Are you using the Ultra Swim shampoo to start with? I find that if I use that, then that keeps the crunchy feeling away.

clm

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

I second the vote on Ultra Swim shampoo and conditioner (2 separate products), to use at the pool, and add a vote for the Clairol Infusium 23 Power Pack Leave in Conditioner for home shower use.

Paul

My hairdresser told me to mix some conditioner with water and wet my hair thoroughly with that before I get into the pool to make the hair shaft swell. That way, the chlorinated water supposedly can't penetrate the hair as much because it's already holding water.

So what I do is mix a little cheap drugstore conditioner with a lot of water in a spritzer bottle and saturate my hair with it in the locker room right before I walk out to the pool.

Susan

Dan, I find the daily application of Mach3 to solve any problem with chlorine affecting my hair ;-)

I would (for the sake of your fellow swimmers) caution against Susanherself's suggestion of applying conditioner and water mix directly before swimming. Its nasty enough swimming in a pool when people get in having not showered and still smell/tasting their deodorants, perfumes, after shaves etc but a freshly applied product would be awful! I suppose a swim cap would be out of the question?

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"How bad can it be?" - SimpleS

Actually, conditioner is supposedly water-soluble and not a problem in the pool. In fact, Terry Laughlin's directions for fist gloves say to put a little conditioner on your hands to make the fist gloves slip on easily. Of course, you'd take the fist gloves off at some point, meaning the conditioner will be in the pool.

Wetting your hair with just water oughta accomplish the same thing, though, since the goal is just to saturate the hair shaft before the chlorine can get into it.

Susan

P.S. Did you read the threads about how many people are peeing in the pool? :)

Wet your hair with a conditioner solution, and then put your swim cap on. Go swim. The cap is more likely to slip off if you have a pin head, but your hair will thank you.

Get Swuave conditioner. Really cheap and works great on my dogs! I also use it when I shave my legs.

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"Remember: a bicycle is an elegant and efficient tool designed for seeking out and defeating people who aren't as good as you."

--BikeSnobNYC

I haven't washed my hair on over 3 weeks. The natural oil forms a protective barrier against the chlorine. My hair also stays the way I want in with no gel, mousse, hair spray, or the like.

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Wet hair...spray inside of cap with AussieMega Hair Insurance Leave-in Conditioner...swim...wash hair w/ conditioning shampoo (or wash AND condidtion)...generously apply Aussie Leave-in again.

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mmm-mmm-Momo Charms
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Thanks everyone. Sounds like I actually HAVE to wear a cap.... We'll start with the cap and plain old wet hair -- then see what else I need to avoid crunchiness.

Oh and Julian - No... I use my Mach 3 for my face and face alone. And it's staying that way :-)



Daniel

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The question of who is right and who is wrong has seemed to me always too small to be worth a moment's thought, while the question of what is right and what is wrong has seemed all-important.

-Albert J. Nock

Shave your head one time and you'll never go back. The ladies love it. I refer to it as 'Going Bruce Willis."

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- Nick
Now that I know some of you guys look through the special needs bags for kicks, I'm gonna put some really weird stuff in mine. I can see it now. "What the heck was he going to do with a family pack of KFC chicken, a football helmet full of peanut butter, a 12 inch rubber dildo, and naked pictures of Bea Arthur?"

Hey!

I've read to condition the hair before swimming, too - but also have heard if you just wet it real good, then it'll absorb less chlorine.

**INFUSIUM leave in conditioner ROCKS. Been using it for years. It's really lite, doesn't look or feel like you have it in. But if I didn't use it, I wouldn't be able to get a comb thru my hair after a shower.

It like $4-$8 for a big bottle, and it lasts forever.