4 Benefits of Protective Styling

A protective style is when you wear your hair in a way that keeps it protected (in particular, your fragile ends). A few examples of protective styles include kinky twists, weaves, box braids and wigs. I’ve been wearing protective styles since June and plan to continue to wear them throughout the remainder of fall and winter. Continue reading to learn four benefits of incorporating protective styling in your hair care regimen.1. Low manipulation = Less breakage = Hair growthProtective styles are oftentimes referred to as low manipulation styles. When you wear these types of styles your real hair (in particular your ends) is “protected” and is less susceptible to damage. The less you manipulate your hair, the less breakage you will have which means the more your hair will grow.2. Helps avoid “hand in hair” syndromeIf you’re like me, you touch your hair more often than you need to. Did you know that constantly touching and/or rubbing your hair (especially in the same spot) can cause breakage? Wearing protective styles such as braids or a weave will prevent you from causing damage to your hair.3. Saves timeI don’t know about you, but for me in the mornings when I’m getting ready for work I like to sleep as long as possible, which doesn’t always leave much time for me to do my hair. With protective styling, however, it usually doesn’t take long at all to “do” your hair because it’s mostly already done (depending on what type of style you’re wearing). If I’m wearing crotchet braids or makeda twist, I just put an oil or cream on my hair, fluff, and go. If I’m wearing kinky twists or box braids, I’ll add oil to my scalp, put them in a simple style, and go. It’s really easy and saves a lot of time!4. You can work out and still keep a nice hairstyleI empathize with women whose hair shrinks tremendously as a result of changes in humidity, exposure to rainy weather, and sweat from working out. I can blow out my hair and have a beautiful elongated twist out. However, after I work out and the shrinkage has overtaken my entire hairstyle, my twist out suddenly looks like a “twa” (teeny weeny afro). The struggle is real! However, I refuse to sacrifice my health in order to have a nice hairstyle everyday. I do realize that the only thing preventing many women from working out and getting control of their overall health is the fact that they do not want to sweat and ruin a style that they spent a lot of money on. Nevertheless, with protective styling, you don’t have to worry about that. If you’re wearing a style like box braids or marley twists, working out will not alter your style. You can still have nice hair!What are your thoughts? Do you incorporate protective styling in your hair care regimen? How does protective styling benefit you? Let me know in the comments below.