Why Does My Hair Feel Elastic?

Although healthy hair has some elasticity, strands that have become too elastic are a sign that your hair is damaged. If you feel like your hair has become too stretchy, just keep reading! In this article, we’ll walk you through a few reasons your hair feels overly elastic and give you all the information you need to fix it. Let’s get started!

This Is Why Your Hair Feels Elastic

Hair elasticity refers to the amount of stretch your strands have before they break. If you want to find out how elastic your hair is, saturate a clean strand with water and stretch it as much as possible. While dry and damaged hair breaks immediately, healthy hair snaps back into place once you stop stretching it. If your strands continue stretching without reverting to their natural state, that means your hair is too elastic. 

While this might not initially seem alarming, stretchy or gummy hair can become matted and lead to severe breakage. Overly elastic hair is usually a sign of too much moisture and not enough protein. Healthy hair strikes a balance between the two, so your strands have just the right amount of strength and stretch. An imbalance between moisture and protein can come from a variety of sources, including:

• Chemical damage, especially from bleaching.

• Not including enough protein in your haircare regimen.

• Using products that are too moisturizing for your hair type.

How To Fix Hair That Feels Elastic

Now that you know elastic hair is a sign of a moisture imbalance, you might be wondering what you can do to fix it. Here are a few tips to help eliminate elastic or gummy hair. 

• Use protein-rich products - One of the best ways to address an overabundance of moisture is to give your hair plenty of protein. Protein helps restore strength to your strands, leaving them strong and resilient. Choose from protein-rich shampoos, conditioners, and treatments.

• Embrace hair-healthy oils - Incorporating hair-healthy oils into your haircare routine can help repair damage and keep your strands strong. Oils also help seal moisture into your strands and give your hair a much-needed dose of vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, and antioxidants. Not sure about which oil you should use? Try strength-promoting castor, argan, coconut, or olive oil.

• Lay off the heat styling and chemical processing - Overly elastic hair is a sign of damage, so to keep your hair from getting worse, you should stay away from hot tools and chemical processing as much as possible. Wait until you’ve nursed your strands back to health, and then slowly add them back into your hair care regimen.

So, there you have it! Despite having plenty of stretchiness, overly elastic hair is incredibly fragile and breakage-prone. If you notice that your strands have become too stretchy, make sure you address it right away. We hope this article has given you the tools to do just that. Good luck with your hair!

Author: Andrea Reyes

Andrea is a mother, wife, writer, and natural hair enthusiast of 15 years. Currently on her natural hair journey, she’s been trying countless products and techniques to understand and embrace her natural hair. She is the creator of NaturallyTextured.com, a new website featuring informative articles that share tips, tricks, and techniques aimed to help others learn to love their hair through proper hair care. She writes with the hope of making hair care easier to understand and implement.