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I've recently been helping my 11-year-old son work out at home (primarily bodyweight-resistance exercise). His hair reaches down to the bottoms of his shoulder blades. Generally, he doesn't even tie it back into a ponytail, but instead prefers to just let it all hang loose. For a boy his age (and actually, for most people of any age, these days), he manages a fairly vigorous workout. Over the years, I've heard numerous short-haired guys cite complications while exercising as a reason for keeping their hair short, as well as a handful of long-haired guys who state difficulty managing long hair as a reason for not working out. Of course, these are both equally ridiculous sentiments.
Bottom line is that exercising is no excuse for not growing long hair, and having long hair is no excuse for not exercising. I realize that for most reasonable people this is a non-issue, but just for the sake of conversation, I'm curious to know the various methods of hair management that are employed by those of you who exercise regularly.
Thanks,
--Val
(The image above is of Carles Puyol, a Spanish footballer who obviously manages to exercise regularly with long hair.)
Hi Val,
As some know here I do workouts at the gym and never had a problem containing my hair.Actually having it really long is a plus as opposed to just at or below the shoulders.I normally multiple tie my hair,such as what Scott does to an extent,so I hardly even know its there.Another poster on here,FITNESSDAVID,does a bun for his workouts he has said.So guys, if you have long hair that is no excuse to be flabby!lol.You just adapt to the situation then its never an issue.Cheers
Mârk
True that :)
David
Well, I'm allergic to gyms! No, not literally but I've never been keen on them plus I can't afford it anyway. I much prefer to be outdoors.
But I do exercise a LOT - walking. Since I no longer have a car I have no choice. But I do love walking anyway and I walk for miles just for the fun of it. I'm a very fast walker so I naturally get a healthy increase in my heart-rate and work up a sweat. And I enjoy badminton now and then.
Far from being a deterrent, I actually enjoy walking more now I've got long hair. I listen to rock/metal/techno/trance on my iPod while I'm walking and feeling the hair blowing round my face (I leave my hair loose) seems to enhance the experience. Far more fun than when it was short. I can fantasise I'm a manga character or a rockstar without even needing a samurai sword or an air-guitar! :)
Damon
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Hi Damon,
Honestly walking is a legitimate form of exercise if you do it on a regular basis.I like walking myself as just last week I took a train into NYC to Penn Station and just walked around for hours going downtown to Soho and the Village.Must have been on my feet for more than six hours.Needless to say I was burnt out by the time I arrived home later that day.I mainly like working out at the gym because I can get do a good workout in the shortest amount of time taken out of my day.If you've seen my latest posted pic you'd never think I went to a gym because I just don't get muscular.I've always been that way.Cheers
Mârk
When I was in college (1984 to 1988), I was quite surprised to find that many of the male athletes, especially cross-country runners and ultimate frisbee players, had long hair. (In high school, I always associated jocks with buzz cuts. Actually, all the boys in high school had short hair; it was part of the strict dress code we had, but the buzz cuts were mainly worn by jocks.)
Among the techniques I remembered both athletes and non-athletes using were: 1) tied ponytail 2) braided ponytail 3) bandana. For the bandana, there were two ways it was used. For people who had relatively short hair, one was to make a "pirate cap" with it. The other way was to make a headband with it. This seemed to be preferred by guys with longer hair. Unfortunately, the bandana started to fall out of favor by the time I graduated, probably because it had started to become associated with gangs.
In the case of very long hair where accumulated damage becomes an issue, protecting the hair becomes important along with containing it. For less vigorous exercise, walking or hiking I just go with my usual bun, for more active stuff or trailwork where there are more environmental contaminants, my preference is a pony scrub (or similar) (link below, not all of them are in stereotypically feminine colors or patterns).
Pony Scrubs
It's a few years since I last darkened the door of a gym - starting up your own business kind of eats into any spare time, but now that I've become established, I'm hoping to be able to start working out again soon.
Anyway, I still find time to cycle to work most days (about 45 mins each way) and I play badminton for four teams in my club, so I'm averaging at least two matches per week plus club nights when I can fit them in.
My hair currently reaches below my butt when loose and about tailbone length when braided. For cycling, I just leave the braid loose, but I tuck it into my T-shirt for badminton. I tried using a bun, but there's too much hair and I kept catching it with the racket in defensive play, and leaving the braid loose is just asking for trouble. I've nearly blinded myself a few times and it also cost me a few points by touching the shuttle.
I'm not sure what I'll do about my hair when I start working out again; it was only shoulder-blade-length when I stopped, so it's going to take a bit of trial and error to work out the most practical option.
I always braid my hair but for cycling I try to dampen the braid and apply a coating of coconut oil to the length. It serves to protect by coating the hair with a beneficial oil plus it contains the hair better so there are no flyaways.
Thanks for all the great tips, guys! Like I said, it hasn't become an issue for my boys yet, but I've always been curious about the various ways people have found to deal with it.
--Val
Ha Ha Ha. I have heard that line so many times. And here is another: "Have to get my hair cut for the Summer cause it's going to be hot out."
I can only cite 2 examples, and both guys work-out at the Gym I go to daily. Both of these men have no restraints for their hair, and they live through the whole thing just as well (much better actually) than do the ones in there trying to lose weight and once out to thir cars have a big bag full of goddies as their rewards of shedding calories which they dive into once in their cars. Funny thing however, they continue to gain weight. (I wonder why?) LOL :-) bty: These "snack people" have very short hair.
Justin~
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I ride a bike, and I use multiple hair elastics. Since it reaches my knees, I fold it and secure it with a small hair grip as well, so I don't sit on it, or God forbid, get it caught in moving parts. I multi tie my beard too.
Scott
I'm also a cyclist. I don't do anything more than a basic tail and cycling skullcap under my helmet. I just don't have the patience to braid or segment it.
I know this subjects my hair to more damage and breakage, but I have a fairly short (mid-back) terminal length anyway. And for the most part it rides against my back in my draft. Crosswinds can blow it around a little.
At the end of a ride, I just use extra care when brushing and combing out any tangles.