Special Request: Growing and caring for African American babies hair...

I've actually had more than a few moms of newborn girls or toddlers inquire on the best method of growing their babies hair. Honestly, in my opinion if you do little to nothing the hair will grow but knowing what I know now there are a few changes I would make had I known better when my baby girl was an infant. Without further ado, let's dive right in!

Just as our hair requires moisture to grow so does an infants. With that said avoid washing their little heads daily, infants don't require that much washing. You may want to reserve washing for once a week with an all natural baby shampoo, adult shampoos contain harsh sulfates and a different pH balance, so steer clear of those. Also there is no need to work the shampoo into a massive lather of bubbles, the key here is gently washing the babes hair and following with an all natural conditioner. I've heard good things about Cara B Naturally, which host a full line including shampoo, conditioner and a leave in. Shea Moistures Olive and Marula Head to Toe shampoo and lotion host a list of yummy ingredients and without getting into too much detail on products let's not forget the most moisturizing (and free) ingredient of all - water. Lightly spraying water onto your babies hair and sealing with a light oil such as coconut is a great alternative to experimenting with products. You may want to try this route and progress to adding products as your babies hair changes, if necessary of course. Finally please remember moisture is not grease! Moisture is found it water or the use of water based leave in conditioners, see my post on moisturizing and sealing for more details on the subject. You can apply moisture by spraying water before your style then sealing with a natural butters or coconut oil. Also as your baby grows begin to seek a water based all natural leave in such as the products mentioned above but that option can be reserved for further down the road when you get into really styling your toddlers hair.

If growth is really the goal avoid brushing and always use a soft baby brush when doing so, just as less manipulation helps promote growth with our hair the same holds true for babies. Also avoid rubber bands, those adorable headbands and pulling your babies hair into a tight ponytail for styling. In fact unless you have a special occasion or pictures daily brushing and styling should be avoided.

I want to take a small time out to give some attention to a condition that must be handled differently in most cases with black babies. In terms of cradle cap washing daily with a treatment shampoo is typically not a good option on black hair, no matter the age. I've read great reviews on Gentle Naturals Cradle Cap Treatment. The ingredients in Gentle Naturals definitely look appealing and moisturizing. Also, applying coconut oil before shampooing your infants head and again after washing has also had positive effects in curing cradle cap based on my research. I am not a physician of course, not even a licensed cosmetologist but because African American hair requires different elements for growth that's what I research and that is what I encourage you to do also.

As your baby grows into a toddler the same principles hold true, weekly washing, conditioning and moisturizing and sealing. As you become more tempted to style try experimenting with styles that don't stress their tiny hair follicles, I've seen a plethora of adorable styles that revolve around different variations of two strand twist. I've also seen a great deal of women in the hair community grow their toddlers hair to waist length and beyond by remaining gentle and holding true to utilizing the same principles we utilize on our hair on a smaller, gentler scale. The primary takeaway to keep at the fore front of your mind is African American hair must have moisture to thrive, also less manipulation and avoiding tight styles encourage growth. I hope this tidbit of information is helpful in caring for your babies hair, it's really quite simple when it comes down to it, less is more in hair growth!

You Grow Girl Challengers & Updates...

The YGG challenge is under way and I'm thrilled at the feedback and questions I'm getting from this diverse group of challengers. The #yougrowgirl15 challengers are a unique blend of different textures, lengths and growth goal oriented natural and relaxed haired ladies, all on a mission to grow healthy hair.

There are understandably some women who didn't want to be identified but here's a glimpse behind some of our YGG gals!

As for myself I couldn't bring myself to flat iron or silk wrap my hair in order to take a "proper" starting pic. What I did do was stretch my week old braid out to the best of my ability and place markers at my arm pit (APL) and waist (WL) to act as a guide as to where my hair stands in terms of length.

Finally, my protective style of choice for the first weeks of the YGG challenge is a half wig. Here I am rocking the Vanessa Express Half Wig La Fasta. As you can see I leave a small section of the front of my hair out that I curl with a flexirod in order to blend with my wig. Stay tuned for details on why half wigs are my protective style of choice.

