With an endless gamut of hair care products cluttering shelves upon shelves in the market and an even longer list of beauty influencers sharing their must-haves on social media, it can be overwhelming to decide which hair care regimen is right for your hair type. The best hair care routine for men needs to account for your specific lifestyle as well. Even if you put hours into researching the best products for what you think your needs are, a variety of other factors such as the composition of the product, your hairstyle, daily routine, and general misinformation about your own hair type can produce less-than-desired results.
Why bother with the Best Hair Care Routine for Men?
Getting into a hair care routine is just like embarking on a skincare regime. Once you’ve hit upon the one that works for you, you’ll find it hard to stop. After all, who doesn’t desire a full head of beautiful and glossy hair? However, the pathway to that elusive hair care regime that actually works is daunting. With countless products catering to the same hair type, making the right choice seems almost impossible.
Breakdown of What You Need to Know to Opt for the Right Hair Care Routine
You don’t need to splurge on luxury or prescription products to take control of your hair issues, but consulting a professional dermatologist can help educate you on the products that might work best for you.
Know Your Hair Type
We just can’t stress it enough! You need to start with the basics. Misinformation abounds on the internet when it comes to different types of men’s hair. Men have quite a few types of hair and no single article covers it all! To add to the confusion, quite a few hair type names are misleading and refer to a single kind of hair; so it is quite impossible to conclusively number the types of men’s hair.
We have tried to find some pattern in this chaos and have come up with this simplified guide to different hair types. Hairs can usually be classified into types based on two categories: Hair Texture and Hair Thickness.
Classification of Men’s Hair on Basis of Texture
There are four basic types of hair on the basis of texture:
- Straight Hair
- Wavy Hair
- Curly Hair
- Afro Hair
Before we delve deeper into it, the basic test for determining your hair type per texture is to let your hair grow up to 4 inches. The hair types in men become readily apparent on the basis of follicle characteristics.
Straight Hair
One might think that straight hair implies that hair strands will be neat and organized. However, there is more to the straight hair type in men than the name lets on. Straight hair might be just like it sounds: neatly arranged and orderly styled. But that is only possible if the hair thickness is fine to normal. However, if the hair follicles are bristly and stiff, the overall look can be rather unkempt.
Wavy Hair
Wavy hair can be curvy right at the beginning of the follicle growth or can have a wider wave pattern running through hair. Such hair are mostly frizzy and are moderately to extremely difficult, rather stubborn when it comes to hair management.
Curly Hair
The only thing that sets the curly hair apart from the wavy hair type in men is the presence of tightly curled coils. The curls may be loose or tight but never a wavy or undulating S like shape as seen in wavy hair type. Curly hair follicles in men are mostly textured and curly-haired men have a head full of wondrous hair.
Afro Hair
Afro hair type in men is characterized by defined afro-textured hair with tightly packed curls. The hair look vibrant and full and it is difficult to tell individual strands of hair apart. The hair is textured and requires extra care to manage it.
Classification of Men Hair on Basis of Fullness
On the basis of the fullness of your head, men hair may be listed into three categories:
- Thin Hair
- Normal Hair
- Thick Hair
It is time to learn more about it all!
Thin Hair
Thin hair type is characterized by the presence of thin or fine hair strands with scalp showing through. The overall look of thin hair is rather lifeless; even new hair growth is scant. Hair follicle itself is brittle and prone to breakage. Men with thin hair type are usually genetically disposed towards male pattern baldness or alopecia. Male pattern baldness is associated with androgens, male sexual hormones that regulate hair growth.
Each hair follicle on human head follows a growth cycle. This growth cycle is unregulated and begins to weaken in those suffering from male pattern baldness whereby the hair shrinks, resulting in shorter and thinner strands. Ultimately, if untreated, the growth cycle comes to a complete stop and no new hair replaces the damaged and broken follicles. Given the psychological impact of thinning hair and baldness, it is important to diagnose the underlying cause of the thinning or falling hair and treat it accordingly.
Normal Hair
Normal hair type in men is characterized by healthy hair with normal thickness of the hair strand. The name makes the haircare for normal hair in men in sound pretty straightforward and simple, but nothing could be further from the truth. If a man with normal hair type, in hopes of adding some volume to his head, tries a volumizing shampoo, all hell breaks loose.
The best way to treat normal hair is to stick to natural ingredients and organic products.
Thick Hair
Men with thick hair have flatter hair strands, often textured, through which scalp barely peeks through. Who doesn’t want a mane of luxurious, thick, full head? As tempting as it sounds, caring for thick hair in men is nothing short of a nightmare.
The only way to tame as advised by most hairdressers? Slather with conditioner! But the downside to it is that the conditioners make hair even thicker.
Essential Men’s Hair Care Routine That Will Transform Your Outlook
Now that you have read a bit (just kidding)… immersed yourself completely in this world of hair types for men, it is time to ascertain the hair care routine for men that actually works!
Men Hair Care Routine for Straight Hair
The best way to ensure proper hair care is to go for regular hair wash. By regular we mean two to three washes every week. Washing your hair frequently will strip off all the good oils and leave them dry and brittle. Straight hair, especially fine-textured, will become oily sooner and stick to the scalp. It is best to keep your scalp oil-free by cleaning it regularly.
Since straight hair tend to sit flat atop your skull, it is best to use a volumizing shampoo like Baxter of California Daily Fortifying Shampoo for Men to add a more bounce to your mop.
Another pro trick is to use spray on volumizer to bring your hair alive. Our personal favourite is the Briogeo Blossom & Bloom Ginseng Biotin Spray.
Men Hair Care Routine for Wavy Hair
The most important aspect of taking care of wavy hair is to ensure proper moisturizing.
Deep conditioning mositurizers do the trick! We recommend using a moisturizing shampoo like American Crew Daily Moisturizing Shampoo and complement with a deep conditioning solution like Shea Moisture Strengthen & Restore Leave-In Conditioner.
Pro Tip
If you want to control the frizz and bring a semblance of and organized, beautiful mane of hair, opt for a hair styling wax for men like V76 by Vaughn V RATED NATURAL WAX Light Hold Formula for Men, the woody scented product provides hold while softening your strands.
Men Hair Care Routine for Curly Hair
Let’s start with what you shouldn’t do if you are a man with curly hair. Avoid hairdryer. Chuck it outta that window. All you need to dry your hair is a clean towel. Want to go pro? Tap your hair dry instead of rubbing the towel vigorously through your hair.
Avoid shampooing it too often and opt for moisturizing shampoos. Ouidad Advanced Climate Control Defrizzing Shampoo is an all-rounder that helps your curls withstand humidity, heat, and other frizz-causing factors.
Pro Tip: You can style your hair with a styling cream like American Crew Fiber that is deal for thick and curly hair as they contain natural oils or silk amino acids to add a natural shine and control.
Do you prefer a short hair style? To give your curly hair an extra bounce, go for a curl enhancing mousse like Design Essentials Natural Curl Enhancing Mousse.
Men Hair Care Routine for Afro Hair
The key to caring for afro hair is keeping it moisturized and opting for a simple hair care routine to support your natural hair growth. Keep your scalp free from any build up and you are good to rock that wonderful mane of textured hair.
Pro Tip
Nourish your natural hair with a hair oil like Poppy Austin Pure Argan Oil for Hair.
Want to style them into stylish hairdos? Opt for a hair pomade like Baxter of California Soft Water Pomade for Men.
Other important aspects of hair care are supplements and hairstyling which also play a significant role in developing a hair care routine for specific hair types. We also have a ton of expert pro tips that will help you opt for the best hair care regime for men. Look forward to our next post for expert tips coming your way!