The #1 beauty complaint of women who exercise: Solved.

“Dear Nicky, how do I skip shampoo if I exercise everyday? I have an oily scalp and dry ends but I’ve heard I shouldn’t be washing it everyday. Help! Crystal.”

Thanks for writing in with this gem of a beauty pickle, Crystal. Avoiding the post-exercise ‘poo (shampoo, c’mon guys!) is one that only a lucky few of us can get away with.

If you’ve got an oily noggin then chances are you’ve already tried everything from washing twice a day to seriously considering making a floppy beanie part of your signature look.

But there’s a couple of different options you can try, thankfully none of them include wearing an Olivia Newton-John style ‘Physical’ headband, so lets run (pun intended) through them.

Dry shampoo.

Have a spare bottle of dry shampoo in your gym bag and you’ll say sayanora to post-gym oil slicks for good. To apply: lift hair up in sections (don’t directly spray it at your hairline) and spray under your hair, working it in with your fingers. If you have a tendency to play with your hair then twist it up into a topknot or pony.

Not all dry shampoo is created equal and there’s a couple of different products which are better for oily hair.

Try Lulu Organics, Klorane or TRESemmé’s Fresh Start Dry Shampoo.

Use tea tree based products.

The oily-haired among us swear by products containing tea tree oil – it’s gentle, it works to strip excess oil, and it helps fight dandruff.

Try Paul Mitchell, Redwin or Aubrey Organics Clarifying Green Tea Shampoo.

Give co-washing a go.

Co-washing sounds like something you’d do at a commune but it’s simply washing your hair with a silicone-free conditioner.

Conditioners have detergents in them that will actually clean your hair without stripping the hair’s natural moisture.

If you’re going to go down the co-washing road, it’s important all your haircare products are silicone-free as a silicone-free conditioner won’t be able to budge product build up alone. This is a great option if you also have unruly curly or frizzy hair.

Try Al’chemy, Avalon Organics, Moo Goo or Nature’s Organics.

Use a clarifying shampoo once a week.  

A clarifying shampoo will get rid the hair of all product and natural buildup, which causes your hair to look lank, dull and weighed down.

I know what you’re thinking, this sounds fab, why can’t I use this everyday? You can use a daily-specific product but choose wisely, as a clarifying shampoo can overdry your scalp. And this can lead to stimulate more oil and sebum production.

If you also colour your hair using a clarifying shampoo too often can cause your hair color to fade faster. Keep washing to every fortnight and avoid it in the first few weeks of a fresh colour.

Try KMS Hair Stay Clarifying shampoo, Moroccanoil Clarifying Shampoo, Garnier Citrus-Detox Anti-Dandruff Shampoo, Redken Nature’s Rescue Refreshing Detox Shampoo, or O&M Original Detox Shampoo.

Skip the conditioner.

This one might sound obvious but if you’ve tried everything and still have hair greasier than the hot chip vat at the local takeaway shop then try only conditioning the ends of your hair. Since your hair is dry at the ends but oily at the scalp, limit your conditioner to only the ends of your hair. If this doesn’t reduce the oiliness of your hair it’ll definitely make it less lank and weighed down.

If you’re looking to try out a different shampoo try Redken Scalp Relief Oil Detox Shampoo, Kerastase Specifique balancing shampoo or Neutrogena Anti-Residue shampoo.

Want Nicky and the Mamamia audience to help solve your beauty dilemma? Send it to nicky@mamamia.com.au 

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