I have this debate all of the time. It doesn't help that I'm extremely lazy about cutting/styling/dealing with my hair. Until I moved to the East Coast, where frozen weather prevented the leaving the house with wet hair, I didn't even own a blow dryer. (I told that to a stylist once and I thought he was going to faint.)

I used to keep my hair long because I felt like I had to be able to put it back in a ponytail for tri, but finally after one too many hot days in the summer I decided to get it cut shorter and accidentally discovered that a short-ish (chin-length) layered cut works GREAT for triathlon - it dries fast and is easy to style. Plus it stays out of my face when I'm running, biking, can be tucked under a swim cap, etc.

Let us know what you end up with!

M

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The beatings will continue until morale improves

Mines kind of in layers, with the longest layer coming down to right below my ear near my jawbone. Shortest layer is about nose length...a picofraction of an inch away from being "bangs" :p

I actually find this (layered bob?) easier than longer hair. I can stuff it under a swim cap, or under my helmet or a hat. It doesn't require much, if any maintenance, and is always out of my face that way.

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mmm-mmm-Momo Charms
Handmade beverage charms, jewelry, and miscellanea
http://momocharms.wordpress.com

I cut my long hair off and HATE IT. Long hair was much easier and you didn't get the gross helmet hair look. Never blew it dry, just pulled it back and let it air dry, shake it out and it has a lot of wave, so it was like wild Brasilian hair. Now I have old lady hair. I'm growing it back.

clm

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

I used to have really long curley hair, half way down my back, and tied it up into a ponytail. I got really sick of it getting in knots and flopping around when I ran so I started to go shorter. A year ago I cut it all off. I mean, very very short. I absolutely love it. I was just traveling and both people who checked my ID at the airport did a double take because my license looked so different. One guy even told me he liked my long curley hair better. Tough.

This is the easiest it has ever been for me. I get out of the shower, throw on some product, and walk out the door. It always looks good because it is too short to have a "bad hair day". Even after training I can just rub my hands through it and it looks fine. It isn't a buzz cut, just boy short. In the mornings when I'm running late I can stick my head under the faucet and easily wet my hair.

It is stylish and much easier than any other cut I've had. My hair is curly so it was never easy to just style because it would get tangled and looked terrible if I didn't wash it every day.

Plus, I can style it to look like the Heat Miser for my husband's entertainement :-)

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Jen

"In order to keep a true perspective on one's importance, everyone should have a dog that worships him and a cat that will ignore him." - Dereke Bruce

My wife knows I much prefer long hair on women, but she found her long hair a hassle sometimes.

She told me that she wanted to cut it short but I threatened to leave her if she did.:-)

So she compromised and cut it about shoulder length which makes for a smallish pony tail. Quite manageable and still looks nice.

I think it really depends on the type of hair you have. I'm having this debate now myself. I have thick, wavy hair and find that once it gets too long and it gets too heavy for hair bands so I have to fiddle with it and it bothers me while running and biking. I would love to have it really short again but I find that I have to work harder to keep from looking like I just got out of bed the whole time. I find that just long enough for a short pony tail is best for me - kind of right at shoulder length. If I had "easy" hair though, I would cut it short in a heartbeat.

I defintely think about this.

Currently my hair is very long, mid-back, and I like it. However, it's now TOO long for a pony tail because it gets really snarly and occasionally gets caught in my armpit when running- haha. So now I've taken to french braiding it- keeps it back without creating a dangerous whip effect. But that takes time, and I'm sick of it. I even have to braid it at night or I nearly strangle myself (or my husband rolls onto it and I scream and wake us both up).

I have worn short hair in the past, and it's calling my name. Especially with summer coming. It'll be hard (my hair is so purdy!!) but it's just hair, it grows back. I even thought of really chopping it and donating it to Locks of Love- anyone done that? I know you need a certain number of inches and I don't want to cut it too short (still need to pull it back).

Now I'm thinking I'll go in this weekend...

