Any Lifeguards/Swimmers Out There?

[marvel-lover]

Hello Everyone! I could use some hair advice. I have BSL hair, and I really want to grow it to hip as soon as possible. The problem is, my job is always ruining my hair :rolleyes: Between the chlorine and all the other damage, I'm not sure what to do! I'm in the water a couple times a week, whether it's for a spontaneous rescue, teaching swim lessons, or just swimming for fitness. When I swim for fitness, I always wear a cap (old swim team habit) but my hair still gets wet. In the summer, when I'm outside, my hair sees a lot of sun damage and sunscreen. I have a shampoo made for getting chlorine out of my hair, but it's unbelievably drying. I generally try to wash my hair only once or twice a week. I use leave in conditioner, detangler with nutrients, and oils. I like to do an oil treatment before I wash my hair. This coming week, however, I will be in the water every single day, and I worried about the damage it will do to my hair.

In summary, I need advice about any of the following:

How can I protect my hair from the chlorine, sunscreen, and sun?
How can I save my hair this week when I have to wash it everyday?
What kind of protective styles can I wear to work that will hold up whether I'm just chilling, in the water for a rescue, or running with 50 pounds of pure ambulance-in-a-bag towards a life-and-death emergency (happens more often than you'd think)?

Thank you all so much!

[Vanilla]

I am not a lifeguard/swimmer, but when I'm on vacation, I usually swim in chlorine and/or saltwater every single day. My hair is now TBL length, and certainly prone to damage.

When I know I'm going to be in the water, I always have my hair braided. I will usually put in some coconut oil to protect it from the chlorine/salt, and even some conditioner as well. I find that buns are hard for me to manage with wet hair, and they are a nightmare to take down. Bobby pins and most waterproof hair accessories seem to get stuck further in my hair when it gets wet.

I rinse my hair with fresh water as soon as possible after exposing it to salt/chlorine. Sometimes I will even wet it with fresh water first, to reduce the amount of salt/chlorine that it soaks up.

When I need to wash my hair on vacation, I only use the CO method (using cone free runny conditioner to wash your hair). My roots get a little greasy even CO-big every day, but that can be hidden in a Dutch braid pretty easily.

If I absolutely need to shampoo, I do so only once a week if I'm in the water everyday.

Hope this helps!

[thunderseed]

I swim lots, way more often then you do. I also frequent steam rooms and saunas and do ice swims in the winter, so my hair goes through quite a lot.

All I do after a swim is use a Paul Mitchell clarifying shampoo (they are made for swimmers) to cut out chlorine and salt water, then I leave in a lot of conditioner and keep it on for the rest of the day. In-between swims, I put some oil in my hair and on the ends.

I've been doing that for a long time, and I've never noticed any more damage than usual, it keeps my hair in the same condition as it would be if I weren't swimming regularily.

I have naturally oily skin and hair though, and since I'm so active I sweat lots, so regular swimming and regular shampooing is actually good for me.
I tried only shampooing my scalp once a week because I thought rinsing my hair out in water was good enough, but apparently not because it gave me terrible scalp pimples which I have finally gotten rid of from daily shampoo. I only use the clarifying shampoo after long swims in chlorine or swims in the ocean or after oil treatments. I never put oil on my scalp, or else it makes me break out, just on my hair. Now I have also started to use a natural mild shampoo just on my scalp on days where I'm not in chlorine, then using conditioner on the rest of my hair, and my hair is incredibly soft and conditioned all the time, because I also put on some conditioner and oil after I wash it.

In the summer, I never worry much about the sun. I like tanning and the natural streaks I get from it, it's never damaged my skin or hair. I usually use coconut oil on my hair or skin if I'm worried about burning, it works for me.

[marvel-lover]

Thank you both so much! I'll try wetting my hair before hand, and keeping oils in it. I'm very appreciative!

[lapushka]

Thank you both so much! I'll try wetting my hair before hand, and keeping oils in it. I'm very appreciative!

Don't soak it in oil though, or you'll have an oil slick around you in the water - not pretty. Just a tiny bit of oil is enough (just on the ends as they are the oldest part of your hair), or you can leave a tiny bit of leave-in conditioner in (or regular conditioner for that matter). Just a bit.

[Hairkay]

I only swim once a week. Before a swim I'll rinse my hair (6-10 plaits/braids) whilst having a shower before entering the pool then I'll put on my swimming cap. The night before I'd have put a tiny bit of oil on my hair ends. I enjoy my swim then come out and rinse off. Then I put on fruit hair mask to condition my hair, place a plastic cap over it and sit in either the sauna or steam room for 10 minutes. If I can't get to the steam/sauna I'll pull out a beanie hat and put it over the cap either way I'll be waiting the 10 minutes. Then I give my hair a thorough rinse whilst massaging my scalp. Hair gets drip dried with a little oil on the ends. I don't use manufactured shampoos or conditioners due to allergies. There was a time when I used to use the doc recommended stuff but that was too drying for my already dry hair and skin. It also wasn't effective for me. My hair works out quite well this way.

When I was a teen I'd have a week at a time in holiday camp swimming daily in the outdoor pool with lots of sun shining. I did't wear a swim cap just had my hair in a plait or two but that always unravelled pretty quickly no matter if I did put a hair elastic on it or not. Then I did use a shampoo as my allergies were not as severe when I was younger. My hair seemed to survive that. Sometimes it would be a week near the beach and of course I went in the sea.

[marvel-lover]

Wonderful! I'll be cautious about putting too much oil in my hair. I like the idea of showering before I get in the pool; I've heard that a lot. The problem is, I don't have time to shower between the classroom sessions and the in-water session. I barely have enough time to teach all of the candidates. Thank you all for your help!