I've slowly become addicted to a low-poo.
I know, I'm ashamed.
It started out pretty innocently. I had some issue with an ingredient in January - maybe oils? I needed to remove it. My brother was visiting and his newly-acquired low-poo was the only one in the house. It felt nice on my scalp, and it removed everything. My hair wasn't that dry afterward. In fact, my curls perked up some.
Fast forward to February. The weather went CRAZY and was wreaking havoc on my hair. I needed to remove some build-up, and what do you know? The same shampoo was on sale that week. Huh. So I picked up a bottle of Organix Pomegranate Green Tea. At this point I decided to try that root-lift trick Lorraine Massey talked about in the 2nd edition of the CG Handbook. I added some Ecostyler gel to the shampoo and carefully massaged it into my scalp. Not only did it remove build-up, but it really gave my roots some lift!
The next wash, I added the Ecostyler to my V05 conditioner. No bueno.
I went back to my usual routine with V05 conditioner. I started getting build-up on my scalp again. Not serious build-up, but it just didn't seem clean.
So I tried the Organix/Ecostyler combination again. Et voila! Clean scalp and root lift! I was sold.
And I feel like I've sold out.
Don't get me wrong. I know that lots of curlies have been using low-poo regularly for years. And that Massey even re-defined the CG label to include sulfate-free cleansers. So technically, I'm still CG.
But being shampoo-free was something special for me. It was almost like a bragging right. I'm the curl "expert" in my family and when asked, I could say "I don't use shampoo!" "I now only use a sulfate-free cleanser!" doesn't have the same ring.
When I started CG almost three years ago, going shampoo-free was something to be proud of. I remember being in awe of a member on NC who had gone a whole year without shampoo. Even before this little addiction, I still had to clarify every now and then, so I never achieved this. But it was something to aspire to.
I'm at the point where I low-poo about once a week. And my scalp doesn't feel very clean on the days I co-wash. It's not oily or anything; it just feels like I didn't get all the conditioner off, even though I scrub pretty well. Meh.
I really do love the root lift I'm getting from the added Ecostyler though. I'm not sure why it doesn't work with the conditioner on co-wash days. Just the low-poo. It's gotten even better since my hair-cut. I haven't tried another gel.
Anyway, I thought it was time to come clean (ha). I'm not sure if this will be a permanent fixture in my routine, or if I'll switch it up when summer rolls around. I had a really good summer last year with co-washing, so it may be a weather thing. I guess we'll see.
4 comments:
There are weeks where I low-poo every day (especially on weeks where I work out a lot) and there are weeks where I only low-poo before my PT.
When i first started CG, I was really gung-ho about being strict with myself and not using ANY shampoos or anything that even remotely resembled straying from the CG path that I had carefully researched.
And then I learned, after a month of truly unfortunate hair days, that my wavy hair needs a bit of low-poo every now and again.
After I started low-pooing, I felt sort of like an impostor on the NC boards, but then, after talking to a lot of other low-pooers, I realized that I'm in good company, that I'm still as much of a CGer as are people who only cowash.
You can still be proud about your hair. It still looks good and you're still a step ahead of every body else by using non damaging things on your hair. You're still caring for it carefully. Even though it may take a bit to get used to the idea of incorporating a low-poo, even if it isn't for the long term, just know that you aren't alone, haha. No worries.
Haha, thanks! It's good to know I'm not alone.
It's weird because I never really used a low-poo before now. When I had build-up, I used a sulfate shampoo and dealt with crappy hair for a few days while it rebounded. I never thought my hair could look better using shampoo vs a co-wash. So when other people around NC were loving their low-poos, I didn't really believe it. Now I'm sad that it took me this long to figure it out!
How interesting! I just did a low poo today and whereas before my hair has always hated any kind of shampoo, this time it perked my curls up and did a nice job of "deep cleaning". I really like the results, I may start low pooing regularly! So what's the gel root lift trick?? Do tell!
I should do a post on it! Basically, you add gel to your low-poo, and then apply to scalp as normal. I add about the same amount of gel as low-poo. The lift is not consistent all the way around the crown and front of my head, but it's definitely noticeable.
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