The Winter Glow Up Plan for Your Hair: Routine Adjustments

When the weather turns cold, your natural hair care routine should shift right along with it. Cold air and indoor heating can dry out your strands, cause breakage, and make it harder to retain length.

Below you’ll find the winter glow up tips your hair needs.

But you don’t need a complicated overhaul. With a few smart changes, you can keep your hair healthy, moisturized, and growing strong all season long.

Here’s what to add and what to leave out of your regimen this winter.

Add This: More Moisture and Reliable Protection

1. Heavier Moisturizers and Creams

Cold air dries your hair out fast. This season, lighter leave-ins just won’t cut it. Reach for richer creams and hair butters that seal in moisture and actually last.

Seriously…look for ingredients like shea butter, avocado oil, or aloe vera. They’re great for keeping your strands soft, pliable and hydrated.

2. Weekly Deep Conditioning

If you already deep condition, that’s good. Now is the time to do it more often and with the right products. Your hair needs all the moisture it can get, plus some strength to bounce back from the cold.

Do it weekly without skipping as much as possible.

Read more here: Winter Deep Conditioning for Natural Hair

3. Protective Styles That Really Protect

Let’s be real. A style that’s too tight is not protective. Sure, the ends may be protected but if you are causing traction alopecia from the stress at the roots, that doesn’t even matter. The entire strand of hair will be ripped out.

This winter, go for low manipulation protective styles that keep your ends tucked in without pulling on your scalp

Think large twists, buns, or loose braids. Give your hair a break while keeping it covered.

4. Satin Lined Accessories

Wool and cotton hats will pull the moisture right out of your hair. Satin helps your strands stay soft and smooth underneath. More importantly, the moisture will remain for longer.

Grab a satin lined beanie or sew a satin layer into your favorite cap. Even better, if it’s in your budget, choose silk. Mulberry silk is wonderful for natural hair.

Remove This: Drying and Damaging Habits

1. Frequent Washing With Harsh Shampoos

In the wintertime, washing your hair too often will dry your hair out. You need to find the right timeframe for washing your hair so it doesn’t tangle too much but it also doesn’t start to feel dry and parched.

Stretch your wash days to every ten to fourteen days and ditch all the cleansers that have sulfates. Actually, the only time I’d say it’s ok to use shampoos with sulfates is when you have a lot of product build up. Even then, there are other options for clarifying your hair.

If your scalp feels dirty between washes, try applying a little apple cider vinegar rinse to a cotton ball and wipe down your scalp in sections.

2. Air Drying

Air drying is never really a great practice as it leaves the hair swelled with water within for longer than it should be. It can actually weaken your strands, but especially in the winter.

Use a hooded dryer or blow dryer on low heat with a heat protectant. It gets the job done without causing damage. I use the RevAir reverse air hair dryer which has patented technology that not only dries the hair. It helps the cuticles to lay flat. Learn more here.

3. Holding On to Raggedy Ends

It may be tempting to just think if you tuck your ends under by way of protective styling, they will be ok. But, here’s the thing….

Split ends and breakage do not magically repair themselves. Trimming them now means you’ll see more hair growth later.

In reality, clean ends are easier to manage and help you retain length. Don’t skip it. Especially in the winter.

Keep It Simple and Ditch What’s No Longer Serving

Winter doesn’t have to wreck your hair’s progress. A few small changes to your regimen can make a big difference in how your hair handles the season.

Complete the Glow Up

If you’re not sure where to start, this next guide breaks down the basics in a way that’s easy to follow:

Winter Hair Care Essentials for Coily Hair

Take what works. Let go of what doesn’t but stay on top of your hair care, especially during the cold season.