One week down in the YGG challenge, I'd love to know how you beauties are doing. Please don't be timid if you have questions regarding the health of you hair, I'm at your service. Until next time beauties, you grow!

Who can resist a women with a red pout?

There is something about Sundays that just renews my spirit. Not only does it enable the hubby and I to take advantage of lazy Sunday mornings to brunch and connect but Sundays also allow us to explore quaint little restaurants and cozy bakeries in the German Village section of town.

Well last Sunday I was in the mood to explore in a way that was pretty bold for me by sporting a matte red lip and let me tell you I was really feeling this color. Beso by Stila liquid lipstick didn't have me at hello, I've been holding onto this tube for months now but something was in the air on this particular day that caused me to reach for this punch of color and it did not disappoint.

I'm typically a sheer to nude gloss kind of girl but I think it's safe to say those days are behind me. Daring, fierce, pretty and feminine all come to mind when I wear this lip color. Ladies this is the start of something new and I think I'm going to like exploring what these lips can do! I can't tell you how many new beginnings I've had since crossing over forty, all I can say is watch out world!

 

Have your stepped out your comfort zone lately? I'd love to hear the details....

Easy Game Day/Weeknight Meal...Crockpot Chicken Fajitas

If you happened upon my fajita chicken recipe your going to begin to think I'm obsessed with fajitas! Well what I am obsessed with is food that packs a lot of flavor without all the calories. Not only do I have to fool myself but my husband also has to have good eats, especially on game day Saturday. So this week were enjoying crockpot chicken fajitas, easy and delicious!

Here's what you dolls will need to cook up this game day fare:

3 chicken breast (about 2lbs)
One large onion
One red and one yellow bell pepper
One pack of fajita or taco seasoning
Two tablespoons of lime juice
1/2 cup chicken stock
Seasoning salt
Pepper
Garlic Salt
Tortillas

I began by cleaning my chicken breast and lightly seasoning them with both pepper and both seasoning and garlic salt. I prefer to lightly sear both sides before I toss my chicken into the crock pot but your more than welcome to throw them in there raw. I thinly slice my onion and bell peppers and toss half of the onion/pepper combination into a crockpot that I've lightly sprayed with cooking oil. I then layer the chicken breast side by side on top of the peppers and onions and pour in the chicken stock and two tablespoons of lime juice over the chicken. I then sprinkle the entire pack of taco seasoning mix on top chicken and layer on the other half of my peppers and onions. Another option that I've tried in the past that adds an extra punch of flavor is tossing in a can of diced tomatoes and green chilies.  This combination of flavors is very forgiving. I've made this a zillion times with less ingredients and sometimes more thrown in the crockpot and it's been delicious every time. That's why I love fajitas they're so versatile you almost can't go wrong.

Cook on high for three hours or on medium for six to eight hours. Remove the lid and allow to cool slightly then use two forks to shred your chicken. Combine the peppers and chicken well and serve on warm tortillas with toppings of your choice (light sour cream, cheese, guacamole, salsa) easy and filling!

You Grow Girl 1st Mini Challenge, take your vitamins!!

You Grow Girl challengers!! Let me start by saying I've got lots of pictures, primarily via my Facebook inbox, but there are tons of "ghost challengers" that I welcome all the same. If you'd like to connect with your fellow challengers look up the hash tag #yougrowgirl15 on Instagram or "Post to this Page" link on  Braidouts & Barbells Facebook page.  Now onto the good stuff it's time for our first challenge and this weeks challenge is to take your vitamins!

By now you should be protective styling and using your castor oil. So let's take our growing to the next level by nourishing our hair from the inside out! Early this year I suffered a setback in my hair journey after the unexpected death of my father. Once I realized the amount of damage I experienced I begin to implement several options that I knew I could depend on to care for my damaged hair. In researching my options I found myself also reaching for something new- MSM. For those of you that don't know MSM stands for methyl sulfonyl methane which is also known as a nutritional form of sulfur. Sulfur is critical to many functions of our bodies and is primarily known as a joint supplement. We've seen it in hair care products before from Sulfur 8 to a few hair growth oils that contain sulfur. Also, there is a well known vitamin that declares MSM as one of it's primary growth stimulators.  Once I got into the benefits of sulfur I was convinced, in addition to hair growth it's also said that sulfur could benefit in the treatment of acne, dandruff and eczema.

