To think this 'no shampoo' trend doesn't work?

[mrsmootoo]

I haven't used shampoo since lockdown - thought it would be interesting to see and if not now when! I looked at a few sites and started with an apple vinegar rinse - yuck - greasy. Then I tried bicarb of soda - OK, but I seem to be washing it once a week, so is there any point? And I don't know if it is making the grease worse, like shampoo does. Can I just give up all products and use water? I have quite thick straight hair and exercise, so I can't see how just water will keep it clean. Also I colour it, so what will happen then? Does anyone find it really works?

I often wonder if the notion that washing your hair everyday is bad is similar to the medieval idea that bathing was bad for you! lol

I exercise a lot and get super sweaty and bc of this wash my hair most days. I've tried just rinsing it etc, but honestly my whole scalp would feel itchy. Wasn't worth it for me.

It's also worth pointing out that everyone's hair is different - curly hair is naturally drier than straight hair, as it's harder for the hairs natural oils to travel down a curly hair shaft compared to a straight one. Curly hair therefore needs to be treated differently to straight hair.

A lot of people following the CGM who have high porosity hair seem to get away with only washing their hair once a week. Whereas low porosity hair like mine is more prone to build up and needs cleansing more frequently.

Conditioner is surprisingly effective at cleansing hair, I was previously a huge sceptic myself until I tried it.

It takes ages, that's for sure.
I have very fine and curly hair. It gets knotted easily and used to be so brittle that it would break off when i tried to brush it. I could never grow my hair longer than just barely touching my shoulders. It used to always be dry at the ends and greasy at the roots if i didnt wash it every day.
Now 6 years of not using normal shampoo my hair is down to my waist and looks really healthy.

I started it after giving birth to my first child. The first 8 weeks it just seemed to get worse and worse. It didnt smell (according to my sister who is very honest and direct) but looked absolutely disgusting (also according to my sister). I just had it tied up when i had to leave the house or wore a hat. After 8 weeks it slowly started getting less greasy. Took a full 4 months to be fully non greasy though.
I washed it 1-2x a week with rye flour. Mixed that with water to a paste and really rubbed it on my scalp to rub away all the dirt and get rid of the grease. Once i figured that out it started improving. I also rinsed with apple cider vinegar once a week.
I didnt use any other products for a good 2 years. Then started following the curly girl method. I now wash 2x a week with conditioner only and once a month with a sulphate/silicone free shampoo. I make hair masks with castor, olive or coconut oil and its impossible to wash all that out just with water, so i use the shampoo for that. It takes a long time to figure out a good routine/products that work for you, because all hair is different. But the less products i use, the better my hair.

Also I think I realize why in the past, most women wore head coverings. If you could only bath a few times a month, everyone's hair was probably disgusting!

Surely if you don’t wash your hair it’s dirty. Use soap to wash your hands, laundry detergent for clothes and shampoo for hair.
I get a sweaty head so have to wash it at least every other day.

I use shampoo only after colouring or if my hair has got oily after a massage. I wash every day but use conditioner only.

I've been doing it with curly DD for 3 years. Definitely works for us as her hair is in beautiful condition, never greasy and she used to suffer from cradle cap which went within a few weeks of starting too.

I've got very thick jaw length hair. I wash it once a week using OGX shampoo and conditioner which are sulphate free. Don't use any products other than a bit of oil serum for blow drying. My hair is in really good condition.

I wash my hair everyday, if I miss a day it is really greasy and I feel grubby. I was ill and didn't wash it for two weeks, and to echo a previous poster, it was minging!

No poo is for curly hair. Trying it on straight hair is like using chemo for a heart attack, pointless, completely different structure. Hth

@knockedover what? That's not true at all.

And for those of you giving it a week or two, you need to give it at least six weeks.

Yes - giving it time is key. I first weaned my hair off sulfates by using a shampoo bar and my hair was Not Great for a while - Dutch braids were my saviour! But once you stop using silicones and sulfates that strip both the silicone and natural oils from your hair and get through that transition phase while it adjusts, you don't need to use ordinary shampoo any more.

I do the curly girl method as well and use the XHC conditioner as my cowash and making sure I give my hair a good rinse and my scalp a bit of a head massage makes sure my hair is clean!

But everyone's hair is different of course! What works for someone else might not for you and someone else's hair might get weaned off sulfates quicker than others. I know mine took AGES but it was worth it because my hair feels so much nicer now, healthier and curlier

I conditioner wash (cowash) and my hair is squeaky clean after a cowash, not that nasty dry squeaky clean that shampoo gives you though.

I can go a week before I need a cowash, my curls need a wash and restyle due to frizz before my roots are greasy.

And there are loads of women who follow the CG method and don’t have greasy hair. I’m on a fb group and there are women on there with beyond stunning, healthy curls who don’t use shampoo.

I have fine greasy hair and I’ve tried it a few times over the years but it’s never worked for me, although I have seen amazing results with thicker hair.

This has been around at least a decade. I remember my uni friend doing it, and she gave in after a month when she literally couldn't get a comb through her hair.

I don't see the point myself. If you have to wash your hair daily then yeah maybe try something else, but there's nothing wrong with shampoo a few times a week.

I have only used water for years.

It depends on what you want to achieve. Hair in its natural state should be slightly greasy, it's good for the scalp and helps it to trap dirt and disease etc. But it doesn't look too great.

Some hair types need less shampoo than others and can look great. Generally thick, curly hair.

If your aim is great looking hair, then it's not for everyone. If you aim is less reliance on the beauty industry, reducing plastic, sulphates and other nasties then it's very doable.

Conditioner only for me, and the odd specific co wash
Never gets greasy, smells of whatever conditioner I have washed with. I scrub well for 5 minutes when washing and don't use any silicone or sulphates

I use Hair-story ‘new wash’ Sulphate free shampoo and conditioner replacement at a shocking £95 a refill. Washing it twice a week. It’s so much ££ but lasts ages but mainly my hair is nice now.

(cleanser, conditioner, curl activator, mouse and gel), plus taking the time to wet plop, micro plop and dry plop before diffusing.

Sounds great for people who enjoy pseudo-scientific concepts and have a lot of time on their hands.

I did this in the 80s when it was first mooted.
I have to say, it was agony for a month but I usually clipped my hair up.
By six weeks my hair was lovely. It didn’t smell and it was in the best condition ever!
However, I had to go to the hairdressers to get my ends trimmed. My hairdresser agreed that my ( very long, Rapunzel-like ) hair was in the best condition that she’d ever seen it.
I’d told her what I’d done and she relayed other similar stories but company policy was to wash, cut and dry.
Within a few days I suffered from psoriasis of the scalp that needed medical intervention.
Just saying.

This is my 'rank greasy' hair

No poo is great but you've got to be consistent and you've got to do it properly. If you're not using shampoo you absolutely need look at your other hair products and make sure they don't contain silicones, as the only way to remove them is with shampoo. That is where you get the build up and end up with a nasty greasy mess.

This isn't a thing for straight-haired people is it? I. Thought it

Hit send too soon. Thought it was only meant for curly hair, as it's naturally dryer.