Growth Aide: Hairfinity vs Natures Bounty

Hair vitamins? Supplements? Hair Growth Aides? So many claims to help grow our hair during our healthy hair journey. Read on to hear me spill the beans on my low porosity, kinky curly hairs experience using as well as comparing Hairfinity vs Natures Bound.

Ok, so it all started last year when I decided to give Hairfinity a try for 30 days. Let me say upfront I was HIGHLY skeptical that this hair vitamin would actually work to grow my hair. I kept looking for strange side effects or rashes to pop up in or around my skin. Then I became concerned about what the proper daily amount of water intake actually was to help flush my system of any possible build up. (No suggested amounts given on the bottle or website) The visual learner in me created a whole playlist on YouTube to help track my weekly progress. After the 30 days I was pleasantly surprised to see significant hair growth as well as more fullness among my thin hair strands. My two drawbacks to using Hairfinity were 1) remembering to take the recommended amount  2) Price. The 2 daily pills are large capsules that make it difficult to swallow.... even with water. 

Not much on popping pills so I tried to plan on opening the capsules to pour contents into a beverage or over food but it remained a struggle for me just to remember to actually take the pills let alone cut them open. Now, for some $24 per bottle may be easy to come buy. However, for this mom of three not so much. 

Fast forward to January 2014 then add a few social media product reviews and we end up here. Yep, that's right after watching product reviews by some of my Favorite Naturalistas on YouTube I learned that there was a cheaper & comparable option to Hairfinity....enter Super B Complex + Hair, Skin & Nails by Natures Bounty. With this new found knowledge the investigator in me decided to do my own little study by comparing the two products during the 6 inches in 6 months challenge on Hairlista. The challenge runs from January 15th - July 15th 2014. I will be alternating these two brands month to month. ( Ex. January- Nature's Bounty February- Hairfinity, March- Nature's Bounty etc.) A few other hair growth aides will also be employed to help me reach my new healthy hair growth goal. Think I can do it? Stay tuned for the details. This will only enhance not change my already established hair care routine.

Now, the coupon diva in me could not pass up this opportunity to save even more $$$ with coupons buying the Nature's Bounty supplemental vitamins. I used my $2/1 manufacture coupons from the Sunday paper along with the BOGO free sale at my local drugstore for a great deal. By the way Hairfinity has a 4 bottle deal for $84. Sales have been known to pop up offering 10% or 15% depending on how much you buy.  For sale updates visit there website for details.

So far since starting the Hairfinity dupe of Super B Complex + Hair Skin & nails I have tons more energy. My nails feel stronger. Plus I'm already beginning to feel new growth on my scalp during my daily scalp massages with mustard seed oil. I have set a timer on my cell phone to help me remember to take the pills everyday. So far it's working out well.

Anywho, I will be posting pics of my hair along with video updates to share my progress along the way. For my visual readers out there here is a video that ties it all together



Starting Photo

Hairfinity hair vitamin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0CNXTmDREQ

5K Training with Natural Hair

Got natural hair? 5k runner? Last year I trained for than ran my very first 5k. It felt great to be out running but sweating was a problem for me. A big problem because I would literally sweat out my salon styled permed hair during training. Wanted to train harder but I would always hold back because of my profuse sweating...especially in my hair.

During my transition during 2013 back to my natural hair my thoughts would often drift to running another 5k. These lofty thoughts were always pushed aside by my desire to protect my line of demarcation (where natural hair stops and permed hair begins). Fast forward to January 2014 all perm has been trimmed away leaving my low porosity natural hair. During this time I have slowly managed to create a healthy hair care regimen revolved around techniques as well as hair products that make my fine hair happy. This means sweating is no longer a issue. It seems the timing is right to kick my 5k training back up. To help prepare, I start thinking about what I need to add or change to make my new round of 5k training as simple as possible. Here is what I have come up with so far:

Training
After trying other apps I decided to go with the Jeff Galloway 5K training app. It is good for more newbie runners like me or the seasoned runners to help improve your time. Verbal cues from Jeff for proper running posture, breathing as well as inspirational quotes help with safe training. It also tracks important stats like calories burned. Full review of this app coming soon.

Hairstyle
My go to hairstyle is flat twists. This hair technique is quickly installed with a total 13 medium sized twists in my hair before my late night work outs at the gym. No matter how much I sweat my hair simply dries over night with great fluffy, defined curls in the morning. There are times when I am in a rush or deep conditioning my hair. At these times I style accordingly...lol check out the pics below to see what I mean. Sometimes an occasional co-wash may also be needed. Scalp massages with oil are able to continue within the readily available parts. To help keep my hair moisturized the Green House Effect is used 3 to 4 times a week. Watch for a video tying all this together.

Meals
Currently I prepare all our family meals for Monday - Friday on Sunday evenings. This helps me stay within my daily calorie budget while making healthy food choices. Decided to visit some of the top internet sites for runners to find out the low down on best food options. With this complied list in hand I mashed this against some of our families favorite meats, fruits, veggies and starches. Here is how a typical day looks like: Breakfast = Chocolate Almond Green Smoothie or oatmeal w/berries ~ Snack = Almonds or fruit ~ Lunch = Salad w/ protein ~ Snack = Granola bar ~ Dinner = protein + veggie + carb (family) ~ Snack = granola bar 

My 8 weeks of training

Week 1 

Week 2

My 8 weeks of 5k training using the Jeff Galloway app has officially started. Check back often. This blog will be updated with progress pictures. Now it's your turn. How do you wear your natural hair while training or working out? Got a favorite app, snack or hair care product that makes 5K running easier? Share your experience in the comments section.

How I Moisturize My Hair

Moisturize Natural Hair

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4vM6yCoTeA