How I've Trained My Hair To Need Less Washing

Sometimes there are not enough hours in the day, and when it's hair wash day, it feels like the day is gone. I do like hair wash day though, there's no better feeling than having clean and shiny hair. However, I'm a busy woman and I don't have the time to wash my hair so frequently. Even if I did, I wouldn't want to wash my hair every day as it's just so unhealthy to do that. I want healthy hair, well, to be as healthy as it can be. 

Hair products Olaplex and John Freida


In my late teens/early twenties, I would wash my hair every other day. I would also blow dry and use my straightening iron. Even though I used plenty of heat protection spray, I knew I wasn't doing my hair any good. Nowadays, I can go 8 days without washing it. I know, mad right?! So, how can you train your hair to be washed less during your week? 

Here are the ways I've trained my hair to need less washing:

1) Wash it less often

I know that seems like the most obvious thing to say, but there is a method you can try which has worked for me. For example, if you wash your hair every day, then go a week or two where you wash it every other day. Then once you start noticing that your hair feels and looks fine and non-greasy on your supposed hair wash day, leave it another day. Then repeat these steps to the point where you reach a satisfactory period between hair wash days. I hope to god that makes sense to you all! I've been following this method for years and, as I said, I can go 8 days without needing to clean my hair. That does make my life a lot easier! There are some weeks however when I can't wait until day 8 to wash my hair eg. work etc. But that's ok, it's not very often that happens!
Washing it less often means your hair kind of learns to produce less oil, which in turn means it looks less greasy in between hair washes. That does help to make hair so much healthier!

A woman swishing her hair

2) Dry shampoo is a lifesaver

I, like so many others, time my hair wash days around work. Dry shampoo is a lifesaver for when I need to go to work or even run errands. Spraying a little bit on my roots and underneath my layers really gives my hair a bit of oomph. It helps my hair survive until I get to wash it!

3) Using the right products for my hair

Using the right hair products has really helped my hair extensively. It's good to find out what your hair needs are in order to keep it healthy. I usually swap and shift with shampoos and conditioners according to things like the weather, environment, season, damage etc. I like to use products that add moisture and shine to my hair. Also, I make sure to use heat protection spray before and during styling. 

4) Make sure to use a clean brush/comb daily

This is a trick I learned online. We all have that hair brush which is more hair than brush. I know I do! Cleaning your brush daily does make sense though. Brushing my hair with a brush which has previous dirty hair tangled on the bristles would obviously make my hair a little greasier more quickly. So yes, clean your brushes/combs daily!

Hair products Olaplex and John Freida


5) Try not to use styling tools on it every day

Heat on hair is not a good combination, even if heat styling tools help to make your hair look fabulous. I have stopped using tools like my straighteners when I'm stuck at home all day. There's no point in straightening it when I don't plan on going anywhere! Even for work, I put my hair up in a ponytail. It definitely helps to keep my hair cleaner in between washes. Even if I do get the infamous ponytail dent. 


6) Double shampooing is key

Since I started double shampooing my hair, I have noticed the difference in how clean and less greasy my hair looks eg after day 5. Currently, I am using John Freida Frizz Ease Flawlessly Straight Shampoo and also the John Freida Brilliant Brunette shampoo. Both work to help my hair with frizz and keep my colour in respectively. 
For my conditioner, I use Olaplex No 5. I also use the John Freida Frizz Ease All in One Serum. Below are some of the other products I use to help keep my hair as clean as possible in between washes. For heat protection, I use the John Freida Heat Protection Spray
I'd love to know how many times a week you wash your hair? Have you tried the tips I've spoken about here? Let me know!


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34 comments
  1. Hi Lucy,

    I don't have as much hair these days as I did in my youth. And what remains is kept very short (#1 clippers). As a result, I can go for ages without washing what's left and it always looks the same!

    However, to add some more useful content the comment I've discussed your post with my wife. Her hair takes ages to do (washing, products, drying) so she's very interested in these tips and will give them a go.

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    1. I'm glad your wife has taken these tips on board Richie! Thank you for reading and commenting!

