You Might Need To Triple Wash Your Hair For Optimal Results (But There's Good News If You're Short On Time)

For optimal hair and scalp health, it's time to incorporate a triple wash into your regimen. While it may sound excessive, the detoxing benefits truly speak for themselves. The practice is exactly what it sounds like: Washing your hair three times in a row during one shower session. The reason for this is that a single wash simply isn't enough to rid your hair of the dirt, oil, pollutants, and product that inevitably build up on the strands and scalp between washes. This technique incorporates thorough rinsing between each wash, ensuring that buildup actually loosens from the scalp.

The good news is that you don't need to triple-wash your hair every single time you wash it. In fact, that would be excessive. Rather, that level of thorough washing is only required every third time you wash your hair, so no need to worry about excessively long showers every time. We'd all love to be washing our hair less, whether it be to save time, avoid sensory issues, or reduce drying and damaging it with styling tools. The beauty of the triple wash is that as hair quality improves, you can extend the life of your hair in between washes, and give it a deep cleansing when you do decide to skip the dry shampoo and pull out the real stuff.

Triple washing your hair is well worth the effort. "Just like skincare — where we double/triple cleanse our skin — we should always double or triple cleanse our scalp," trichologist and founder of haircare brand Act+Acre Helen Reavey told British Vogue. "This is because the first wash takes care of any oil, pollution, and product remnants, while the second and third wash actually cleans our scalp." For everyone who incorporates a regimen of hair products, triple washing is especially imperative. Build-up on the scalp from both products and sweat can lead to a dry, flaky, irritated scalp. A single wash isn't enough to get rid of all of this residue. "We recommend doing two or three washes because you have to ensure complete removal of residue on the hair and scalp," a stylist from Salon Yöy told Glamour. "There are many products that leave behind remnants that aren't easily removed from the hair due to their composition and solubility." Repeated washing reduces the possibility of irritation and flakes.

However, it's not necessary to do a triple wash every single time you wash your hair. "You should only really do three washes if you are trying to remove build-up of [color] or a toner or a hair mask on the hair," trichologist Hannah Gaboardi told Vogue. Gaboardi suggested that a double rinse was ideal for your typical hair wash in between the rarer triple wash.

As you begin the regimen of triple washing your hair, keep in mind a few vital points. When doing the triple wash, use a restructuring shampoo. Aveda's Damage Remedy Restructuring Shampoo is a great choice, as is the Mighty Majesty Veda Bond Repair Regenerative Shampoo by Ranavat. Rather than rubbing the shampoo into your hair, use the triple wash as a chance to deeply massage your scalp. "Massaging the scalp when washing helps stimulate the hair follicles as well as remove dead skin cells on the scalp," stylist Andrew Fitzsimons told British Vogue. "If you do not massage the scalp while washing, it has the potential for the scalp to become stiff, dry, and even lead to dandruff or excessive product build-up." A scalp massager is also a great tool for this stage in the process. Vegamour makes a great one that stimulates the scalp and promotes circulation.

Lastly, thoroughly rinse your hair after each of the three washes to make sure you're getting rid of product, dirt, and sweat. "A bad rinse is one of the most common mistakes," a stylist from Salon Yöy told Glamour. They highlighted how thorough rinsing thoroughly is imperative to eradicating oil, sweat, dirt, and product residue while keeping the hair fibers healthy. With this reduction in build-up and with cleaner hair follicles, you'll see your hair grow healthier thanks to a stimulated, clean scalp.