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Training for: Barb's Race HIM 8.2.08

I did the Locks of Love thing. I think its 10-12 inches. I hadn't gotten my hair cut in a year (long story...quick version...basically gone to the same lady my entire life, but now live 2000+ miles from there and only go back once a year). It was about to my bra line across my back...and the way she cut it, it ended up about shoulder length. She did it in stages instead of just one pony tail and one chop. I can still pull it back although the front pieces sometimes fall out (I use a elastic headband type thing to help with that). Its definitely much cooler with the shorter hair in the desert heat of Vegas!

Well, I've got less than 40 minutes to go. Would love to go short short, but not sure I can do it. I've got broad shoulders and tend to think I wouldn't look all that great with a short short style. On the other hand, it grows back, right? Seems so freaking easy! And I'm useless with hair-don't own a hairdryer.

I'll let ya know what I end up doing. At this point I'm contemplating leaving it in the hands of the hairdresser and hope to hell she knows what she's doing!

SO glad to hear I'm not the only one who thinks about hair styles that would be good for tri!

Em

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Bra Diva
Find a sports bra that won't let you down!
www.BraDiva.com

I have a layered bob which works for me. It is medium length so it is long enough to pull back in a ponytail, but not a "heavy" ponytail that swings back and forth. I think it depends on your hair texture and face shape-I am finding this out at my age! I always wanted long hair, but have fine baby hair which won't grow too long. When it is long, my hair is stringy and my face looks too long. When too short, my face looks round. Ask the people at the shop-sometimes they know best!

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Jolene Wilkinson
Triathlon Coaching http://www.pacificfit.net

You may be gone already - good luck with whatever you choose!!

I have had very long hair and just shorter than chin length hair - it didn't make a huge difference what I did with it for tri's so much - because I alway wear a baseball cap when I run, and a helmet when I bike - either way, a pony tail when long or just tucking it under the hat when short didn't make much of a difference in sports. The longer it was though, it was always in a pony tail for any time of athletics.

As for the donation part - there is another awesome charity called Beautiful Lengths sponsored by Pantene - they only require an 8 inch pony tail and the hair is donated as wigs to women with cancer. (Locks of Love donates to children). http://www.beautifullengths.com will give you more info. I donated a 12 inch pony tail last May... was the perfect length for the summer!

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Harry: "I expected the Rocky Mountains to be a little rockier than this."
Loyd: "I was thinking the same thing. That John Denver's full of shit, man."

Cerveloguy, I think you love the womens forum more than the womens....

As for hair suggestions, I've had super short hair which is very easy, but now that it's longer I like to put it into a ponette (I don't have enough hair to make a ponytail) or tiny pigtails. The in between lengths when it wasn't long enough to pull back were hard. So I say either some version of the choppy, angled bob that everyone seems to be sportin' or cut it really short.

YES! I know it's too late, but I get at 2" undercut at the base of my nape. Huge for cooling and waaaay less knots. I have long very curly hair, so the less knots part is important. If you don't want to go short, but want to reduce that Pony, go for the undercut. Also if the BF/SO has a trimmer, they can help keep it in check.

AP

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"How bad could it be?" - SimpleS

I just got mine cut a few days ago and I was thinking of posting here too!! I do factor in triathlon in my hairstyle choices! I had shoulder length curly/wavy hair. It took forever to dry and I like to let it dry naturally or else it gets too fizzy. It was great for tri though b/c I could just throw it up in a pony. So I ended up keeping the length and getting layers put in all around. I'm not sure yet if I like it. No one has even noticed .I think b/c I usually wear it curly so it's hard to tell. I can still get a pony in but some of the layers hang out so I'm not sure if I like that. It does dry much faster though.

well, i freak out over my hair. the tough part is that my hair has the texture of a little girl. it's little girl hair. really soft, fine and super super straight. so, growing it long would be a disaster, it would look like sheyot. and i would chop it off myself before i even got there.

so, i generally have it really short and sticking up all over (like Liza Menelli, however her name is spelled). or, like now, it's chin length "bob" that i like to wear kind of messy with wax in it. it's fun, and pretty easy.
my stylist has a vision to grow it a little more and have it really choppy and textured. i dig it. whatever works. but generally, it has to be relatively short, like Liza, or a choppy bob that is somewhere above the shoulders, otherwise it looks like straggly trailer trash. that's my sad reality :)

you womens with the long and thick hair, me so envious!

