Any black woman will tell you it’s
a bit of a nightmare to do a lot of activity while trying to maintain the good
look of your hairstyle particularly if you have relaxed hair or a weave (The
steam room and swimming is definitely off the list with these). Hair, believe
it or not is actually a deterrent to one many activities particularly gyming.
The amount of admin a person would have to go through post a hectic gym session
will have you questioning if it really is worth it visiting the gym if you have
to blow dry and then flat iron your hair back to salon status condition
afterwards. It would probably take one between 15 -20 minutes if you want to
walk out of the gym looking decent again, now that’s a lot of time if you want
to beat the morning traffic and get to work, any person in a big city will tell
you 20 minutes makes a difference!
About a week ago I had rollers on
from the previous night and wanted to go out for a jog in the early hours of the
morning but the thought of messing up the curls and not being able to have the
style I wanted put me off the idea of taking a jog, I was even tempted to just
go out and jog in them rollers! I thought how ratchet that would be and eventually
came back to my senses and decided to give the jog a miss till my hair was in a
different state, you can imagine the sight of a woman taking a morning jog in
rollers! I would definitely have a laugh about this if I was seeing this moving
hair salon in front of my face so early in the morning but at times desperate times
call for desperate measures.
Last night I decided that instead
of the hectic gym workout I wanted something easier for myself and decided to
go for a swim in the gym after work! The drama! While I enjoyed the swim and managed
to do 28 laps, I came out with a frizzled nappy *^ss weave despite the fact
that I had on a swimming cap. Cheap weave? Who knows but the amount of time I spent
getting it back in shape convinced me I needed to change my hair yet again
before I could go for my next swim.
So how does a black girl deal
with the dilemma of trying to look good but also squeeze in the hard work out
which results in breaking a sweat and thus affecting the hair??
1. If you are swimming and have
relaxed hair or a weave, always make sure you have the right fitting swimming
cap, one that fits just right not one too big as it lets water in and not one
too tight as it restricts blood flow to your head.
2. Always try to blow dry your
hair immediately after a workout in the gym/home and moisturise accordingly as
that allows you to kind of get it back in shape before it dries up and develops
a life of its own and it’s harder to style. Of course this means carrying
around a brush and comb bag inside your gym bag just so you have all the stuff
from home, it’s a bit taxing but necessary. Ladies don’t be leaving the gym
looking like Worzel Gummidge unless if you really don’t care about what the
world has to say then its ok……
3. Perhaps try and change your
hairstyle to a more gym friendly one for example getting corn rows, cutting
your hair short and getting braids. Braids do of course present an easy styling
option post a work out but they need to be washed to ensure they don’t carry
around the stench of sweat after your work out.
4. In terms of accessories, if
you are sporting a long weave or you have long hair, always carry a hair scrunchie
to tie your hair up and avoid it flying in all directions when you train, in
addition always use a headband to hold the sweat off the edges of your hair
line.
Hope these hair tips help those
like me who struggle with this issue on a regular basis! Always keep it real
like Mama J J
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