Rinse and Repeat

For about 10 months now, I haven’t been using any product when I shower. That is no soap or shampoo, just water. Being appalled by the idea isn’t surprising and understandable. For me, doing so stands as one of the better decisions I’ve made. It’s simplified a lot of things, and my hair and skin feel the healthiest they’ve been in years.

A Clean Start

Since I shaved my head last year, I wanted to give this whole no product thing a try. I started with the no hair product and figured I´d go all in after a bit. The idea behind not using these products is that they impact the body´s natural production of oils by stripping them away so frequently. This causes the body to overproduce oil, needing more use of product to keep things in control.

With a bald head, I was able to let my hair grow back naturally, and let the transition from shampoo and conditioner use go by. From the reading that inspired this change, the negative impact can still be seen for a month or two after stopping use. Luckily, I had no hair for that whole period.

You Haven’t Thought of the Smell

Now comes the part that we’ve all been thinking since the first paragraph, “how bad to you smell?” From what I’ve been able to inquire, not really at all.

When I started this whole experiment out, I figured someone would call me out on stinking up the room if I was unbearable to be around. After months of not hearing anything, I thought maybe people didn’t want to hurt my feelings or something, so I decided to ask them.

The answer I got was a resounding, I don´t think so. It’s difficult to try and recall a lack of something. One friend made a comment that after working out I did, but others were shocked at the revelation.

Should You Try This Too?

Do I recommend this? I think it´s worth a try for just about anyone. The first few weeks will likely be the most difficult, but afterwards it eliminates a handful of things to think about.

Travel, for one, becomes quite a bit easier without having to pack a bunch of product into a little bag that needs to be separated out. That´s if travel size bottles will even work for the trip.

Showering becomes a simple process that focuses on washing away dirt, sweat, and other filth, instead of lazily lathering some soap around and calling it good.

This may not be for everyone, but like so many things on this blog, I think most things in life are worth a try. This also isn’t something I have deep rooted beliefs in. Should evidence come up that makes this not worth it, I’d change back to my old ways. For now, I’ll continue on.