Retraining hair so it’s not so greasy

[thebellagio]

My hair has always been greasy to the point where I have to wash it every night, but my hairdresser told me I need to try and leave it a few days between washes to “retrain” it, and rely on dry shampoo, and this will improve the overall condition of the hair,

I’ve been trialling this for about 3 months now, and my hair is better condition,

but what I want to know is, if I have a bath and get the hair wet, but don’t shampoo it, does that count as washing it? Or is it just the shampoo part? I’m fed up of quick showers with a shower cap on - I miss my lazy baths haha

Why not just put your hair up in the bath?

Also it's fine to rinse your hair.

My hairdresser said wetting is fine as you're not stripping the natural oils away like you do with shampoo.

Awesome thanks. I know it’s such a stupid question!

This is rubbish advice. Your scalp can't "train" itself to release less oil. Absolute bunkum. Just wash your hair every day if you have an oily scalp. You'll be manky otherwise.

I have tried everything and sadly it is hormonal so no amount of retraining ever worked. Basically my hair produces enough oil in one day that someone else would produce in several. So retraining is nonsense imo. I use cleansing shampoos which help lengthen time between washes. Sadly the only thing that works with me is being on the right contraceptive. I have severe endometriosis. If you are generally very oily and pre-menopause I would recommend a hormonal blood test profile. I don’t have PCOS but this could be another cause.

I'm really not convinced of the 'training' theory to be honest, it's never worked for me as someone who typically needs to wash their hair every day for it to look it's best, though I can get away with two days with no oiliness or flatness these days I wouldn't want to use dry shampoo, I find the feeling of it awful, can't imagine it does my scalp many favours and you can always smell it on people.

What I have found to actually help however - doing a decent clarifying wash and then switching to a gentle silicone free shampoo that suits my hair type, using a scalp massager to lather the shampoo I do use has been game changing and is something I quite enjoy. My hair feels so clean afterwards.

Once a week now I use a scalp scrub before shampooing, once every month or so I make sure to do a good double shampoo with a clarifying shampoo to get out any product residue (though I don't really use much) and condition or treat the ends only. It really has changed how my hair looks day to day. It's no longer super oily, is much healthier looking and has a lot more volume. I don't think I'll ever get to a point where I can go without washing for a week as some people can but I think that's just genetics and/or hormones to be honest.

Of course it can because if the scalp is being stripped of oils it will release more to compensate. Stop stripping it and your scalp doesn't need to produce as much.

Many, many people have 'trained' their scalp and hair in this way.

Worked amazingly for me.
It's fine to rinse with water. I always rinse my scalp after I exercise etc

I've tried this. Even after a period of months washing just once a week (utterly gross I know but I was in a small African town so just wore a bandana) my hair just went straight back to needing washing every day.

This is nonsense- hair cant be "trained" as there is no feedback loop- studies have shown that. I bought into this when I was younger and did it for months- my hair was just as oily as it ever was and actually became itchy and my scalp broke out in spots and I had to see a dermatologist who also told me it was rubbish. There is nothing wrong with daily washing if you use a gentle shampoo. Leaving oil, dirt and sweat on the scalp can cause hair loss due to DHT building up. I see a lot of people advocating this and then loading their hair up with dry shampoo which is full of drying alcohol and follicle clogging powders which is worse for scalp than gentle washing.

@dontgobaconmyheart what products do you use out of interest?

im not 100% convinced of the retraining as such but I do think that after 3-4 months of only washing 2-3 times a week my hair is definitely in much better condition

I did it and it worked for me. (I had a conversation with a Rastafarian man on holiday years ago and he told me that not using shampoo just water supports hair growth).

I'm not convinced the following is good advice since you'll cause some damage to your hair, but I was bored of my style anyway and decided to go from dark blonde to platinum (professionally, at the hairdressers). Obviously this involved some chemical lightening.

After a lifetime of greasiness and having to shampoo every day, I was able to cut down to twice a week. A few months on and all the damaged hair has grown out (I keep my hair short) so we'll see if anything has changed.

The only other thing that helps me is having short hair, as I find oiliness less obvious that way. (In fact I did the "no shampoo, water only" thing when my buzz cut was growing out, but was put off when someone got very close and said my hair smelled musty!)

I've been using salicylic acid on my scalp once a week and that seems to help. I'm going to try a scalp massager as well. Training is bollocks. The amount of oil produced is not affected by washing.

@dontgobaconmyheart . This sounds like a great routine that I'd like to try myself. What products would you recommend - both the clarifying one and then the gentle one. How often do you use the clarifying one?

I have pcos and always had greasy hair. Not washing it just meant more of an oil slick and though dry shampoo was better than nothing, couldn't use it more than once between shampoos.

My hair has always been in good condition though. I use a clarifying shampoo (tressemme mostly), then a volumising shampoo and conditioner - finger- combed throughout, not just on the ends.

A year ago I started it, to be kinder to my hair as well as trying to stretch between washes. I can now go 4 days when I did go 2 but its fairly greasy at the roots on day 4. I'm glad to hear I can wash with water!! Also interested in hearing what scrub and clarifying shampoo. My hair is definitely in better condition now over all. I have also cut right down on heat on my hair. Probably have only used a hairdryer on average once a month in a year.

If I wet my hair without washing it, it dries horribly stringy and greasy - even worse than the greasy mess I have anyway due to PCOS. I've given up, I have my lazy bath and then just jump in the shower after to wash my hair properly.

When you strip the oil from you scalp it stimulates the oil glands to produce more. The sebum is like a natural moisturiser for the whole of your skin surface.
I don’t use soap on my skin apart from pits and groin area. My skin is so much better and the natural oils are designed specifically for your skin. I wash my hair about twice a week. It took a little while for it to balance. I am sensitive to SLF’s so it was out of necessity, my scalp was so dry and scaly. I use an expensive shampoo and conditioner that is designed not to leave residue or irritate my scalp. Since I use it sparingly once or twice a week it lasts a long time.

I have PCOS and not washing my hair did not make it less greasy. Just meant I had greasy hair.

I wouldn't not wash my face or body to try to stop it producing oil!

Does this mean you only use water on your face?

I wash my hair at night and have started putting dry shampoo in my hair after I have washed and dried it and leaving it to dry up any excess oil overnight. I find I can now easily go 2 days between washes and it still looks fine.

Absolute bollocks. Every single scientific study on the matter shows this to be bunkum.

I don't believe it's from training it, it's winter now and we sweat less. Or maybe your hormones have calmed down or you reduced exercise or stress.
I would wash hair daily or every other day with suitable shampoo.