Now, when I first tried growing a beard, besides my aforementioned patch, another thing that discouraged me was the constant itching that I experienced when I started letting my facial hair grow. Back then, I thought scratching your beard was some “man thing,” a right of passage of sorts, when a brother goes hard, roughing it out on a thirty-day voyage to the ultimate display of masculinity. Come to find out, my skin was just dry as hell. And that, my friend, is the most vital part of growing a beard.
So let’s talk about moisturizing and the part it plays in healthy and effective beard growth. I’m going to start by doing more than just getting up in the morning and washing my face. Honestly, I’m going to actually moisturize my face for the first time ever in my life. In fact, I’m going to double-up and do it twice a day! (My grown-man has just leveled up lol)
You see, facial hair soaks up the majority of the natural oil that our skin produces, so without that added protection of moisturizer, your skin dries up, and that’s what causes the itching. Moisturizing keeps your skin healthy and hydrated, and it also softens the hair of your beard. Women don’t want to run their hands through a beard that feels like tumbleweed, so I’m going to make sure to keep me some good moisturizer on deck. That’s Beard Law #1!
Seeing that I want to go into this full-throttle, I’m going to prepare my face by getting a thorough facial wash and scrub. It will remove any dead skin that might prevent my face from being its cleanest and smoothest. There are a variety of products that you can purchase and do your own at-home exfoliation, but I’m going to make a spa-day out of this and have some beautiful woman give me my first facial to help my endeavor get off on the right foot. Here are a few other tips that beard aficionados recommend to anyone aspiring to grow a healthy and attractive beard:
- Once a beard starts growing, it’s important to keep it clean. Shampooing is a must. Make it part of your daily “get ready for the world” routine, and it’s sure to benefit you greatly. There are some shampoos that are strictly for beards, and most will leave your beard feeling clean and smelling fresh. Respected Roots’ foaming co-wash is the best product on the market because it is infused with natural ingredients like tea tree oil that soothes and treats the skin while keeping your face moisturized.
- (If you elect not to use Respected Roots) avoid using ingredients that might damage your face/beard. This might take some research, depending on the individual, but if you’re striving for a healthy beard, be aware of what products you should and shouldn’t use.
- Only a healthy person can grow a truly healthy beard. If your diet is full of unhealthy foods, more than likely, your beard won’t live up to its full potential. Your beard is like a lawn, and you have to feed it whatever it needs to grow healthy. If you don’t give it all the good nutrients it needs for survival, you’ll be left with a dried-out beard that’s usually reserved for a homeless guy. So take care of your body, and your body will take care of your beard.
- Exercising is also recommended for beard growers because it increases testosterone levels. Testosterone is like spinach to beards, helping it grow vibrantly and strong. Exercise also reduces stress. Stress lowers testosterone levels, and believe it or not, I’ve seen guys stress to the point their hair would literally fall out or break off. I’m sure stress isn’t good for a beard, so get that gym membership and work off that unhealthy vibe called stress.
- Beards don’t grow over night, but they don’t take as long as one would think. Thirty days make a huge difference in the beard world, so don’t keep looking in the mirror everyday looking for quick growth. Be patient with your beard and you will be rewarded handsomely when the time comes.
- Once your beard starts growing, avoid trimming it for a month or two. Let it develops its own pattern before you take scissors or clippers to it. Once you see how it grows, then you might want to make minor adjustments. Until then, let it grow, let it grow, let it grow!
- First-time growers, like myself, might experience a little itch when starting out, but if you keep your face and beard clean and moisturized, the itch with eventually go away. It won’t take your face long to get used to the beard, so don’t let the itching get to you.
So, if you’re like me, and you’re ready to be part of the ever-growing population of #BeardGang, keep it clean, keep it moisturized, and keep it growing. Beards are in, so don’t get left out. Peace.
(I’ll check back over the next month to see if my beard’s being good to me)