Yes, but when our long thick hair gets too long and heavy, it gets weighed down and we look like Sissy Spacek in Carrie!

I have to have just enough hair so that I can put it up in a bun. Ponytails are ok (barely) for running and riding, but a bun is the way to go. When i was in grad school, I had hair long enough to do the Princess Leia 'do ... and I did!

I wish I could cut my hair really short, but I'm pretty sure I'd look like Mary Lou Retton or Dorothy Hamill. So ... I envy y'all womens who can wear short hair with such style!

Bdiva~ I can't wait to hear what you did with your hair!

My hair is super thick and curly/wavy. It came down to my shoulder blades until I chopped it off (chin length stacked bob) last fall. I liked the short hair for a little bit, but I am growing it long again because of triathlon. It's too thick to wear down under a cap or helmet. I need it long enough to braid or wear ponies below my helmet. I also cut bangs which I think I look better with - but they are a pain for training.

Right now I'm at an awful inbetween stage with my hair and bangs. I can't wait for it all to grow out! Thankfully it grows fast.

I may cut it short (chin length) again after IMLou.

Okay-finally done with all my biking, swimming, and running this weekend to post about my new haircut! I LOVE it! I went in and told the stylist that I do tri and explained that I am useless with hair (don't even own a hairdryer), etc. and she went to work and gave me a haircut that I LOVE. And the coolest is that it feels like ME. I don't know how to explain that, but I look in the mirror and feel like it just suits me perfectly.

It's shorter-up to about my jaw line with tons of layers cut in . She used some sort of odd tool that kinda stripped the hair or something. So it flips up all around, is just barely long enough to tuck behind my ears, but almost not quite. Off my neck, etc.

It's really perfect. i tried it out this weekend and it's WAY better than the heavy ponytail. Actually, this was disturbing, but she said I was sort of balding my hairline at the front (very slightly) bc of the ponytail. No more!

It's funny bc I was secretly hoping for short short hair, but she didn't think that would work with my face and my huge freaking shoulders and she gave me the perfect cut.

If anyone lives in SF and needs a good stylist, check out Caroline at Galleria Hair (in the crocker galleria). I am amazed at how well she did with this!

Thanks everyone for the great posts. I'm so glad to know I'm not the only one who totally factors in tri when deciding on hair styles!

Emily

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Bra Diva
Find a sports bra that won't let you down!
www.BraDiva.com

i buzzed my head two years ago, and that was great for triathlon ;) i am back to a ponytail now, but i have to say it was quite liberating. we don't realize how much time we spend on our hair.

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"What am I on? I'm on my bike busting my ass for six hours a day. What are YOU on?" - Lance Armstrong

know I'm a couple of days late but here's me:

I'm not tall to begin with..have a TON of curly hair. I keep it above my shoulders... bobs, little flip out haircuts (see Mandy Moore a couple years ago, Mariska Hargitay from Law & Order, not the boy short, but a smidge longer).

Perfect for triathlon. I pull the bangs and sides up in little pig tails (2 of them) and use clips to hold the fly aways down. Works great! Didn't have to fuss with it once during my full or half iron races. It takes me about 7-9 minutes to do my hair (dry/style) depending on who all I'm chatting with in the locker room. Bed head is bad, but I just pull part of it back and head out to workout.

me and a pal at GCT last summer (I'm in blue)

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Tiger for Life -- War Eagle!

I think we need to see a picture...

M

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The beatings will continue until morale improves

Glad you like the cut!

I always think about this as well. I need an office look during the day but a tri look morning, evening and weekends. I went with a boy cut and love it. Just have to shake it out to give it life. Looks good with a head band, visor, hat or bike helmet.

I know this is late, but I have long wavy hair and I always put it back in two French braids half the time during the week and for every race. It's easier than messing with a pony tail, it doesn't get tangled, and it keeps all the baby hairs around my face in check.

Aow mai gawds this is an old thread, but thought I'd throw this out - I always thought i had to braid mine (in a braid it goes past my butt) but tried a low bun (so my helmet would fit) and that is now my go-to. Love not having to braid it because for me, braiding always gives me MORE tangles. Also, since my hair is so long, a bun is more like a temple like thing, if that helps. Got the idea after I saw a picture of Bree Wee on a training ride with a bun-like object at the back of her helmet. what an idea!

