Nowadays men are always searching for ideas on how to get long hair due to different reasons. First long mane has been in trend for the last couple of years, and it is still getting trendier as more men continue to discover that it is not just women who can look good in lengthy locks.
Secondly long strands give a man the option to wear any hairdo that he likes, and thirdly there are many new men hairstyles for lengthy hair.
Regardless of the reason behind your desire to get it knowing some of the ways on how to have it will help you avoid many disappointments and slow growth.
Although there are many ways that you can get those locks that you desire the following fifteen are the most useful ones.
# 1 Visit Your Barber Regularly
Contrary to what most people think you should not only visit the barber when you want a haircut because this professional can also be very helpful when you want to grow lengthy hairs. A barber can help you in two important ways.
First they will give you invaluable knowledge on how best to maintain your hair so that it can grow faster and longer. Since the barber has vast experience with the hair due to his profession, he will give you all the tips and tricks that you need to grow out your strands.
Apart from the valuable information, tips and tricks that you get, the regular visit are also important to get a much-needed trim. If you want to grow your hair long, then regular trimming is necessary.
Cutting the hair might look like a complete opposite of what your intentions are, but any expert will tell you that it is the best thing you can do to get lengthy locks within a shorter time. Cutting your strands helps to get rid of the split ends and hence prevents them from going further up your locks.
If the split ends are left untrimmed, they will go up the locks and hence meaning that you will have to cut longer strands to get rid of them, and this will directly prevent you from getting the beautiful mane your desire.
# 2 Use an Aloe and Egg White Mask
Hair masks are one of the best ways to encourage hair growth. Although there are many available out there the best ones and also, the most useful ones are the ones that you make at home.
It might look easier to buy one and just apply to your hair but by doing so, you will be losing out on many nutrients that are essential for hair growth.
The packaged hair masks might smell and look better, but they usually have some preservatives, fragrance and also some colorants. Instead of going for these processed products you can make a simple but very effective mask at home with aloe and egg white.
And apart from the many benefits that it will offer you, it is also pretty easy to make, and it only takes a couple of minutes. The aloe should be fresh, but if you cannot find it, then a bottled one that is 100% pure will also work.
Blend the two together and you have a perfect mask that has been used for centuries to add moisture to the hair, give it a healthier appearance and most importantly to stimulate growth.
# 3 A Hot Oil Massage Is Also Beneficial
When most men are trying to keep a long hair what they are more focused on is the strands and often forget that growing hair starts from the roots. Taking good care of the roots and the scalp is as important as anything else that you do to your locks to aid in growth if not more important.
If the hair is healthy as it starts to grow then, it will get longer fast, and you will have very few split ends. One of the best ways to take care of the scalp is through a hot oil massage however you still have to choose the right oils if you want to stimulate growth.
The best for this are olive, argon or coconut oil. You should heat up the oil and gently rub it into your scalp for about ten minutes and leave it to soak the hair for about half an hour. After this, you should finish by rinsing off with some warm water.
# 4 Limit the Use of Shampoo
The shampoo is the most widely used hair product by men and although it helps get rid of dirt and anything else foreign on the hair, if you want to grow long hairs, then you should limit its use.
Shampoos are perfect for getting read of dirt and all the other hair products that you use such as gel or pomade, but it also takes away valuable natural oils that keep the hair healthy and soft. When this happens the mane becomes fragile and unhealthy, and so it will not only stop growing fast, but this also leads to breakages.
To avoid the problems that come with the use of shampoo you should limit its use to two or three times a week and also, use conditioner every time you use it.
Conditioner helps to replace the proteins and lipids in the hair shaft and seal the cuticles against any further damage and hence ensuring that your hair grows longer and healthier.
# 5 Protect Against External Damage
Most men do not bother themselves with external damages that can prevent hair from getting long. And in some cases, this might be the only thing standing between them and their dream of a long hair.
