HRC Phase 1 results reveals slow hair growth

In the beginning of this year, I put myself on a Hair Retaining Challenge (HRC) to see how much hair I could retain for the first half of the year. I hoped to achieve around 3 inches of hair by June, which is typically the average length of hair many usually retain during this period of time. To save my ends and retain length, I vowed to engage in a Long Term (LT) protective styling for the entire 6 months by putting my hair in braids for a period of 3-4 weeks and have my hair out for about 1 week. I called this plan, the 4-1 Mane Action Plan. Since my hair breaks easily with the lightest touch, I knew I could reduce breakage by putting my hair away for 3 weeks. I also knew that I could retain length by taking care of my braids, so that my hair doesn't dry out and break off when I take the braids out.

So, I gathered my length check pictures in the first two years of my healthy hair journey and hoped I could do better this time around. Well, i'm disappointed to say that I didn't do as well as I thought I would but I sure had fun in my struggles.

Curl Formers/Straightened/ Shrunken Fro

I struggle with slow growth and i'm not ashamed to share it. I know many women achieve the same length I managed to retain in 6 months in just 2-3months, which is great. But as for me, I am happy that my growth wasn't stagnant, which is a common occurrence with many Black women who neglect the health of their hair.

I am not on a schedule or timeline, and so there is no rush for me. Instead of lamenting on my slow growth and wondering why my hair isn't growing as fast as other girls on YT, I will instead enjoy the hair I have now and continue to take care of it.

Will I eventually reach Bra Strap Length (BSL) by the end of the summer or someday?
I say  YES!

Do you have slow growth? What do you do to retain more length?