Can You Swim With Bleached Hair?

If you have bleached your hair and wonder if you can swim with your bleached hair, then you have come to the right place!

Swimming is an exciting activity that you can do with your family and friends to enjoy a fantastic time. Imagining yourself playing with water, whether in a pool or on the beach, is a wonderful sensation.

However, it is a different story for those having bleached hair. These people are highly concerned about the issue, “Can you go in the pool with bleached hair?”

But do not worry because this article will tell you whether or not you can swim with bleached hair. So, let’s get started!

Can I Swim After Bleaching My Hair?

The answer is no because swimming after bleaching can damage your hair due to chlorine.

Chlorine affects bleached hair in particular and all types of hair in general. Its impact appears to be more severe with bleached hair since your hair has already experienced a harsh procedure.

Chlorine is among the chemicals that your hair is exposed to the most throughout the summer. Although keeping pools clean and safe, pool chlorine affects bleached hair. 

First, chlorine damages the hair proteins making up the hair strands, altering their internal structure and leaving them more vulnerable to split ends and breakage. 

Also, it increases the cuticles of your hair, causing your bleached hair to be more porous and more difficult to untangle. The impact is significantly increased when chlorine is mixed with UV light.

Chlorine depletes the protective coating of natural oils covering your hair strands, leaving your hair more sensitive to harm. If you swim in chlorine pools without sufficient protection, your bleached hair may become even more lifeless, brittle, and dry.

Notably, when chlorine reacts with metals in pool water, including copper, iron, manganese, nickel, and others, it may induce an oxidation reaction, resulting in a mossy, dull green coat on your bleached hair. 

Even if your tap water contains metals such as copper, it may still cause your hair to turn green. That is also the reason why the answer to the question “Will my bleached hair turn green in the pool?” is yes. 

Here you may think that a chlorine-free pool will be a great option. Indeed, there are chlorine-free swimming pools that appear safer for those with bleached hair. 

Unfortunately, because they contain no chlorine, they are not sanitized. Thus, the germs in such unchlorinated pools probably cause more severe heath damage than chlorine itself.

How Long Till I Can Go Swimming After Bleaching My Hair?

We suggest that you should wait for at least 24 to 48 hours to allow your hair to restore to its normal state before exposing it to another substance. Nonetheless, based on the hair condition, the amount of time you must wait before swimming after bleaching can vary.

After this time amount, you may swim straight away when you touch the hair and it feels soft to the touch and move.

However, waiting at least 7 days once the hair is still tough. Also, you should wait at least 10 days in case you bleach your hair on your own.

Moreover, if you have severely lightened your hair, the cuticle may be more prone to open than usual. In such a situation, once you go swimming, chlorine and other pollutants will easily infiltrate the hair and make contact with the existing pigments.

How To Protect Bleached Hair From Chlorine?

Use natural oil

Applying a leave-in chlorine protectant to the hair is a good idea. Natural oils such as olive, jojoba, and coconut oil form a protective barrier on the hair strands, preventing chlorine as well as other pool pollutants from penetrating them. 

Olive oil contains vitamins A and E and is high in antioxidants. So, it aids in the protection of keratin, which is a protein found in your skin and hair. Besides, coconut oil is high in fatty acids, moisturizing your scalp and hair.

In addition, using leave-in conditioners or deep conditioning masks is helpful for extra protection.

Use hair sunscreen

The sun can cause your hair’s color to fade by damaging melanin’s natural pigment.

In addition, the sun may cause texture changes, mainly if your hair is curly or coarse, causing damage to the hair cuticle and hair’s protein structure. As a result, exposing your hair directly to the sun, heat, and UV radiation can cause fading color and excessively brittle and dry hair.

So, your hair also needs to be protected from the sun. Hair sunscreen may protect your hair from the sun’s harsh rays and the damaging effects of chemicals and help repair frayed hair and split ends. 

Put up the hair

You can hold your head and hair out from the water with a lovely bun, braid, or topknot to keep chlorine from getting into your hair.

A swimming shower cap can also be helpful in this case. Remember to wear the swim cap on the wet hair to make it simpler to put over the head. 

It is also good to keep several extra swim caps with you if one tears. This cap will keep the hair strands from soaking up the water when swimming in the pool.

Shampoo and condition immediately

Irrespective of the hair type, we suggest using a sulfate-free and gentle shampoo and conditioner right after swimming, which helps remove any chlorine residue from the hair.

