How To Pre-poo For An Easy Wash Day

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Want a smoother wash day?  Pre-poo before you shampoo!

So I have a lot of natural type 4 hair which means wash day can present quite the challenge.  I also have two daughters with A LOT of natural type 4 hair (4c to be exact), and I gotta tell ya--wash day is their least favorite day of the week LOL. 

However, through trial and error I have found an excellent routine that helps to ease the anxiety of the dreaded shampoo day, and it's all due to the pre-poo!

Pre-poo is simply preparing the hair before cleansing.  The idea is to use oils and/or conditioners to saturate the hair before you cleanse.  This helps to soften the strands by adding moisture, thus making detangling a breeze.  This step also gives the hair a slight coating, which prevents detergents and surfactants found in shampoo from stripping the hair dry.

There are pre-poo treatments that you can purchase, but it's really simple to make your own.

I've found that a combination of cream conditioner and oil works best.  Simply use your favorite moisturizer or conditioner, and a generous amount of your favorite oil.  Some popular ones are coconut, olive, sweet almond and grape seed oil. 

 1.  You can either mix the oil and conditioner together in a bowl and apply or add it to your hair directly, starting with the oil.  The amount you need will depend on your hair's density.

2.  Apply to your while dry and cover with a plastic cap.  You can let this sit for at least 20 minutes.

3. After the processing time, use a wide tooth comb or Denman brush and begin to detangle, starting from the ends and working up to the roots.  You may need to part your hair into 4 sections to make detangling easier. 

4. Now you are ready to shampoo!  Follow your normal shampoo routine.  I Like to shampoo in the shower to keep the hair flowing in the same downward direction.  Be sure to use downward raking motions with your fingers or shampoo brush to avoid tangling at the root.

5. After rinsing the shampoo completely, condition as normal.  Rinse the conditioner with cool water to close the cuticle!

And that's it.  It may seem like you are adding extra steps, but I guarantee this will make life so much easier and ultimately save time. Softening and detangling your hair BEFORE adding water to the equation will make for a stress-free and dare I say, enjoyable wash day.  

Have you incorporated pre-pooing in your hair care regimen?  Let us know how it works for you!