How to Naturally Remove Chlorine Smell From Hair

Hello again beautiful people!  I trust you made it through the holidays and life has hopefully returned to normal, whatever that may be.  For me it means getting back to an exercise routine.  One thing I love to do is to swim at my local pool.  One thing I don't love is the chlorine smell.  Especially in my skin and hair.

What's a girl to do?

There are many products on the market to prevent the chlorine smell lingering in your skin and hair.  There seems to be mixed reviews.  Some swear by them while others say they didn't work at all.  It seems, as usual, this is going to be a trial and error process.  Myself, as I train for triathlon, I've tried a product called "Triswim".  It worked quite well for me but as is often the case was a little more than I wanted to spend.  I was also curious to see if I could find a more natural DIY alternative.

Beautiful Baking Soda!

This was almost a no-brainer.  We use baking soda all over the place to get out odors!  This was no exception.  But after reading the ingredients from all of the commercial options I was getting a little skeptical.  Could our humble sodium bicarbonate really rise to the challenge?  After some routine trials at the local pool with my swim partner, we definitely agreed that the chlorine smell was greatly reduced if not totally avoided by using baking soda in our post swim shower at the pool.  But there is more!

Surprising side effects!

My swim partner and I have very different hair types.  My hair is very fine, straight, limp and at very high risk for appearing oily.  Hers on the other hand is a "fro" waiting to happen.  Very curly, on the drier side and at very high risk for puffing up like a blow fish if not treated with respect.  Any of this sound familiar?

We both found that by using baking soda in our post swim shower that our hair felt different, in a good way.  It felt smoother and more controlled.  We also agreed that it looked better, longer.  Mine didn't get as oily, hers behaved longer.  We can only assume this is due to the way baking soda alters PH levels.  Sort of the way an apple cider vinegar rinse does to hair.  I liked it so much that I've added a container of baking soda to my shower at home and use it some days even when I don't go to the pool!  But because it alters PH I wouldn't recommend it on a daily basis.

Avoid the green of swimmers hair!

This is not a problem that my friend nor I have experienced but from researching the topic I did find that it is for many people.  Hair can develop a green tinge from chemical deposits developing in the hair.  The consensus is that using a baking soda wash post swim helps immensely.  Some also suggest a weekly aspirin treatment.  Dissolve 2 aspirin in a cup of warm water and use as a rinse over clean hair.  Like you would an apple cider vinegar rinse.

How to naturally remove the chlorine smell from your hair.

Beyond baking soda there are a few other things you can incorporate that I've found effective.

      
• Before you swim, wet your hair and add some conditioner.  Your hair will absorb them and leave less room for the chlorine water to be absorbed.
• Shower at the pool or immediately when you get home.  Just like you wouldn't leave your bathing suit without rinsing it, don't let the chlorine sit on your hair and skin.  Wash it right away.
• Baking soda!  In your post swim shower mix equal parts shampoo and baking soda in your hand to form a paste and then use that to shampoo hair as usual.  Yes it still makes suds.
• Use a good conditioner or a few drops of jojoba oil post swim. 

Do you have a favorite mains de mariposa product that has worked for you when all else failed?  Tell us which product you love and why and as a thank-you we'll enter you into the next monthly draw.  You could win a fabulous gift pack!  Send your story to bonnie@mainsdemariposa (dot) com


To view other testimonies visit the website at mainsdemariposa (dot) com