Things, like staying too longer under the direct sun or swimming in a chlorinated pool, can ruin your hair. If you plan to be out in the sun for long you should not just carry sunscreen for your face but also a scarf or hat to cover your hair.
If you cannot avoid swimming in a chlorinated pool, then you should, at least, wear a swim cap. After exposing your hair to these external sources of damages use gentle washing and drying methods to avoid further damages and to keep the strand healthy so that they can grow.
# 6 Avoid Cotton Pillowcase
If you are serious about getting a long hair, then you should be keen on minor things such as the type of pillowcase that you use. Women know how these small things affect hair growth, and so most are very careful, but this is not the case with men.
To help your hairs grow faster and longer, you should ditch that cotton pillowcase and instead use something softer such as sateen fabric.
Using a softer pillow fabric will limit the amount of friction, and hence, you will not wake up with the tangles that lead to breakages and hence preventing the hair from growing long.
# 7 Almond and Coconut Oil Mask
If you want to know how to get long hair, it is also inevitable to know how to use homemade hair masks.You should use a hair mask at least once or twice every fortnight to repair damaged hair and replenish moisture.
The best thing about hair masks is that there are very many ways to make them with ingredients that are readily available in most homes and retail stores.
One of the best masks you can use at home is one made from almond and coconut oil as it is easy to make and also very useful. All you need to do to make this mask is to blend the two oils together and heat them for a couple of minutes before massaging the mixture into your hair.
You should then cover with a shower cap and apply a warm blow dry over it. Finish by washing your hair after ten minutes. This mask will help make your hair healthier and promote faster growth.
# 8 Choose Your Products Wisely
The importance of choosing the right products to use on your hair cannot be overemphasized if you want it to grow longer and faster.
Hair products will affect directly everything that influences how long the hair grows and so if you make the wrong decision it will be hard to get those long locks. For the shampoo, you should avoid those that have silicone.
Instead, you should go for those that use natural ingredients without any silicone, and the same should apply when buying your conditioner. Go for a conditioner with natural ingredients and the leave-in ones are better.
For things like gel and any other styling product you should also only chose those with natural ingredients. However, the best thing is to avoid the use of these styling products when you can because you will hardly find any that does not have chemicals.
# 9 Do Not Color or Bleach
Bleaching and coloring hair can create very amazing hairdos but when you are growing out it is best to avoid them. Hair dyes are all made out of chemicals whether they are permanent or semi-permanent.
It is crucial to understand that your locks and chemicals do not mix well and so when dying the hair you are usually making a compromise between long healthy hair and a beautiful appearance.
The chemical damage caused by bleaching and coloring is immense, and there is usually no other way to bring back your hair to its original state except for cutting it.
And so if you keep on coloring your locks you will always be forced to cut them down after some time, and this will limit the growth. Even simple things like highlights have the same effect, and so you should also avoid them.
# 10 Ensure That You Brush/Comb the Right Way
Combing or brushing your strands is probably not your favorite thing especially when you have those nasty tangles. However, as much as you do not like it you should ensure that you do it right for your strands can grow.
First you should not brush wet hair as this will lead to breakages. Wet hair is fragile and so when you brush it you risk losing many strands. You should take a few minutes to towel dry your hair gently before brushing.
Also, choose the right comb or brush for your hair by avoiding anything that has very hard bristles even if it can get the job done faster.
When it comes to untangling the hair you have to be very patient, or you will ruin the hair. Before you even start brushing, you should try to untangle the locks with your fingers as this reduces the risk of breakages. When brushing start from the bottom and work your way up.
# 11 Herbs Infusion
Herbs are not only good for your general body health but are also perfect for hair growth and so if you are hoping to have long locks then it is a good idea to infuse them with different types of herbs.
Herbs such as burdock, sage, rosemary, nettle and catnip are known to promote hair growth. Rosemary is particularly very useful, and it has been widely used on hair for many years as it stimulates the hair follicles and adds some luster to your locks.
