Living the Australian dream switching between the pool and the beach all summer long? This plan sounds amazing on paper but clocking up those hours puts strain on your hair and skin.
Swimming is fantastic at promoting weight loss as the exercise allows you to engage with every muscle in your body, depending on the type of stroke you are doing. The perfect summer exercise to tone your figure but not so perfect to hydrate your hair and complexion. The culprit? Chlorine. So how does it affect your body?
It leads to dehydrated hair with a loss of shine, breakage and split ends, and also causes your complexion to look dull and in some instances causes breakouts from the aggressive chemical compounds.
Looking After Your Hair
Before You Swim:
- Rinsing your hair first in a shower will ensure your strands don’t soak up as much of the chlorine, as they are already full of non-chlorinated water.
- Apply a hair treatment or leave-in conditioner before swimming to lock in hydration.
- For the serious swimmers out there, using a swimming cap is best. Bonus: you can apply a hair treatment to the ends of your hair before putting on the cap.
After You Swim:
- Rinse your hair off as soon as you get out of the pool to get out some of the chlorine.
- For a more natural treatment, rinse your hair with apple cider vinegar as it deeply penetrates to remove the chlorine.
- Lather your locks in an oil treatment such as argan oil or coconut oil.
- Beware use specific products that remove chlorine sparingly as they can sometimes strip the hair completely.
BUY: Sachajuan Intensive Hair Oil, $58, Sephora Australia.
Looking After Your Skin
Before You Swim:
- Having a quick rinse before your dip will help lock in moisture and prevent dehydrated skin from occurring.
After You Swim:
- Shower with warm water straight after the swim to open the pores and prepare them for hydration.
- Lemon juice is a natural way to remove the chlorine smell from the skin.
- But for a more cleansing approach, deeply exfoliate the skin and lather it in moisturiser.
BUY: Clinique Moisture Surge Hydrating Supercharged Concentrate, $69, David Jones.
Chlorine may be great at getting rid of bacteria- but it doesn’t stop getting rid of hydration. Beware ladies!
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