How To Make Your Hair Grow Faster: 12 Tricks That Actually Work

By Jelani Addams Rosa & Powered By L’Oreal Professional Products Division

If you’ve always dreamed of having princess-length hair, it can be super frustrating when it seems your hair just isn’t growing as fast as you’d like. You’ve bought all the hair vitamins, read all the articles, spent more money than you’re willing to admit on products that made promises they didn’t deliver, and your hair still won’t grow. What gives?

The unfortunate truth is that there’s is no real way to make your hair grow faster. Your hair grows in a series of phases: The anagen or growth phase, the catagen or resting stage, and the telogen or shedding stage. The only way to make your hair grow faster would be to lengthen your growing phase somehow—and science just isn’t there yet. However, that doesn’t mean all your long hair dreams are down the drain.

If you feel like your hair isn’t reaching its full potential, it’s probably because you’re dealing with some major breakage. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, your hair grows on average a half an inch per month. If your hair is breaking off at the same rate, it’ll feel like your hair is never growing. So, if it’s long locks you’re lusting after, you’ll need to make sure your hair is stronger than ever.

We’ve rounded up the top twelve tricks that will make breakage a thing of the past and help you reach your hair length goals.

Weekly Deep Conditioning Treatments

Dry, brittle hair is a major cause of hair breakage. The only way to combat parched locks is to make sure you give it as much moisture as possible. A weekly deep conditioning mask is a great way to make sure your hair feels hydrated and strong.

When applying your mask, make sure to give lots of attention to your ends. Your ends are the oldest part of your hair and have been through more wear and tear than the hair closest to your scalp. If you feel like a mask alone isn’t enough, consider investing in a hair steamer. Water is the only thing that really hydrates your hair. A hair steamer will open your hair follicles, allowing the combination of water and mask into your strands.

Vitamins

We’ve all seen ads for miracle supplements that claim to make hair grow six inches within just a few weeks. If those claims seem too good to be true, it’s because they are—but that doesn’t mean you should toss all of your vitamins in the trash.

While there is no magic hair growth pill, there are certain supplements that can help hair feel stronger and make it less prone to breakage. Biotin is the vitamin often recommended by stylist if you’re looking to strengthen your hair.

Regular Trims

We know, cutting your hair doesn’t seem like it can possibly make it grow longer—but hear us out. While cutting your hair won’t actually make it grow, a cut can prevent split ends and breakage from becoming a major issue. Once your ends are split, there is no way to repair them. There are a few items on the market that can act as a temporary fix for frayed ends, but “temporary” is the key word here. The only way to get rid of split ends is to cut them off.

If you’re concerned about losing any length, ask your stylist for a dusting. Dusting is a technique that allows stylists to only get rid of your split ends. You may lose a tiny bit of length, but you will thank yourself in the long run. A dusting will prevent you from having to get rid of several inches of damaged hair when your split ends begin to move up your hair shaft.

Satin Pillowcase

Sleep your way to better hair! This swap is so simple, you’ll be upset you didn’t hear about it sooner. Ditch your regular cotton pillowcases for luxurious feeling satin pillowcases. Cotton is a deceptively rough fabric and can cause breakage as you toss and turn in your sleep. In contrast, your locks will glide over your new satin pillowcase without a snag in sight.

Cut Back on Heat Styling

We know you can’t possibly imagine living without your blow dryer and flat iron, but frequent high heat wreaks havoc on your strand. Give your locks a break from heat styling, choosing instead to air dry your mane and embrace your hair’s natural texture. Your hair will thank you and you’ll save tons of time getting ready in the morning.

Ditch the Ponytail

Ponytails are everyone’s go-to hairstyle. They’re quick, easy, and you can dress them up or down. Once you find the perfect placement for your pony, you’ll never want to give it up. We’re not asking you to go cold turkey, but you should take a break. Tying your hair in the same position day after day will cause your hair to become weak and in that area and prone to breakage.

The simplest solution is to take a break from ponytails, buns, and any other hairstyles that require your hair to be tied up. If you just can’t give up your daily ponytails, switch up their placement. Skip your usual sky-high ponytails in favor of a chic, low style.