And just like most other herbs it will encourage faster growth because it improves circulation. To use rosemary or any other herb you should prepare an infusion by steeping the herb in hot water for about 20 minutes.
You should then use the rosemary infusion as a final rinse after shampooing and conditioning the hair, or you can also mix it in with the shampoo.
# 12 Heat Tools Cause More Harm than Good
Heat tools are perfect for softening the hair so that you can wear that special flat iron hairdo or to make the hair wavy or straight. They may be very effective when styling the hair, but the hot tools will cause you more damage than good, and they might stand between you and your ambitions to get long locks.
Using hot tools on your hair whether it is short or long is abusing the hair and it will not only cause breakages but will prevent fast growth. What these tools do – they make the hair weak and damage the scalp and so your hair will just not grow and if it does it will not be uniform.
If you must use some heat on your strands, you should not overdo it, and it is also recommended that you do it occasionally. And most importantly keep the temperatures as low as possible.
# 13 Good Body Health
It’s not by chance that people associate hair loss with stress because it can lead to hair thinning, breakage and also slow growth. To simply state it if you are always stressed up then you will have a difficult time getting the long hair that you desire.
However, good mane health is not all about staying stress-free because what you eat will also affect growth. Eating a balanced diet will help your locks grow long, but the best foods for this are those with B vitamin biotins such as salmon and avocado.
Other healthy foods for the hair are sources of folate such as berries and whole grain, B12 foods like fish and dairy products and B6 such as kale and broccoli.
Apart from eating a balanced diet, it is also important to avoid processed foods so as to maintain a healthy body and hence also faster hair growth. Regular exercising is also important in the maintenance of good health.
# 14 Hair Washing Habits
Keeping your hair clean will not only make it look more attractive but is also an effective way of maintaining good hair health. Clean hair is also known to grow faster than a dirty one.
However, if you do not wash it the right way you will lose all these benefits and probably also do more harm than good to your strands. As mentioned earlier on you have to choose the right shampoos and conditioner for your hair, but proper hair washing does not just stop at these two as there is way much more involved.
For example, the water temperature and purity will affect the hair health directly and so you should be careful with them. Most men wash hair with hot water because they think that it will get rid of all the gel build up and any germs, and it also feels good on the scalp, but this is not beneficial to your strands.
Washing hair regularly with hot water will lead to breakage and hence preventing your strands from growing long. The effect of hot water is very evident, and you can easily prove it by changing to cold water for a couple of weeks and see the difference.
You should also not use too much shampoo or conditioner and neither should you wash the locks every day. In fact, it is recommended that you only wash your strands about three times a week. It may not look very hygienic, but it will help you get long locks within a shorter time.
If you have issues with the greasiness that is a result of less washing, you should wear a hat for a couple of days so that the scalp can adjust and stop producing too much oil.
# 15 Drink Plenty of Water
The doctors recommend that you take about three liters of water per day to maintain a healthy body. Even if you do not like drinking too much water, or you just forget about it, you have to try harder and take as much water as possible to get a longer hair.
The mane is one of the things that show that your body does not have enough water because the strands will be dull and dry. Dull and dry strands are prone to breakage, and this is one of the main things that can prevent you from getting long locks.
It goes to show that a few liters of water a day are just as important as using the right product and doing regular trims if you want long locks.
If you have trouble drinking plain water, you can drink flavored water or green tea as they will serve the same purpose. However, you should avoid alcohol, caffeine and soda.
There are many other ideas on how to get long hair, but the above 15 are sufficient if you follow them. And you should always keep in mind that getting those beautiful locks requires a lot of dedication and patience.
Bad habits that may lead to hair loss or damages such as leaving your strands unkempt for many days or ignoring to wear a swim cap when swimming may reverse all the gains made by following the above 15 simple rules.
All in all, everything can be summed up into one simple point that is to try and keep the hair as natural as possible and avoid any unnecessary disturbances on your locks.