Last November, I realized that I unfortunately won't be meeting my 2012 hair goal by December. So instead of feeling sorry for myself, I decided to sit down and do a Mane Review on my hair practices for that year and previous years. In my review, I noticed that the reason for my hair growth failure was mainly due to breakage which was a result of frequent hair manipulation. I have tried keeping my hair in braids for weeks at a time, but had been unsuccessful. So I had no choice but to resort to changing up my style every week. But if LT (long term) and ST (short term) protective hair styling didn't work for my hair, what would? I knew for sure that frequent hair manipulation wasn't working for my hair as it does for other natural sisters. I mean, how do you guys manage to change your hair up every week or sometimes daily and still retain length?
Instead of giving up and shaving my hair off, I decided to put my mane on a fresh mane experiment, which is the 4-1 (4 dash 1) Mane Action Plan.
What is a 4-1 Mane Action Plan?
A plan where I put my hair in some sort of style, using extensions for 4 weeks at a time and then taking the extensions out to let my hair rest for 1 week Leaving my hair out for 1 week will also allow me to do a deep conditioning on my loose hair.
The reason why I chose 4 weeks is because I've noticed that I lost a lot of hair when I leave my hair in a style for more than 4 weeks and also because I start getting bored of the style and miss my hair greatly.
Why this plan?
I know for sure that ST protective hair styling doesn't work well for the "well-aged" ends, and I don't have the patience or time to be changing up my style each week and spending the extra time at night putting the hair away and more time in the morning dressing it up. I know that reducing the weekly mechanical manipulation will give my ends a break, resulting in maximum hair retention. See my hair loss starts from the time I take down an old hair style & detangle, wash & deep condition and finally, style. I have to confess that about 35% of the hair loss is breakage, and a good portion of the total hair loss comes off during styling (I can even hear and feel them breaking off). So this shows that I can reduce the amount of weekly hair loss by skipping this process for about 3 weeks at a time.
Hair loss at three stages. I'll leave you to figure out which bunch of hair is lost at a particular stage.
What do I do to my hair while it's in extensions?
I wash and deep condition my hair every two weeks, this new practice will allow me to spend what would have been a "hair spa time" on other activities every other week. It will also leave my hair looking as neat as possible during the 4 weeks. Washing hair in braids (or other style) can roughen the aesthetics of the style, which is why many women won't wash their hair when it's in a style. Anyway, every week, twice a week, I will spritz (not drench) my hair with water, apply a leave-in and seal with heavy butter (my whipped shea butter). So through out the 4 weeks, my hair would have been washed and deep conditioned twice, and sealed for a total of 8 times. The second wash and DC (deep condition) is done the day before I take the extensions out of my hair. This final DC smooth, softens and moisturizes the hair, which then reduces hair breakage during the take down process. Also washing my hair prior to taking the extensions out frees me from having wash and DC my loose hair which takes a bit longer.
What do I do to my hair during the one week period?
I often twist the hair after taking it down and might rock a loose a hairstyle for 3-4days ; my go to hair style is a roll, tuck and pin. At the end of the week, I'll do a protein and/or a moisturizing DC on my loose hair. I may or may not use a shampoo, depending on the type of treatment i'm doing and the kind of products I used on my hair that week.
How has this plan been working out for me so far?
I say it's been working out REAL GOOD. Going the extra step and spending the time on my braided hair has been worth it. I have to confess that the main reason I use to loose a lot hair to LT protective styling was due to the absence of these techniques.
**This picture proofs to me that my plan works and I plan to keep practicing it until the end of the HRC Phase 1
What Mane Action Plan have you practiced or are currently practicing? You are also welcome to try mine :)
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