Some ladies on a Facebook post we put up some time ago seemed to think that the idea of a regimen was just a waste of time. If you are one of those ladies, are you enjoying the haphazard results you are reaping? Basically, that’s what a haphazard routine gets you.
Notice how I stated that going about hair care haphazardly is a routine? Well, a routine is a regimen, so though the thought of actually putting some consideration into your a hair regimen seems ridiculous the fact is you may very well have a regimen and just not recognize it. A regimen is simply what you do to your hair on a regular basis.
So EVERYBODY already has a hair regimen even though some may not be as great as others. When we talk about a hair-care regimen we refer to a consistent routine which usually involves a list of products to be used, and methods and schedules to apply these products and perform certain tasks.
This helps you to structure your life in such a way that allows for a balance between your lifestyle and your personal care. Still some people feel a regimen is irrelevant in the pursuit of healthy or long hair.
With that said we thought it would be a great idea to provide the benefits of having a hair regimen. We believe that a regimen that reflects careful consideration of what hair needs to thrive along with considerations of your lifestyle is a good start.
It Helps to Ensure Proper Nutrition
Healthy thriving hair doesn’t just happen; everything that is healthy has a feeding source, and hair is no different. If you have a sound regimen it will aid in ensuring that your hair gets what it needs when it needs it. All the nutrients needed to enrich blood to feed the follicles that will produce the hair will be made available in a good regimen. Of course, this would mean that the regimen wouldn’t be one that is purely topical, but one which has good nutrition practices incorporated.
It Helps You To Track Progress
A regimen allows you to take note of what you used, how and when you used it, and what the results were. That way, you can make informed judgments or decisions based on the assessments of what worked and what didn’t, depending on your target, and make the necessary adjustments to make sure you reach your goal. It is impossible to get conclusive evidence to indicate progress that something is effective or ineffective for you if you don’t have some type of routine but a haphazard regimen will surely give indications of shortfalls.
Helps You Hold Yourself Accountable
Do not underestimate the power of a plan for hardly has there ever been success at anything without a plan. If you can point out a success story that happened by coincidence, I guarantee you that those are anomalies and the ratio of those would drop considerably in comparison to success that started with a plan fueled by perseverance and consistency.
Following a regimen helps you to hold yourself accountable as it relates to results you are aiming for, as well as your appearance. Sure you are a whole being; not just body or hair, but how you look can affect your emotional balance. We know that hair is important in this regard; otherwise, people wouldn’t be feeding hundreds of dollars for hair related goods and services. Plus when your hair is on point you have an extra pep in your step.
A regimen helps to subdue procrastination (or at least limits its effects) because it is easier to get started on something that you already know how and when to do.
In the beginning of my hair journey, having an established routine was important because I didn’t know what I was doing. I’d had little experience with my natural hair since I’d received my first perm in 7th grade. Now that I’ve been natural for two years, I don’t have an established regimen, I just know what my hair needs. I can tell just by touching whether I need to wash or if I can get a couple more days by spritzing with water and applying a moisturizer. I can tell by how my curls react after washing that I may need to do a protein treatment next wash day or If I just need to do a hot oil treatment and co-wash. Its that familiarity with MY hair that allows me to do things as needed, without having to check things off of a list.
Like anything new, a routine is useful to have in the beginning because you are learning and it can be useful to pick out errors and what works and what doesn’t work. However like anything established, you begin to find out that there is more than one way to swing a cat and that your hair is individual to you. I say to people all the time, there is no wrong or right way, its just what suits your hair. It may sound wacky to others but who cares as long as it works for you.