I have been doing competitive gymnastics for nearly my whole life. I train for four hours every day of the week. Keeping my hair healthy is a common struggle among most gymnasts.

I hear my friends say they have to wash their hair every night, which is a routine that can be hard to keep up with and can also cause damage. As a 14-year-old girl, I want my hair to stay healthy, but I also don’t have time to keep up with a long routine.

The Florida Gymnast’s Struggle: Chalk vs. Humidity

Gymnastic chalk, which is made up of magnesium carbonate, absorbs my hair’s natural oils and leaves it feeling like straw and creates tangles, causes breakage, and frizz.

Often it’s a challenge to remove, so I have to apply deep conditioner almost every day. Chalk also dries out my scalp, so using products to restore moisture is necessary for me.

As a gymnast, I tumble and dismount into foam pits which are almost never clean and collect dust and sweat. They are made with harsh chemicals like flame retardant, which is bad for hair and skin and cause scalp irritation.

Breaking The Grease Loop: Why Washing Your Hair Everyday Is A Trap

Washing your hair every day is the best way gymnasts can fix this problem, but it’s still not the best solution. It strips away natural oils and leads to damage over time. The scalp reacts to oils leaving your hair and causes greasy-ness.

Foam Pit To The Classroom: How To Survive The School Day With Confidence

As a teenage girl, going to school with greasy hair can make you feel self-conscious and the fear that people will judge you. Naturally, being a human, people will judge you, but you should find confidence in the fact that you’re just being yourself.

A way to combat the damage is using hair masks, hair oil, and leave in conditioner, but with hours of practice and hours of homework, I don’t have the time to construct an entire hair routine, plus using multiple products everyday can get expensive.

Instead, I use three products twice a week. I have tried many different things, such as Monday Haircare and Herbal Essence, but both left me with the same flaky scalp and dead strands of hair.

The 3 Product Moisture Reset: Amika, Moroccanoil and Pureology

After trial and error, this is the 3 product routine that works for me and many of my teammates:

1. Amika Soulfood Nourishing Hair Mask: it contains vitamins and nutrients that deeply condition and soften hair strands. I leave the mask in for five minutes before washing it out, and soon I feel hydration being restored. I trust Amika products because they are cruelty-free and certified vegan.
2. Moroccanoil Treatment Original Hair Oil: this is infused with argan oil and is designed to smooth frizz, detangle, and condition. This oil helps me manage my hair and doesn’t give me a greasy look. Using this oil, makes me feel more confident one step closer to shiny and healthy hair.
3. Pureology Color Fanatic Multi-Tasking Leave-In Spray: I love that this can also act as a heat protectant against styling tools. The product covers from the root to the end of each hair and the main ingredient is coconut oil, which helps with repair and traps essential proteins.

Own Your Hair With Confidence

Having healthy and strong hair will boost your confidence and limit breakage, dry scalp, and split ends. Some people use products because they are considered popular or because their friends are using them, but you’re better off finding the products that work for you.

Remember: every girl is different. What fixes one girl’s problem could cause problems for someone else. Owning who you are is the best way to take control of your life and your hair.