Also, you had better choose a deep-cleansing or a clarifying shampoo to get rid of the chlorine build-up.

Allow hair to air dry

Using a towel or dryer may speed up the drying time, causing additional damage to your hair cuticle. However, the hair cuticle needs to be functioned to repair proteins after bleaching. Thus, you had better let your hair air dry.

Also, your bleached hair will become weak and prone to causes such as the sun or chlorine after a while in the water. So, after you have washed your hair and applied a conditioner, the next step in efficiently protecting your bleached hair is to let it air dry.

Another thing to remember is that brushing your hair after being in the water should be limited to avoid hair breakage and loss.

If you want to know how to swim in chlorine with bleached hair without the need for a swimmer cap, this video is for you:

How To Prevent Bleached Hair From Turning Green In The Pool?

Begin with damp hair

Ensure your hair is wet before diving into the water. Once you wet the hair in water or immerse the head underneath the garden hose, the chlorine will not cling to your bleached hair as tightly, which minimizes the risks of your hair turning green.

Use a leave-in conditioner

A leave-in conditioner applied all over the hair and tucked under a swimming hat may be a wise option based on how often you swim. This combo can be an effective barrier to protecting your hair.

Use an acidic substance

Once the harm has been done, the acidity and color can eliminate the accumulation and cancel the green hue out of your bleached hair. 

You can prevent your hair from turning green by mixing ketchup with your regular conditioner and leaving it in for approximately ten minutes. After that, you can rinse with cold water again. Unless this method works, you could need a color correction from your hairstylist.

Below are DIY methods with acidic substances that you can easily do at home.

Lemon juice

It is widely used as a bleaching chemical at home. In the same way, you can make use of it to repair your greenish hue. It dissolves the copper oxides that coat your hair.

• Take 1/2 cup of lemon juice to sit in your hair for 15 to 20 minutes, and then wash it out.
• After the timer passes, massage it and rinse it off with water.
• You can do it all over again as needed.

Ketchup

Since ketchup has a little acidity, it assists in the dissolution of copper in your hair. Thus, it can assist you in removing the green tint. The bright red hue helps to counteract the green tint of pool hair.

• Put a small amount of ketchup into your hair and allow it for several minutes to absorb. If necessary, use a wide-toothed brush to spread it equally.
• After that, cover your hair in tinfoil, or you can wear a swimming cap for 30 minutes; next, wash the hair with water.
• Continue with your usual hair-care routine at the end.

Aspirin

You can use aspirin to remove your greenish glow hair since salicylic acid, found in aspirin, can neutralize the hair color by countering the alkalinity of chlorine.

• First, you need to crush eight aspirin tablets and combine them with water until completely dissolved.
• Then, use it on the hair and let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes prior to continuing with your regular hair care routine.
• Also, remember to use a hair conditioner once you have finished rinsing your hair.

Remember that all three methods require you to wash your hair, properly rinse it, and then condition it when the process is complete.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long will it take for my bleached hair to recover fully?

The sad news is that bleached hair can never be the same again since its inner layer has been permanently altered. Thus, it will only return to normal as it matures. So, just sit tight and wait for the hair to grow to get new hair.

In fact, hair grows at 1 to 1.5 centimeters every month. Assume you had 25 cm of hair before bleaching; it may take roughly two years to grow back to normal, provided your hair grows at a rate of 1 centimeter each month.

If your hair is 50 cm long before bleaching, it will take less than three years to grow back to normal length, providing 1.5 cm of growth per month.

Unfortunately, if you bleach your hair from the roots, it will take much longer, perhaps a year, to obtain a balayage.

How long till I can go swimming after highlighting my hair? 

When your hair is still in great condition after the highlighting, you may be safe to swim. However, after highlighting your hair, it becomes dry and brittle. So, it is best to wait one week at a minimum before going swimming.

Because swimming in chlorinated water might result in chemical reactions, it may cause your hair to appear imperfect. It causes your highlight to fade, as well as your hair follicles to dry out and break down.

Before swimming, remember to condition your hair by soaking it in tap water and wearing a swimming cap to protect your hair from exposure to chlorine as little as possible. Furthermore, after swimming, apply conditioner and a hair mask.

Final Words

At last, this article has provided you with a lot of information regarding “Can you swim with bleached hair?” 

In addition, we also clarify several common issues in terms of bleached hair in the pool and tips on how to prevent them. We hope this given information is helpful to you and you will have excellent hair color but still be healthy.