You love your hair, maybe more than anything else in the world. But you could hardly stop feeling a little hatred for your gorgeous, loveable free locks when they ruin your Joyce swims. Getting into the way – into the eyes – and making you feel burdened on the head is annoying. Especially in a competitive environment, you need to stay calm and confident. But those free strands can make all your efforts go in vain.
These aren’t the only reasons you need to keep your hair dry when swimming – saving it from the potential dangers of chlorine and salt water is among your top priorities. With all that in mind, we’ve crafted a step-by-step guide about what you can do before, during, and after swimming to keep – even a single strand dry!
Moreover, you’ll find some really useful products to help you get the job done perfectly, and answers to the most relevant frequently asked important questions at the end.
How to Keep Hair Dry When Swimming: A Step-by-step Guide
Amongst different methods, some don’t require any additional aid, either from a person or a product, and some may need you to use a particular item to lock in those interfering locks!
1. Keep Your Head Above the Water
Pretty obvious is the fact that the head outside the water will remain dry. But the only problem with this method is: that all the swimming techniques you’ve learned involve underwater head positions and coming up only to breathe. And if you’ve already tried head-above-the-water techniques, we bet you would have an unfulfilling swimming experience and tired shoulders and neck.
The solution? First, learn, then apply! Indeed it’s not the time to explain all those keeping-head-out-of-water techniques in this article, but this YouTube video can prepare you to perform like a pro!
If your hair is longer than shoulder length, you won’t like staying as much higher as your hair goes downwards. You simply need to tie your hair like a bun using a hair band or a ponytail so that you can keep your hair at maximum height from water.
You need the type that completely protects your hair from water with different bun-tying varieties. For example, buns like a braided bun, a ballerina bun, or a topknot keep your hair away from the water. On the contrary, buns like regular braids, french braids, or fishtail braids are best to help keep your hair tangle-free, but these might not keep your hair dry.
2. Keep Your Hair Dry When You’re Entirely Inside!
If you neither like watching around when swimming nor tying your hair up, adding a few more items to your swimming kit can help. This added help is worth taking, whether you want a dry-head swimming or a calmer mind when swimming in a competition.
These ways include:
Use Swim Caps
A swim cap, aka bathing cap, is a tightly fitted, skin-tight garment commonly made from silicone. Not only is this cap worn to keep your hair dry when swimming, but it’s also worn for recreational and competitive purposes.
Simply searching ‘swim caps’ on the web can bring about lots of its types, leaving you confused about which to choose. Though the purpose of each class is the same, there can be some differing points regarding your comfort levels, durability and flexibility of the material used, and the ability to resist water from touching your hair. Therefore, we’ve just narrowed down some of the types, which brands we consider to be the best, and the pros and cons for each one below.
a. Silicone Cap
This Speedo Unisex-Adult Swim Cap is silicone, skin contact safe, durable, flexible, and soft to the touch. Stronger and more durable than most other materials, these caps are designed to be wrinkle-free, meaning their smooth surface puts the least drag onto your skin in the water.
Why You Should Buy it
- Its thick material makes it long-lasting and keeps your head warm
- It protects your precious hair from chlorine effects
- Doesn’t create allergic impacts
- often becomes the choice of demanding people due to its shiny, smooth texture
Things to Keep in Mind
- It may be more costly than other materials
- The thick material may feel a bit irritating and tighter on the head
- The tightness may hinder head movement
b. Neoprene Cap
Neoprene is a petroleum or limestone-derived, bouncy synthetic rubber made by every other market wetsuit. A neoprene cap is designed for cold water swimming. It protects the scalp, ears, and chin from cold water impacts.
Why You Should Buy it
- Provides warmth and is durable due to its thick material
- Its rubber-like material offers insulating properties
Things to Keep in Mind
- Observed to be a costly material
- It May irritate due to its dense material
- Its cold water-specific characteristic makes it less demanding
c. Lycra/Spandex Cap
Made of lycra and polyester materials, the lycra cap is precisely what conventional swimsuits make. Lycra’s ‘SOFT COMFORT’ technology is the perfect choice for people who care about comfort. This material provides soft stretch and increased flexibility, which means it doesn’t feel tighter to the head.
