How to Protect Your Blowout at the Gym

Raise your hand if you've ever skipped a cardio session in the name of a good hair day. New York City entrepreneur Erika Wasser was tired of choosing between exercise classes and blowouts, so she founded Glam & Go, a newly opened blow-dry bar at Manhattan's Exhale Spa (with more in-gym locations in the works). "I was spending a ton of money on workout classes I wasn't attending and realized the reason I wasn't going was [because of] my hair," she told us. "The point of going to the gym is to look better than when you came in. I wanted that to be true for my blowout, too." Wasser's fledgling business offers post-workout hair touch-ups ($20 for 15 minutes or $40 for 30 minutes). While we can't all hit the salon after a run, these tips will help keep your professionally polished strands intact while you work out.


Choose Your Workout Wisely.

If your goal is to maintain your waistline and your blowout, your best bet is to stick to strength-based exercises like barre or CoreFusion classes. "They're still intense but generate a lot less sweat," Wasser explained. "Which makes the process of resurrecting your hair so much easier." Hold off on spin class until you don't mind getting your hair wet.

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Sport a Better Ponytail.

No matter what your favorite exercise routine is, keep your strands in place with bobby pins instead of elastic hair ties. (If you have a lot of hair, pin sections into two Princess Leia-like buns.) This style helps sweat evaporate through your hair and "will prevent the dreaded ponytail dent," noted Wasser, who also advised to keep a towel handy to dab the base of your hairline and the back of your neck. You'll want to wear a sweat-absorbent headband, like this version from Pilayo ($12) to help keep perspiration off of your face and neck and away from your hair. "Most importantly, try not to touch your hair with your hands," Wasser said. "The dirt and sweat will sabotage your blowout."

Have a Plan of Attack.

Apply a dry shampoo to your roots before you work out to prevent moisture from transferring from your scalp to the rest of your hair. (Tip: Powder-based versions are better at absorbing sweat, and they don't dry out hair like their aerosol counterparts. Try BlowPro's Faux Dry Shampoo, $20.) If you've been following the dab-and-dry method from the previous tip, your hairline should be mostly sweat-free. If not, pat it down once more post-workout before shaking out your strands. Then, apply a few more spritzes of dry shampoo and massage it into your scalp. To revive shape and shine, flip your head over and give hair a blast with a blow-dryer on the cool setting using a flat brush with boar bristles and nylon tufts. Keep a pocket-size version of the Mason Pearson classic ($55) in your gym bag.

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