For those of you who don't know our hair has three cycles: growing, resting and shedding. In terms of hair growth MSM is rumored to be beneficial in hair growth because it's said to increase the anagen or growth phase of our hair. For example if your growth phase is three to five years, with the use of MSM it could be extended to four or six years. Both numbers are hypothetical but one thing is for sure, we all experience the same three phases in the life cycle of our hair. Luckily because we have thousands of hairs on our precious heads those cycles are all in a different rotation. Can you imagine if all our hair was in the shedding phase at the same time? Yikes!! That's scary stuff, moving on!

There's also a certain hair growth guru I follow that has stated she gained three inches in three months opposed to her normal growth rate of 1/4 inch per month with the use of MSM. I decided to use MSM in conjunction with a Hair and Nail vitamin I found at Walgreens. The Hair and Nail Vitamin by AppliedNutrition contained "superior levels" of biotin and silica. I chose this combination due to biotins benefits in strengthening hair and nails. Silica on the other hand is a component of collagen which helps repair skin, hair and nails. Combined my "vitamin cocktail" is a lot less pricey than the popular hair vitamins that promise longer hair and personally I like the nutrient levels of my little cocktail. There can be too much of a good thing, read on to discuss more about that. For those of you interested in purchasing MSM it's on BOGO at CVS this week, you can thank me later.

My vitamin cocktail!

Now back to having too much of a good thing. Let me forewarn you that there are many, many ladies out there that have complained of breakouts, severe breakouts when taking biotin and some have complained with the use of MSM as well. I have never experienced that, but boy have I seen the side effects of too much. I drink a ton of water and highly recommend you do the same if you decide to try vitamins as part of your hair journey. There are some ladies that reach straight for the 10,000 mcg of biotin with the hopes that their hair growth will increase tenfold, I'm not saying it won't but you really want to increase your dosage slowly don't be that girl with a case of severely bad acne for an extra inch of growth. Secondly, once your hair begins growing from taking more vitamins, the growth rate of your hair increases everywhere, so stock up on razors while your picking up those vitamins! Here's what I did noticed about taking MSM, and I'm speaking on that specifically because I've taken various other vitamins, although not consistently, in my growth journey. I noticed my new growth was incredibly soft. It may sound weird to some but being a person that is constantly caring for my own hair I'm very aware of changes and my new growth tends to be a bit on the rough side. I honestly thought I was imaging it until along comes an article in Black Hair Information that confirms my suspicion. Also, another bonus to having MSM around the house is my husband started taking them to help with an aching knee (remember the primary use is a joint supplement) and it greatly reduced his symptoms. One last word on the use of vitamins is consistency, I find that I do a good job of taking vitamins daily when I keep them in the bathroom and take them every morning just like brushing my teeth.

Finally during my time taking MSM and vitamins my hair definitely grew, but let's be real our hair is going to grow regardless, retaining that growth is what's important. I don't have great pictures because I did some major trimming but you can bet now that we've created an environment for growth (protective styling, castor oil) I'm definitely tracking my progress. So ladies, do you accept this mini challenge? We're doing everything in our power to promote growth externally, lets increase our chances by nourishing our hair from the inside out!

Are you up for the challenge?

10 Minutes a day Fitness

If your hoping that I'm going to feed you a magic pill that will get you super fit in ten minutes or less, think again. What I do hope to do is give those of  you that want to start a workout routine a way to begin with small increments and those of you that are already active an idea to stay focused on fitness. Ten minutes a day fitness has been a lifesaver for keeping me on track with my fit goals.

On a day to day basis I average a half hour to an hour and a half of exercise. On the days that I perform two exercise sessions a day I'm pushing the hour and a half mark. Now we're not talking about those days, we're talking about the days that I don't feel like exercising; the days in which every core of my being is rebelling at the thought of working out. The days when you'd rather go to dentist, to bed..I'd rather do anything that doesn't involve breaking a sweat. On those days I implement my ten minutes of fitness to push through my mental barrier and commit to a workout.

