Shampoos Vs. Cleansing Conditioners

[tannicfer]

Hey folks. I'm a 4C low porosity natural. I've been natural for six months and I'm starting to see that I'm not getting the retention I've been hoping for. I'm only at about 4-5 inches. I know the biggest reason is that I'm prone to single strand knots if I don't comb and L.O.C. my hair every single night. And then I'm prone to picking at them during the day which yeah...clumps of hair gone. Things I'm still figuring out how to manage.

But one thing I've been wondering about is if I'm doing my hair more harm than good by not shampooing. I wash my hair with a cleansing conditioner once a week and my hair seems to like it from a moisture level. But I keep watching YouTubers talk about how you have to shampoo at least once a month. Have any other naturals seen better progress by adding shampooing into their routine?

I used to use Ion's cleansing conditioner (loved it) and now I'm using Shea Moisture's cleansing conditioner (meh about it). If anyone has any recos, feel free to toss them my way.

 

[faithVA]

I'm 4b low porosity and I have to use some type of shampoo. Being low porosity the build up that occurs happens faster than on normal porosity hair. That keeps your hair feeling dry. Shampoo helps to remove that product.

Use the shampoo you loved. You don't need to hop around. There aren't a lot of low porosity heads on the board. And you can spend a lot of money looking for something when you already have something that works.

I don't do Shea Moisture because my hair doesn't like the heaviness of Shea butter.

I found that shampoo once a month with light products works well. If I overlooked with products I may wash every other week. I mud wash, conditioner cleanse or water rinse in between shampooes.

I use TGIN shampoo and cream of nature currently. Haven't tried too many shampooes.

 

[ms.blue]

I'm low porosity 4b/a and I have to shampoo. I tried going the co-washing route and suffered from dryness due to product build up. If you want to continue co-washing, incorporate a shampoo either every other week or once a month.

 

[Saludable84]

If your at 4-5 inches, your on the right track. You just need to keep your hands out of your hair.

I stopped using shampoo but realized I benefit from shampooing weekly so Im back to shampoo. As of late, I use Shea Moisture JBCO. For me, shampoo equals scalp health if you find the right one. Since I am LoPo, I also need to let the shampoo touch down on my strands. You should not have to moisturize your hair daily, unless its not stretched. If its dry, you may need to modify the LOC method you are using and/or get your porosity under control. Even with using a cleansing conditioner, your still using LOC products daily and that creates buildup that a cleansing conditioner will not wash off as it effectively and ultimately create dry hair due to buildup.

 

[ms.blue]

I actually like Shea moisture shampoos (hate everything else from their line).
SM manuka honey and fig shampoo (moisturizing)
SM sacha inchi (clarifying)
ORS creamy aloe (sulfate laden clarifying/chelating shampoo)
Bioloage ultra Hydrasource shampoo (sulfate laden moisturizing shampoo)
Keracare 1st step (sulfate free clarifying shampoo)
Keracare moisturizing shampoo (personally hate this shampoo but it's a sulfate free moisturizing shampoo)

 

[tannicfer]

If your at 4-5 inches, your on the right track. You just need to keep your hands out of your hair.

I stopped using shampoo but realized I benefit from shampooing weekly so Im back to shampoo. As of late, I use Shea Moisture JBCO. For me, shampoo equals scalp health if you find the right one. Since I am LoPo, I also need to let the shampoo touch down on my strands. You should not have to moisturize your hair daily, unless its not stretched. If its dry, you may need to modify the LOC method you are using and/or get your porosity under control. Even with using a cleansing conditioner, your still using LOC products daily and that creates buildup that a cleansing conditioner will not wash off as it effectively and ultimately create dry hair due to buildup.

Yeah, I don't wear my hair stretched. Twistouts leave my hair so crunchy dry and crazy looking even though I don't use gels. Roller sets are better, but with how short my hair is, I'd have to do them every night to maintain a look, so I'd still be LOCing every night. I'll definitely take a look at some of the shampoos people are recommending though!

 

[tannicfer]

I'm 4b low porosity and I have to use some type of shampoo. Being low porosity the build up that occurs happens faster than on normal porosity hair. That keeps your hair feeling dry. Shampoo helps to remove that product.

Use the shampoo you loved. You don't need to hop around. There aren't a lot of low porosity heads on the board. And you can spend a lot of money looking for something when you already have something that works.

I don't do Shea Moisture because my hair doesn't like the heaviness of Shea butter.

I found that shampoo once a month with light products works well. If I overlooked with products I may wash every other week. I mud wash, conditioner cleanse or water rinse in between shampooes.

I use TGIN shampoo and cream of nature currently. Haven't tried too many shampooes.

Yeah, I'm not a fan of the Shea Moisture line either. I'm like...the opposite of a product junkie though and like to use up my bottles before buying new ones if the product doesn't feel damaging. I have this Shea Moisture cleansing conditioner and two things of deep conditioner I'm trying to get rid of before I shop for replacements. I'll look around for TGIN shampoo though to incorporate into my routine.

 

[rileypak]

While I do use a cleansing conditioner on occasion, my scalp and my hair benefit greatly from shampooing.
I use Redken Hair Cleansing Creme (clarifying/chelating) and Biolage Hydrasource Shampoo (moisturizing). I dabble with sulfate free cleansers on rare occasions but I always return to sulfates.

