How to Properly Clean Your Hair

Proper cleansing is crucial if you want healthy hair. But with so much conflicting information out there, it can be difficult to tell which hair cleansing procedure works best. How do you properly clean your hair? We’ll explore how to do so in detail in this article. Let’s get right into it!

Wet Your Hair Down

For your shampoo to work effectively, you must first wet your hair. Depending on your hair's porosity, it could take a few seconds or closer to a minute to fully saturate your strands. Low porosity hair is harder to fully saturate with water than normal or high porosity hair.

It’s not enough to mist your hair - the goal is to ensure that all your strands are wet all the way through to your scalp.

Apply Shampoo to Your Roots and Scrub

The next step is to apply your shampoo. You won’t apply it all over; just focus on your scalp. After all, your scalp collects the most oils, dirt, etc. If you have a lot of thick or long hair, you may find it easier to wash your hair in sections.

Use the pads of your fingers to scrub your scalp in small circles, being careful not to create tangles. To reduce tangling, you can grab the ends of your hair and hold them taut with one hand and scrub with the other. 

Pull the Shampoo Down the Length of Your Hair

Once you’re done scrubbing your scalp, it’s time to pull the shampoo down the length of your hair. To do this, you’ll simply smooth the shampoo suds downward until all of your hair is covered in the shampoo. You don’t usually need to do a lot of vigorous scrubbing in this step. Allow the shampoo to do what it was designed to do.

Note: If you’re trying to remove something stubborn from your hair (honey, gel, product buildup, etc.), you can take the time to scrub the mid-lengths and ends of your hair for a more effective cleansing session.

Rinse Thoroughly

Many don’t realize that rinsing is a big part of the hair-cleansing process, but it is. Poor rinsing is one of the top causes of buildup. It’s best not to allow any of that gunk to stay behind. So, take your time and ensure that no suds are left behind. It could take several minutes to fully rinse the shampoo out, so be patient.

Decide Whether You’ll Repeat

Most of the time, it makes sense to follow the instructions on your hair products’ packaging. But that’s not always going to be the case. Shampoo bottle instructions often tell you to repeat (shampoo your hair twice). Don’t do that unless your hair still feels dirty after your first rinse. If it doesn’t, feel free to move forward with the rest of your hair care and styling routine without the second shampoo.

So, there you have it - how to properly clean your hair. If you follow the steps outlined in this article, you can create a strong foundation of cleanliness in your hair routine. Once your hair is clean and conditioned, you’ll need a leave-in that can keep your hair moisturized and gorgeous all day. Check out Daily Dose here. We hope you found all the information you were looking for in this article, and we wish you the best with your hair!

Author: Andrea Reyes

Andrea is a mother, wife, writer, and natural hair enthusiast of 15 years. Currently on her natural hair journey, she’s been trying countless products and techniques to understand and embrace her natural hair. She is the creator of NaturallyTextured.com, a new website featuring informative articles that share tips, tricks, and techniques aimed to help others learn to love their hair through proper hair care. She writes with the hope of making hair care easier to understand and implement.