I have to tell you that I've implemented this strategy even on occasion when I was sick or hung over and surprisingly I've felt better once my ten minutes were up. Also, I maintained this standard while we were on our vacation recently and upon returning home I didn't miss a beat! There was no "I have to get back into the swing of things" mentality because I never quit! Even better you can almost bet that once your engine gets running you'll bypass that ten minutes easily and actually get in a workout state of mind. Once that happens I've easily performed a solid full body workout when my goal was a flimsy time minutes, how sweet is that? That's one of my secrets to working out and losing weight all the way around.

Benefits of a short, intense workout

Coming up with the techniques to trick yourself into moving, pushing and overcoming your mental roadblocks is what it's all about. Some of my favorite ten minute workouts include: YouTube queen Tiffany Rothe's  Mountain Climber and Booty Shaking Waist workouts. I also enjoy The Firm DVD Target Toning Zero in Ten workout which is a collage of fitness routines that combine cardio and strength training. Finally when I'm really in a rut, I'll simply jump on my elliptical or stationary bike and start moving. I'll be there first to admit that there have been occasions when I forced myself to do the bare minimum of ten minutes and that was it for the day. The key here isn't perfection it's persistence.

I'd love to know your tricks to get moving when your motivation is down, here's to a week of wellness, make it a good one!

Lets talk Protective Styling!

First things first, if you haven't heard about the You Grow Girl Hair Growth challenge it's a few days away, check out the deets here. So far I've received a ton of questions from ladies in anticipation of the challenge and the majority are centered around protective styling.

What is protective styling? Most of us have been doing it for years without a given name attached to it but in the hair community it's referred to as a style that keeps your ends tucked away. Why the ends you ask? Because they are the oldest part of our hair and therefore they require more care. In addition, a protective style requires very little if any maintenance on a day to day basis. Finally, by protective styling it helps your hair stay moisturized. If you haven't read my post on the importance of moisturizing and sealing your hair you can find it here. In it I discuss the importance of moisture particularly in black hair growth. By protective styling you are fostering an environment for growth by keeping your ends tucked away from the elements and moisturized.

Starting at the top right my fav's including (half wig, goddess braids, twisted top knots, bun and double decker bun)

How many times have we installed braids or weave with the objective to grow our hair? I was blessed to follow two young ladies in their hair journey that grew their hair with the use of protective styling with very different results. Lets take a moment to review both growth scenarios. Subject #1 over the course of a year subject number one chose to grow her hair by placing her hair in a bun for one year straight, during that year she never wore her hair down, not once. Having been a part of a hair care group she understood the importance washing and deep conditioning her hair, she kept her ends well moisturized and she chose to bun wrapping her hair into a bun and pinning it opposed to using hair bands or other utensils. Her regimen remained simple yet focused on healthy hair care and by the end of the year her hair grew from somewhere between shoulder and arm pit length to waist length. Subject #2 over the course of a year subject #2 grew her hair from above shoulder length to about somewhere between bra strap and mid back length. She accomplished this by having a sewn in weave installed every 2 to 3 months (three months in a protective style is NOT recommended) over the course of a year. She did very little to her hair between installs and yet her hair grew. I noticed one major difference between subject #1 and #2 which is the moral of the story, subject #1 continued enjoying long, healthy hair by maintaining the healthy hair practices she learned throughout her journey. She protective styled 70% of the time after she achieved her goal length and reserved wearing her hair down for weekends and special occasions. Also she continued her healthy hair practices by moisturizing and sealing and following a weekly wash and deep condition routine. Subject #2 on the other hand had no clue on what to do with this newly grown crop of curls sprouting from her pretty head. It was beautiful and longer than she could imagine but overtime it begin to become shorter and appeared less healthy. She increased her salon visits but still couldn't understand why her mane failed to maintain its length and luster. Frustrated by her hairs lack of vitality she resorted to a dependence on weave to maintain the length she longed for but couldn't seem to maintain.

