Why You Should Pre-poo Before Washing Your Hair

What is pre-pooing

Applying a conditioning or oil treatment before cleansing to add moisture to chemically-treated or natural hair. The conditioning treatment will be rinsed out, but it provides some protection to strands prior to the manipulation of cleansing.

Natural oils or a conditioner can be used as a pre-poo. Or a homemade conditioning cocktail can be made by mixing together favorite natural oils, conditioners, and ingredients found in the kitchen like honey, yogurt, avocado, or coconut milk.

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Benefits of pre-pooing

• Helps with detangling before cleansing/shampooing
• Can soften dirt and residue on the hair helping them to wash away easier during cleansing
• Eliminates the squeaky clean feeling by preventing shampoos from stripping hair of all moisture

Why I pre-poo

I hadn't heard about pre-pooing until I began my healthy hair journey and was researching tips on blogs and vlogs. When I first started pre-pooing I was using natural oils like olive oil and rinse out conditioners by either applying them separately or mixing them together and applying the mix to my hair.

Since I started pre-pooing I've kept it a key step in my wash day. The few times I haven't pre-pooed I've noticed a difference in how my hair reacts and feels during cleansing and afterward. When I pre-poo I'm able to fully detangle my relaxed hair, it feels more moisturized during and after cleansing and keeps that feeling longer between my wash days.

Related post: How To Pre-poo Chemically-treated Hair

Products I use to pre-poo

I typically pre-poo each time I wash my hair. It doesn't matter if I'm co-washing or using shampoo. Typically the only time I don't pre-poo is when I'm doing a quick wash. Here are the products I currently use to pre-poo my relaxed hair

• Oil mix of sunflower oil, olive oil, and tea tree oil
• Eden BodyWorks Jojoba Monoi Deep Conditioner
• Suave Professionals Natural Infusions with Macadamia Oil & White Orchid Moisturizing Conditioner

Here are some products I've used in the past as a pre-poo

• Coconut oil
• L'Oreal Paris Ceramide Total Repair 5 Restoring Conditioner
• Suave Professionals Almond & Shea Butter Conditioner 

There have been a few times where I kept the product on overnight, but most times I pre-poo for an hour or so and may sit under my hooded dryer or use my Hot Head Microwavable Deep Conditioning Cap to get the most from the pre-poo. 

What do you use to pre-poo?