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If you have a bad beard, it can be a lot better. If you have a good beard, it can be even better. And if you have a great beard, congratulations! But even a great beard can be better. The right beard growing tips can make a difference that you and those around you can see.
Here are 17 tips for growing a beard that you can put to work helping you grow a thicker, healthier beard:
1. Forget regular shampoo and soap. These are much too harsh for beard hair, which can be drier and more fragile than other hair. You’ll damage your beard with regular soaps and shampoos and end up with stiff hairs that break easily. Most days, just rinse your beard quickly. Once a week or whenever it gets dirty, wash with a special beard shampoo and use beard conditioner.
2. Use cool or lukewarm water. Hot water is notorious for drying out skin and hair, taking away more of your body’s natural oils than necessary. Cool water doesn’t do that, but it can be jarring, especially if you like to wash your beard in the shower. Lukewarm water is more comfortable and can rinse away dirt, pollen and other nasty bits better than cold water.
3. Use beard oil once or twice a day. It doesn’t take a lot, but beard oil softens beard hairs, making them feel smoother and making them less likely to break. It also moisturizes the skin underneath, which can get dry if it’s used to being shaved and slathered with moisturizer. Choose a scented oil, go with simple almond or avocado oil or make your own beard oil.
4. Don’t trim too often. We’re just getting started with our long list of beard-growing tips. There’s no need to trim away every hair that gets out of line. Some are simply inevitable, and you’ll get fewer as your beard gets healthier. Your journey to your perfect beard length will take longer than necessary if you clip too much, and with every snip you’re taking the risk that you’ll mess something up.
5. Do trim the real problems. If a problem area continues to be a problem for several days, a little trimming might be OK. It can also be helpful to trim away split ends so they don’t get worse. If you want a majestic beard, trim as little as possible until you reach your desired length, then trim a little at a time to keep it at the length you like.
6. Enjoy the benefits of combing. Combing your beard is great for exfoliating the skin underneath and distributing oils – natural and added. You may decide to use a brush for everyday styling, but a comb can feel good as it cleans the skin. It’s also easier to carry a comb with you for touch-ups, and combing can help with training unruly hairs.
7. Stop smoking. Among the most important tips for growing a beard that looks, feels and smells great is to quit smoking. This nasty habit diminishes blood flow and restricts your ability to grow healthy, strong hair. It also contributes to dry, brittle, stiff hair. In addition to those issues and the overall negative health impacts, cigarette smoke gets in everything and leaves a telltale smell that’s very difficult to wash out.
8. Have more sex. The science isn’t clear, but here’s the general idea: Having sex increases your testosterone level, which stimulated hair growth. High testosterone levels are indeed linked to facial hair growth, and sex has indeed been linked to ramped-up testosterone production. So developing your beard is one more excuse for having sex often!
9. Exercise more. This is about testosterone again. Exercise has been shown to improve testosterone levels. Never mind that your body will look better overall, which helps show off your beard growth. As it turns out, this list of beard-growing tips could easily reshape your whole life if you take the advice to heart. Maybe that’s the point.
10. Get enough sleep. Sleep is great for your beard because it allows your body to recover its strength. When you don’t get enough and your body is low on energy, hair growth slows – because your body has to take energy from somewhere to survive. Hormone levels drop when you don’t sleep too. Aim for 7 to 8 hours a night, but never settle for less than 5.
11. Take your vitamins. No one eats a perfectly balanced and completely nutritious diet, so supplements are essential. You don’t have to take special beard growth supplements (although you can), but taking a vitamin supplement is among the most overlooked of all tips for growing a beard. A multivitamin may be enough, and you can try using vitamin E oil on your beard for a direct dose of nutrients.
12. Reduce your stress level. The hormone cortisol, which is associated with stress, impacts beard growth by reducing your testosterone levels and therefore reduces beard growth. Stress also keeps an adequate supply of nutrients from getting to your facial hair. Just as bad for overall quality of life, stress can result in muscle weakness, weight gain and other negative outcomes.
13. Watch your diet. Certain foods contain vitamins and other nutrients that are associated with beard growth. Foods you should eat include avocados (yum!), dark leafy greens, salmon, almonds and more. Oranges, raisins and potatoes can also help enhance your beard and contribute to a healthy diet. Did you know these beard growing tips would include advice on changing what you eat?
14. Keep the water flowing. Hydrating is great for overall health, including skin and hair health. Water enhances and improves circulation, which helps oxygen get to crucial cells all around the body, including skin and hair follicles. Water also flushes away toxins and helps your organs function at their best. Regardless of how much water you drink now, add a couple more glasses for better health.
15. Look carefully. When grooming, you must look carefully before, during and after grooming to make sure you’re doing the job right. That means you must admit it when you can’t see very well up close. Even if things don’t look blurry, you may be able to see more detail when wearing low power reading glasses or using a magnifying glass as you look in the mirror– even if you don’t need glasses for anything else. It can also help to get a better mirror, maybe one with built-in magnification.
16 Massage your beard. When you massage your beard – or technically the skin and tissues under your beard – it increases blood flow and helps you loosen and remove dandruff. No matter how long your beard is, you can massage it if you’re careful. The massage feels good on facial muscles too, which are often a place where stress causes pain and discomfort. Massaging helps with itchiness as well.
17. Try a beard transplant(?). Yes, such a thing really exists, but we can’t recommend it. A beard transplant can fill in gaps (which might have gotten better with age anyway) and help you overcome bad genetics. But you have to stay out of sight for weeks as your face heals, and who wants to do that? In fact, who wants to have surgery on their face if they don’t have to?
18. Be patient! No matter what beard problems you’re facing, be patient as you take action to solve them. Don’t give in to the temptation to shave. Wait a few more days. Try a few more things. Let it grow a bit longer. Give the advice a little longer to take effect. When you’re patient, you may be able to grow a magnificent beard – one that would have never been possible if you’d been impulsive and shaved it off.
If you’re going to do something, you might as well do it right. When you put these beard growing tips to work and make a commitment to doing what’s best for your beard, you can look great and feel amazing about your facial hair.
A beard can be an important part of looking and feeling like a man, and yours can get better every day.