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  2. Fab tips! I need to train my hair to need washing less often especially now I have a newborn! I'm currently at every three days but eight is amazing!
    Amy x
    callmeamy.co.uk

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    1. I think training your hair to need less washing will definitely come in handy now you have a newborn! x

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  3. Great tips Lucy! I've been training my hair to go longer in between washes for years now and it definitely helps to keep your hair healthy. I love the tip about using a clean hair brush. I think most of us forget about that one, but it's huge! Thank you for sharing!

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    1. It really does keep your hair in such better condition when not washing it so much! Yeah it's one tip I learned online a while ago and it's a game changer!

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  4. I wash my hair twice a week and rely on dry shampoo in between! Thank you for sharing these tips, Lucy x

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    1. Dry shampoo is such a life saver in between hair washes! x

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  5. I’m terrible and wash my hair every other day. I need to try some of these tips! Will definitely try the double shampoo one! Never even thought about how a hair brush can cause your hair to become more greasy! Great tips! - Charlotte

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    1. Double shampooing your hair will be a real game changer for you Charlotte!

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  6. Great tips for those that want to go longer between washes. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. I'm washing my hair less often these days, and these are fab tips!
    xoxo
    Lovely
    www.mynameislovely.com

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    1. It's so much better to wash hair less often! x

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  8. I have to usually wash my hair every other day. But I want to train my hair to make sure I don’t have to do that. These are some good ideas. I got my hair cut yesterday and the hairdressers washed my hair twice. So I will give it a go! Thank you for sharing.

    Lauren - www.bournemouthgirl.com

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    1. It's worth giving it a go Lauren, especially if you want to cut down the amount of times you wash your hair per week!

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  9. These are all amazing tips! I really need to train my hair to be washed less as I noticed that mostly in the last few years, I went from twice a week to every other day and my hair really suffer from it, will give these a try for sure x

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    1. Washing your hair every other day can make it a little dry, that's what happened to mine when I washed it every other day! x

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  10. Great tips, thank you for sharing, Lucy! I used to be guilty of over washing my hair and started to train myself to wash less often. I want to drop eventually drop down to washing once a week but for now, I wash only 2x a week. I really need to invest in a good dry shampoo!

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    1. I'm glad you have trained yourself to wash your hair twice a week now! Dry shampoo is the best!

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  11. I'm at the twice a week stage which I find really manageable, I don't think I could go back to doing it more frequently now

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    1. That's good that you find it more manageable washing your hair twice a week Alice!

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  12. I don't wash my hair often and I try to remember double shampooing. I like the feeling of the freshness after a wash. These are great tips x

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    1. There's nothing better than having freshly washed hair! x

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  13. Very helpful tips and definitely irritates when I cannot wash my hair in time

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    1. I'm glad you found these tips helpful lovely!

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  14. These are great tips! When I was younger, I would wash my hair every day, but then I learned that washing your hair every day isn't good! Now I wash my hair around twice a week. I agree dry shampoo is a lifesaver, but I didn't about double shampooing so I'll definitely have to try that out!

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    1. I used to wash my hair every other day and I never realised how bad it was for my hair! Definitely try double-shampooing your hair Karalee!

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  15. Love these tips. The majority of them I knew about, but when it comes to it I very rarely do them. Cleaning the hairbrush is a big one for me. Eeep! I forget to do it SO often. Also dry shampoo is a life saver! Haha. X

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    1. Cleaning the hair brush daily is one I need to keep reminding myself to do as it does help massively! x

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  16. Amazing post Lucy, I've been working the past couple years to stretch between washing my hair and can now do close to 3-4 days most of the time. Cleaning my hair brush daily was such a game changer for me, and using a boar bristle brush to move around any oil I found also helped it stay clean longer! Thanks for this post :)

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    1. Thank you Alex! That's good that you wash your hair every 3-4 days, I need to try boar bristle brush! x

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  17. Took me a long time to train my hair to do this. Now I wash my hair once a week x

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    1. That's good that you have trained your hair to be washed only once a week! x

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