Let’s talk about building a low porosity hair routine and its importance.
One question I get asked often is “How can I grow my low porosity hair”? I always answer with “What does your routine consist of”? Then, all I hear at this point is crickets.
To maintain and grow healthy hair, you need to have a regimen you can stick to.
Creating a hair regimen may sound complicated and daunting, I know. But it doesn’t have to be. Once you figure the steps out, it becomes easy to grow low porosity hair.
To help you out, I am sharing my own regimen that I’ve perfected over the years.
First, what does low porosity hair mean and what are its characteristics?
Simply put, low porosity hair is hair that takes a long time to absorb moisture.
- Your hair takes a long time to get wet or dry.
- When you apply products to your hair, it tends to sit on the surface for a long time.
So, let’s talk regimen now.
What is a hair regimen and what does it consist of?
Think of a regimen as a ritual.
A hair regimen is pretty much different things you do to your hair to get your desired results. In this case, you’re aiming to grow healthy hair.
I’ll be honest, it may take you some time to build a routine you’re comfortable with. That is why I’m sharing mine to help you get a head start. Feel free to tweak it out to your liking along the way.
Simple low porosity hair routine to stimulate growth.
I broke the routine down into daily, weekly, and monthly steps.
Daily or every other day regimen.
Moisturize the hair and seal in the moisture. Ladies, I’m sure you hear it a lot. You need to keep your hair moisturized. Moisturized hair results in healthy hair which in turn promotes length retention.
How to moisturize low porosity hair.
There are two ways to moisturize your hair. You can use the LCO (leave-in, creme, oil) or the LOC (leave-in, oil, creme) method. I’ve tried both and found that my hair reacts better to the LCO method.
You can use any leave-in conditioner, creme, and oil that you are comfortable with. If you don’t know where to start, here’s a list of low porosity hair products to help you out.
*This post contains affiliate links which means if you make a purchase through one of my links, I may earn a commission.
Weekly Regimen.
This is usually what I do weekly on washday. I Prepoo, wash, deep condition, and style.
1- Pre-poo. Although I had gotten lazy and stopped, I realized that pre-pooing is a very important step in my regimen. Pre-pooing helps reduce the amount of hair you lose during washday. I recommend this step to anyone with type 4 kinky coily hair. It makes a big difference.
There are different DIY pre-poo that you can do if you are into making your own products. I like convenience so I buy mine.
I love “ The Mane Choice”Sweet Papaya & Pineapple Infinite Conditioner which is a 5 in 1 conditioner. It does a pretty good job of melting away the knots.
African Pride Moisture Miracle Aloe & Coconut Water Pre-Shampoo is another favorite amongst naturals.
2- Wash and deep condition. After I pre-poo, I follow up with cleansing and deep conditioning. This is a must for me. Unless I get tied up, I never miss a wash day.
Most of the time I use a protein-free deep conditioner. That’s because of the low porosity aspect of my hair. It doesn’t respond well to a lot of protein. But, when needed, I trade it in for a deep conditioner with light protein.
Be Gentle Be Kind Avocado + Kiwi Mega Moisture Superfood Mask is a good protein-free deep conditioner option.
There are 2 things I always do when I deep condition my hair.
- I deep condition with heat. After I apply the deep conditioner, I sit under a hooded dryer or steamer to force my hair cuticles to open. That process helps with the absorption of the products into my strands. You can use a tabletop hair dryer or deep conditioning cap if more convenient.
- I deep condition for 15 to 30 minutes (no more than that). Over 30 minutes you are wasting time.
Once I’m done with these 2 steps, I then proceed to style my hair.
Monthly low porosity hair routine. You can stretch this to 6 to 8 weeks if necessary.
Clarify. I wash my hair with a clarifying shampoo to get rid of product build-up. I used to clarify every wash day, but clarifying shampoos strip the hair. So I pay close attention to my hair before clarifying.
If you use a lot of heavy products, you may need to clarify a bit more often. You can use DIY solutions for that, or Kinky-Curly Come Clean is a good option. Feel free to use whatever suits you best.
Incorporate Protein. Although low porosity hair is not too fond of protein, it still needs a moisture/protein balance to behave right. I use a deep conditioner that contains light protein every 6 -8 weeks. It all depends on how my hair feels.
Adwoa Beauty Baomint Deep Conditioning Treatment provides good moisture/protein balance.
For more product recommendations, read “The best products for low porosity hair“.
When it comes to low porosity hair, simplicity is the name of the game.
As you can see, I have a pretty simple low porosity hair routine, but it is effective. I don’t like to complicate things. I mean, who really has time to spend hours doing their hair every day!?!
With this routine, my hair is much healthier and it is growing at a much faster pace than when I first embarked on this journey.
What about you? Do you follow a specific regimen for your low porosity natural hair? What are some of the things you do to your hair to promote health and growth? Share with us below in the comments below.
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