Why You Should Buy it
- Its material is more comfortable than silicone and latex
- It resists heat while swimming in hot water
- Unlike silicone caps, its edges don’t stick together
Things to Keep in Mind
- Isn’t protective in the cold water swimming
- Its thin material may not fully protect hair from chlorine effects
- More costly than other materials
- Becomes loose earlier
d. Latex/Rubber Cap
To be straightforward, latex is rubber containing around 55% water and 40% rubber. It’s the product of the soft white substance found beneath the bark of a mature rubber tree. This cap usually contains a uniform color and smells like rubber or a balloon.
Why You Should Buy it
- Inexpensive than other materials
- It’s tight enough to hold and carry hair away from the face
- Protects hair from swimming pool chemicals
- More comfortable than silicone and neoprene
- Makes managing goggles easier during swimming
Things to Keep in Mind
- It is observed that some people are allergic to latex; that’s why silicone gets its growth.
- It may live short-term due to its thin material.
Fitting a Swim Cap: A Quick Roundup
- Wear your swim cap over wet hair to help it fit easier and sustain fit for longer.
- Hold the cap by the sides, lean your head forward, and start putting it on by pulling the cap over your forehead.
- Carry on working it down until it reaches your head back.
- If you have long hair, then leave your hair out to the back while pulling the cap. When the cap is halfway, twist up the rest of the hair inside the cap. Try to put it in the cap as evenly as possible so that the cap still has a good seal.
- Avoid putting your hair up in buns or ponytails as it doesn’t seal the cap correctly, creating a point in your cap that may let water in.
3. Wear A Shower Cap Under the Swim Cap
A swim cap may not be enough to resist water. We don’t say this, but this may be your inner voice. Wearing a shower cap under your swim cap may clear doubts!
Interestingly, a shower cap could be a thing of some extra support while pursuing your goal of keeping your hair dry. When swimming in cold water, a shower cap reduces the chance of your hair getting wet by absorbing the moisture caused by condensation. It also enhances the warmth of the skull in the cold water swimming. But sometimes, it causes odor, itching, and dandruff in hair.
4. Put on A Waterproof Headband
As the name suggests, this is a kind of headband that doesn’t let water touch your hair. However, would this band be enough to keep your hair dry? Nope. This band will go hand in hand with the swim cap you’ve put on. From your forehead and making its way through your ears to the head back, this band covers your entire head circumference. While you’re wearing the swim cap, this band creates an extra layer of sealing all through the swim cap edges, eliminating any little chance of water touching your hair.
Additionally, there’s something more this band has to protect your ears. Made of silicone, neoprene, and latex, these bands provide ear protection by extending the swim cap’s length or if worn alone. Want to enjoy your favorite music inside the water? Let the band hold earplugs in.
Also Read: How to Dry Your Hair When Camping?
Frequently Asked Questions
Do You Cover Your Ears With A Swim Cap?
As far as you’re concerned about your ear safety, along with keeping your hair dry when swimming, you do need to cover your ears with a swim cap. These caps are designed with flexible materials not only to fit tightly onto the head, but they could also to cover your ears if stretched a bit more downwards.
Why Do Swimmers Wear Two Caps?
This combination of two caps consists of a swim cap and a shower cap. Primarily, swim caps allow swimmers to keep their hair dry when swimming, while a shower cap adds an extra layer to prevent water from touching the hair. The shower cap also provides warmth to the swimmers’ heads, especially when swimming in cold water.
Does Silicone Swim Caps Pull Hair?
Silicone swimming caps pull hair because of their thick material. They’re used for their durability and tightness. To overcome this issue, swimmers should wear any other relevant cap under a silicone cap.
Final Thoughts
So, keeping your hair dry when swimming isn’t as hard as you think. A few helping products, their proper use, and some tips and tricks can get the job done! Wishing you the best of luck for each passionate swimming session.