Chlorine/SaltWater Protection

[Synester]

Hello LHC, at the end of July I am going on a cruise for the first time in the bahamas/gulf of mexico. (yay)
But, I haven't really been in the ocean or a heavily chlorinated pool in many years.
In those many years I have babied and protected my hair in goals to get it longer.

Doing so has worked! (yay again) I am hovering hip length and have been at waist for a very long time. I dont want to do anything to ruin that progress.

For any avid swimmers here? How do you protect your hair from chlorine damage/dryness

Most of you will say swim cap. Sadly this is true. BUT I would like to look cute....SO


is there a product i can put on my hair to help keep it safe??? preventive getting in the water measures. or even after care chlorine removal and saltwater aftercare?
would love lots of insight on this topic.

[Zesty]

I try not to get my hair wet in the pool generally, but if I decide to do so I put a little oil or conditioner in my hair, braid it, and wet it down thoroughly with fresh water in the shower directly before going to the pool. Saturating it with regular water helps it absorb less chlorine/saltwater/whatever, theoretically. I wash immediately after with a chelating shampoo (often marketed as "swimmer's" shampoo) and condition thoroughly.

Enjoy your vacation!!!

[akurah]

Saturate it with tap water first.

Be very careful about putting product (conditioner, oil, etc) in your hair before getting into water. The product can cause problems with pool filters (some pools may disallow this and you could get into trouble if you are caught), and while I know nothing about marine biology, I would also have concerns about the product causing problems in a salt water environment as well (for example, we've recently figured out that some kinds of sunscreen are actually bad for the ocean life if you wear it in the ocean).

Use a chelating shampoo after.

[Synester]

alright definitely adding chelating shampoo to my list of things to bring on my trip.

[Jo Ann]

I would definitely use an oil or conditioner before going swimming. Chelating shampoo also sounds like a good idea.

While I can understand Akurah's concern about possible environmental changes, my guess would be that any conditioner/oil that may seep into the pool or ocean would cause minimal (if any) damage because of the dilution of salt water/hair preparation.

Enjoy your vacation!