Now, I've done quite a bit of explaining to get to this point and what is the moral of my story you ask? Moral of the story is your hair is going to grow whether it's barely cared for and left unattended or provided with a minimum amount of growth necessities and left mostly unattended. Both women experienced growth, the difference is one was aware that she had to take certain steps to maintain the length she worked to achieve. Now just in case anyone is wondering I have nothing against weave. I've been a weave queen at certain points in my life - glued, quick or sewn in, I've had it! What stood out for me was the level of confidence each women portrayed having achieved long hair. To witness subject #2's confidence dwindle as her hair begin to break was actually sad for me too, if I knew then what I know now we'd both be happy and waist length!

 I like my readers to understand as much as possible about why certain steps are important. So back to the topic of discussion, as discussed in both scenarios protective styling will allow your hair to grow or help you to maintain healthy hair. It keeps your hair moist and protected and away from wind, clothing, cold air, dry heat or anything that could cause breakage. My wedding ring snags and breaks my hair, when I went to Texas for my daughters Air Force BT graduation the dry heat literally caused my hair to feel brittle to the touch, which causes breakage. How many times have you heard your hair snapping from contact with clothes or furniture? Well if you are protective styling and doing extra to care for your scalp such as keeping it clean, moist or applying growth aides then you are really ensuring that your hair achieves the best level of growth possible while protected. Protective styling doesn't mean you can't enjoy long, healthy hair but as a women with afro textured hair you must be aware that certain habits are important in our hair care routine.

My favorite protective styles include: various types of buns, crown or goddess braids, half wigs that  resemble a braid out or natural hair pattern and crochet braids. I am not necessary a fan of sewn in weave anymore because I have to be able to access my hair. It's a me thing so if  sew-in's are your thing please continue. If you do however choose to maintain a permanent protective style (braids, sew-in, etc) do your hair a favor and give it a good light protein treatment followed by a moisturizing deep condition before your install. Secondly, make sure your ends are healthy and dusted or trimmed. Also take care of your hair underneath the weave by spraying your scalp with water and oil, "washing" with dry shampoo and applying castor oil which has antiviral properties and promotes growth.

WARNING: Protective styling can work against you and I do NOT recommend the following practices.  I hate micro braids, they are the devil - period. Having every single, tiny baby hair on your scalp pulled into submission is not healthy, sorry not sorry. If ever there was a real life edge destroyer it's micro braids, just don't. Secondly, when I do sit down to get crochet braids or any install I forewarn my stylist that I do not like my hair pulled tight, if you have bumps on your neck or hair line it's too tight. I have no problem voicing my concern that they are braiding too tight, it's your hair, speak up! So many of us are so desparate to get our moneys worth that we don't care if our hair health or edges are at risk, don't be that gal! Also, when using buns as a protective style you need to either do what subject #1 did and wrap your hair daily and pin it securely or better yet rotate your bun. I've witnessed women with very long hair experience breakage because they placed their bun in the same spot and either kept it there for days or weeks (without taking it down at night) or the hair simply broke because they were pulling the strands on a regular basis in the same spot. I wear high, low, double and middle of my head buns. I change the location on a regular basis and take them down every evening. Finally if you choose to bun make sure you use elastic bands without metal closures that can cause breakage. I love keeping it real so I'm not ashamed to say I often soak my Goody elastic bands in oil to give 'em a bit of lubrication especially if my hair will be in a bun for a few days.

I've given you all a lot of information, some may think it's too much but if you want to fully experience healthy hair or long hair then protective styling needs to come into play. Some of you think nothing of this because you don't yet understand the dynamics of black hair growth but when I'm walking across the artic tundra (the parking lot of my workplace) in the cold winter months with my precious ends moist and tucked neatly in a bun I know that neither the harsh outdoor cold and wind nor the dry climate indoors is going to harm my hair. When I see another sister walking in with a combination of dry, split ends that seem to be screaming for a deep condition I wish I could tap her on the shoulder and give her some advice. Poor little tink tink, I'm not going to end up in jail because I offended someone for telling her she needs to tuck and seal, ha! Moving on....

Throughout the Braidouts & Barbells Facebook page I've offered some examples of protective styles with the hope that you'll find inspiration. If your nervous about protective styling, like I was in the beginning, then play the style up with makeup, headbands, earrings and attitude! Here's to protecting those ends this winter darlings, if I have a say so in this we will all have long healthy hair and fit derrieres by summer! Have a great weekend and to my hair growth challengers, I'll see you on Sunday!