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http://harvestmoon6.blogspot.com
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/katasmit

Reading through this is making me miss my angled, shaggy bob that I was rocking for a couple of years. So messy, shaggy, easy & super cute. I've been growing it out for what seems like ages...but only maybe a year & a half or so. I have super fine, super straight hair & it also grows slowly. It looks great if I just leave it alone & let it dry without product or anything, but sadly spends most of its time up in a pony or in a clip.

I should cut it again. I like having it long for awhile though, makes me feel girly. I have to spend a good bit of effort keeping it healthy though with all the swimming I do.

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AW

I've found that my hair that used to grow like mad in California has seemed to quit growing here in TN. Head and leg hair. Good for shaving; not good when trying to grown hair on head out longer.

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

REALLY? Mine's never grown fast on my head...my legs on the other hand....apparently I was made for cold weather? Are you more stressed overall? Maybe that's the effect?

Mine is finally all a couple inches past my shoulders....after being chin/neck short since Xmas 2009 cut to my nape in 2010-2011. All I've really had since Spring of 2011 were trims. ARGH!!!

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AW

Super high stress lately!! But this has been ever since I moved here. I used to have to get it trimmed every 6 weeks. I've been here 1 year and had it cut 3x total.

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

I cut my hair about chin level once (bob style) and it was the worst for running, I had to fix it a million times mid workout and it was harder to leave the gym with wet hair and look somewhat acceptable!

I keep mine an inch or two under my shoulders, so it's long enough for any kind of pony tail or a braid if I choose and has been the easiest for triathlon. Just keep some detangler in your transition bag! And to keep it out of your face during workouts or a race just use some prewrap and tie it to make a makeshift headband!

Mine is still super short and I have no plans to change it. The color is mostly grey now but it is a nice shade, almost looks blonde, so I'm done coloring it too. Although, I might do bleach blonde someday. :-)

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Jen

"In order to keep a true perspective on one's importance, everyone should have a dog that worships him and a cat that will ignore him." - Dereke Bruce

i have long, thick wavy/curly hair with long bangs. i recently trimmed it to "bra line" level to manage the ponytail better. guess its just everyone's preference but i wont ever cut mine! Emijays are what i use to manage this mane. i was shown a tricky way to use them to get it all up to a low bun.....sometimes the ponytail tugs. often there are 3, maybe 4...the 4th one shows up days later....but if you are considering cutting your long hair, first try out the emijays and see if it helps u manage it better. the times i dont have time to let my hair dry (no hair dryer in this house!) the emijays come to the rescue so i look "classy and clean" for a dinner out and not like i just worked out for 4 hours.

I have the same super fine, straight, grows slowly hair. I'm thinking of chopping the pony tail off in favor of the angled, shaggy bob. Do you have any pictures? I'm trying to find a good one for my stylist.

Did your head sunburn with a buzz cut? That's the only thing stopping me.

Let's see if this works...this link should go to some photos. The original cut when it was down to the nape of my neck (12/10 - I LOVED the cut) & then in June of 2011 when it had started to grow out. I had another shape/cut done at that length. I loved the ease of the short hair - fluff/spazz & go. Even the mid-length was pretty easy, some mousse & done. Now I seem to put it in a pony tail more often than not, or it'll start down but always wind up pulled back at some point.

http://flic.kr/ps/2tHxCT

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AW

Worked for me. It's really cute! The nape of the neck length is what I'm looking for. My hair gets so hot in the summer here. Hate it. I never end up leaving it down right now. It'll start down, but ends up back in a ponytail all the time. It's not the best look for me.

Speaking as a male with a buzz cut (#5 on top, #2 on the sides), I always wear a hat when running and I'll be getting a UV protective skull cap for under my helmet, to avoid sunburn on my head.

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- John
"Have courage, and be kind."

i have super short hair (cut it with clippers) and never have a sunburn on my head.

I dislike full hats and prefer a visor, and don't like anything under my helment. So it would have to work without those.