Feed Your Hair

Healthy hair starts from the inside. Since your hair doesn’t have teeth, you’ll have to eat for it. While the goal is to eat healthy all the time, there are certain foods you can add to your diet to ensure your hair looks and feels extra shiny and strong.

Your hair needs lots of protein and healthy fats to thrive, so include foods like salmon, eggs, nuts, and avocado in your diet. As if you needed another reason to dig into the chips and guac.

Leave Chemical Treatments To The Professionals

We know it’s tempting to cut costs and administer chemical services such as relaxers and hair dyes yourself, but just because you can buy the products in the store to do them yourself doesn’t mean you should. In the end, a botched chemical service could end up costing you a lot more than money—it could cost you your hair!

If you’re looking to treat or color your hair chemically, be sure to make an appointment with a trusted and trained hair stylist. The stylist will be able to create the look you’re going for while helping your hair feel healthy.

Brush And Comb Your Hair The Right Way

Regularly brushing and combing your hair is one of the best ways to make sure your hair looks and feels healthy, but doing it the wrong way can wreak havoc on your locks. Lucky for you, you’ll be able to detangle and style your hair like a pro in no time if you follow these simple rules.

When detangling your locks, always begin at your ends and work your way to your roots. If you start at your roots, you’ll have to work the tangles through the entire length of your strands. When you start with your ends, the knot has a much shorter distance to travel.

Never brush wet hair because it is prone to breakage and should be handled with care. Wait until your hair is completely dry before styling your mane with a brush. You can detangle your hair with a comb while it is wet, but be sure to use a comb specifically for detangling wet hair. We suggest The Tangle Teezer Aqua Splash comb.

Sleep Your Way To Better Hair

When you’re tossing and turning at night, your hair can become tangled and snag on your pillow, sheets, and blankets. Protect your strands from becoming a tangled, broken mess by sleeping with your hair in a loose top knot. The top knot will keep your hair in place as you get your eight hours of slumber, and you’ll wake up with tangle-free locks!

Upgrade Your Hair Care Routine

If it’s long locks you’re after, be sure that every product in your hair care routine is helping you get closer to your goal. Since the key to long locks is reducing breakage, be sure to pack your hair care routine with products formulated to help you reach your goals. Below, we've gathered a few of our favorites from the L'Oréal portfolio of products.

When used as a system, the Kérastase Resistance Extentioniste collection can help your hair experience 99 percent less breakage and 78 percent less split ends. The range comes with four easy to use products. Kérastase Resistance Bain Extentioniste and Fondant Extentioniste, a length strengthening shampoo and conditioner system formulated with creatine R, taurine, and maleic acid to help strengthen and fortify the hair for less breakage. Kérastase Resistance Sérum Extentioniste is a scalp and hair serum formulated with ceramides to strengthen and fortify the hair. Lastly, the Kérastase Resistance Masque Extentioniste is a deep conditioning treatment to strengthen slow growing, damaged ends.

If it’s strong locks you’re after, you need the L’Oréal Professionnel Inforcer range. Complete with a shampoo, conditioner, mask, serum, and two leave-ins. It has everything you need to make sure your hair grows longer and stronger than ever. L’Oréal Professionnel Inforcer Anti-Breakage Shampoo and Strengthening Conditioner are formulated with vitamin B6 and biotin, for instant reduction of breakage. Hair is more resistant and stronger with continued use.

The L’Oréal Professionnel Inforcer Overnight Strengthening Serum helps you reach your hair goals while you sleep! L’Oréal Professionnel Inforcer Strengthening Mask is the perfect way to give your fragile strands a bit of extra TLC. Lastly, choose between L’Oréal Professionnel Inforcer Anti-Breakage Cream and Brush Proof Anti-Breakage Spray for all of your styling needs.

Seek Professional Help

If you believe that you are in fact suffering from a form of severe or permanent hair loss, don’t wait to speak to a specialist. A dermatologist who specializes in trichology—a branch of medicine that focuses on issues concerning the scalp and hair—can help you figure out exactly what is causing your hair loss.

Once you’ve been diagnosed, your doctor will let you know if there are any treatments available that can possibly reverse the hair loss or promote new growth.

If you follow all of these tips, you’ll have the long, healthy hair you’ve always dreamed of in no time.

Interested in advice about how to grow your hair longer? Use our salon locator to book an appointment with a stylist near you.