 

[faithVA]

Yeah, I'm not a fan of the Shea Moisture line either. I'm like...the opposite of a product junkie though and like to use up my bottles before buying new ones if the product doesn't feel damaging. I have this Shea Moisture cleansing conditioner and two things of deep conditioner I'm trying to get rid of before I shop for replacements. I'll look around for TGIN shampoo though to incorporate into my routine.

I am the same. I like to use up things. But I won't do it with shampoo because I have found it to be the most important step for me. If the shampoo doesn't work no amount of conditioning saves my hair. So I will return a shampoo or throw it out if it isn't right. A lot of my day to day dryness was caused by a bad cleansing step.

Maybe try ulta and get some sample sizes of shampoo so you can try and not feel guilty. Or get something from Sally's and take it back if it doesn't work.

 

[LadyPBC]

still trying to figure out if I'm high or low porosity

 

[sarumoki]

If you're low porosity then shampoo is a must every so often. I'm using one by Elasta QP right now that I like. I've also had good results with diluted Castile soap.

 

[faithVA]

If you're low porosity then shampoo is a must every so often. I'm using one by Elasta QP right now that I like. I've also had good results with diluted Castile soap.

I like elastic qp. I only bought Creme of Nature because I couldn't find elastic qp on the ground.

 

[Nightingale]

I'm low porosity and shampoo every wash (1-2x a week). I prefer sulfate free shampoos. I'm currently using Ion Hard Water shampoo

 

[IDareT'sHair]

Cleansing Conditioners user here. I also like Clays as well for Cleansing. I just prefer it and so does my Scalp.

I do have As I Am Cleansing Pudding if I feel I need a deeper Cleanse and VO5 Kiwi Clarifying Conditioner, Redken and some others. I also have a couple shampoos on hand if I really felt I needed one.

But my go-to's are Cleansing Conditioners. My daily products are basically water soluble and I very rarely, if ever use "cones" - gels etc....so I don't feel I get product build up. I cleanse my hair twice a week.

 

[Evolving78]

I can't use cleansing conditioners natural or relaxed. I'm low po/4a. I have to shampoo my hair 1-2x a week.

 

[tannicfer]

I am the same. I like to use up things. But I won't do it with shampoo because I have found it to be the most important step for me. If the shampoo doesn't work no amount of conditioning saves my hair. So I will return a shampoo or throw it out if it isn't right. A lot of my day to day dryness was caused by a bad cleansing step.

Maybe try ulta and get some sample sizes of shampoo so you can try and not feel guilty. Or get something from Sally's and take it back if it doesn't work.

Ohh, that's a really good idea with the samples. There was a time when I first went natural that I tried shampoos and that was the only time I threw out nearly full bottles of product. It's usually pretty clear when my scalp/hair hates a shampoo.

 

[tannicfer]

Cleansing Conditioners user here. I also like Clays as well for Cleansing. I just prefer it and so does my Scalp.

I do have As I Am Cleansing Pudding if I feel I need a deeper Cleanse and VO5 Kiwi Clarifying Conditioner, Redken and some others. I also have a couple shampoos on hand if I really felt I needed one.

But my go-to's are Cleansing Conditioners. My daily products are basically water soluble and I very rarely, if ever use "cones" - gels etc....so I don't feel I get product build up. I cleanse my hair twice a week.

As I Am was going to be the next cleansing conditioner to try once my current shea moisture runs out. And yeah, even though I'm low porosity, product buildup hasn't been a visible problem for me before probably because I use really light products as well.

 

[Prettymetty]

I'm 4b with medium to high porosity and I have to shampoo weekly. I tried to use cleansing conditioner only, but it caused a lot of buildup and my hair seemed overmoisturized. I'm not loyal to any shampoos. I pretty much just use whatever I grab first. I have Loreal straight shampoo, Ion Healthy Scalp shampoo, Cream of Nature detangling shampoo and Kerastase Chroma Riche.

Maybe you can shampoo and then follow with a cleansing conditioner. I might try that next wash day.

 

[uofmpanther]

I am a low porosity 4a/b. I have to use shampoo every 1-2 weeks. Otherwise, my hair actually gets more dry because the buildup keeps moisture from getting in.

Shea moisture doesn't work for me. I do like the Carols Daughter Black Vanilla, Camille Rose Ginger Cleansing Rinse and Uncle Funky's Daughter shampoo. I can typically tell immediately if a shampoo is wrong for me (my hair gets immediately dry and hard). Like @faithVA I need a good shampo. Conditioner typically doesn't fix the mess a bad one can create.

 

[faithVA]

I am a low porosity 4a/b. I have to use shampoo every 1-2 weeks. Otherwise, my hair actually gets more dry because the buildup keeps moisture from getting in.

Shea moisture doesn't work for me. I do like the Carols Daughter Black Vanilla, Camille Rose Ginger Cleansing Rinse and Uncle Funky's Daughter shampoo. I can typically tell immediately if a shampoo is wrong for me (my hair gets immediately dry and hard). Like @faithVA I need a good shampo. Conditioner typically doesn't fix the mess a bad one can create.

I want to try the Camille rose ginger. Have to put that on my todo list.

 

[jennifer30]

4-5 inches at 6 months? Seems like you're doing fine to me..