moisturizing, protein-free shampoo that will be my regular shampoo.

The other I'd like to be a deep cleansing shampoo. I’d use this one on occasion to help rid my hair of any build-up. I would like this shampoo to be sulfate-free as well but to get the type of deep clean I’d like my lead me to it.

After I shampoo I’ll be doing a rinse-out conditioner. This isn’t a step that I’ve really had in past regimens but I’ve seen a noticeable difference in my hair since I’ve added this step. This conditioner will need to be protein-free. It could be either a true rinse-out conditioner or an express deep conditioner, one that is meant to only stay on for 5-10 minutes.

Next comes the deep conditioner. I want to have two of these. One that is moisture-based and the other that is strength-based. The strength-based deep conditioner could have either protein ingredients or have something else like biotin. I plan to use the moisture-based deep conditioner more.

To finish up in the shower I’ll be doing a hair rinse. This could be either a tea rinse or apple cider vinegar rinse.

To finish up my wash day I’ll be putting a water-based, protein-free leave-in conditioner on my damp hair and a heat protectant. Then I’ll blow dry my hair and finish up by putting Jamaican black castor oil on my scalp and using a moisturizer and sealant on my hair if needed.

Co-wash day

My co-wash day will be a shortened version of my wash day and will only take place mid-week if needed. I’ll do a co-wash if I can’t wait till my next wash day because I’ve been sweating a lot, my scalp is acting up, or some other reason that a co-wash could help with. The type of co-wash I’ll be using is a moisturizing one, preferably protein-free.

Next, I’ll do either a rinse-out or deep condition. I don’t see that both will be needed. The decision of which I’ll use will happen that day. 

I won’t be doing a hair rinse during co-wash days.

Just like with my full wash day to finish up I’ll be putting a water-based, protein-free leave-in conditioner on my damp hair and a heat protectant. Then I’ll blow dry my hair and finish up by putting Jamaican black castor oil on my scalp and using a moisturizer and sealant on my hair.

Weekly care

The moisturizer and sealant I’ll use at the end of my wash and co-wash days will be the same ones I use during the week. Between wash days I’ll moisturize and seal as needed.

I will probably only have one moisturizer that I will use consistently and it doesn’t have to be protein-free. The sealant will be a natural oil. The oil that I use could vary throughout the year.

Sometimes when I moisturize and seal I may baggy my ends. I'll do this if I start to feel that my ends need some extra moisture, more than just a product by itself can provide. If you're not sure what it means to baggy your ends, you can check out this Instagram post.

I’ll also apply Jamaican Black Castor Oil to my scalp on an as-needed basis. If my scalp starts to feel a little dry or I’m noticing some flaking I’ll be applying the Jamaican Black Castor Oil.

So that’s it. That’s the structure of my hair regimen. I’m still in the process of trying to figure out the products I’ll be using. Once I have my products finalized I’ll share those in another blog post.