salon visit: from athlete to healthy hair

I started training for triathlons this year, which means many hours swimming in chlorine water and running and cycling under the sun. As a result, my hair has gotten really damaged –  very frizzy and difficult to tame. This weekend I headed to the hair salon to get a much needed haircut, restore some shine back into my hair, and get some tips to take better care of my hair during training season.

Luckily, I have a fantastic hairdresser in San Francisco - Diva Poulos, salon owner of Diva International Salon (1 Market Street) and top International Artist for Sebastian Professional. Highly recommended if you live here in SF.

First step was adding a deep conditioning treatment, followed by the haircut. Since I had neglected my hair during training season and was long overdue for a cut, Diva had to cut off a substantial amount of my long locks.

Diva also recommended a Sebastian service called Cellophanes. This is an ammonia free gloss treatment that adds a lot of shine in the hair. It’s available in a clear version or color. I opted for the “red red”, which added a very slight tint of red to my hair. It also added a lot of shine! The first time my hair has been looking healthy in months!

Diva and her assistant also shared some tips in order to keep my hair healthy outside of the salon while training:

• For swimming: You should always swim with a cap, but wet the hair before going into water (pool or open water) to prevent too much chlorine or salt from absorbing into the hair. You can also apply a conditioner before putting the cap on to keep moisture in the hair. After your swim, shampoo your hair and apply a deep conditioner.
• For running and cycling (or any other sports outside in the sun): Apply a hair product with a UV protectant to protect your hair against the sun. I am starting to use the Aveda sun care hair protective hair mist (there is also a sun care hair and body wash and after sun hair mask).
• For additional care: Apply a deep conditioning mask once a week before heading into a steam room and sauna (if you have access to one). The heat helps the conditioner to penetrate deeply into the hair for additional moisture and shine. I use the Sebastian Professional Penetraitt deep strengthening and repair masque.

A few salon selfies: under the blow dryer during the Cellophanes treatment and getting the blowout to complete the new look.