Even though I have a pretty firm swim routine down, I am still working on improving my game. I would love to wear a cap without a chin strap. You get used to it, but I just feel that I would be more comfortable without it.
I’ve purchased a Lycra swim cap. Lycra is material similar to that of swim suits. I am hoping that, with all of the conditioner that I put on my hair to protect it, that it will stay put. I may put a silicone/rubber cap on top of it.
I received a helpful email that I thought I’d share here.
Hi, I saw your post on longhair forum and your web site. The neoprene caps will not keep any water out at all, as you know, there for warmth only. The bubble caps do work for some people. You may want to try a swim band. You cut only a small amount off to start and when it will come over the ears thats when its ready for a outer cap.
A lycra cap can help hold your hair up in place under a bubble cap so ends dont go out from the outer cap..The bubble caps have a sponge rubber seal and it has to contact skin . If any hair gets in the seal more leaks occur. You might try a swim band over your bubble cap to seal the edge even more.
Lycra caps by themselves will not keep any water out and conditioner will go straight into the pool. I guess you know the bubble caps come in sizes, but you have a full hair style and probably need a large or regular size. I double cap with a silicon cap under a bubble strap cap and it works great for me but everybodys different and it can be hard to get good results.
Here are some sites to look at, for tips on swim bands and caps for tri swims in colder water.
http://www.bellasugar.com/Get-Best-Hair-Protection-From-Your-Swim-Cap-3503391
http://dryhairswimcap.blogspot.com
http://openwatercaps.blogspot.com
Hope this helps , Lapswimr
Swim Bands
That’s why I’m not incredibly concerned about Lycra not blocking water. If it stays on my head, I am fine with using another cap over it.
Or not. We will see.
Thanks to Amazon Prime, my ear band should be here tomorrow, I’ll try it out Wednesday!
As always, tips/comments/experiences are all welcome 
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I used to be a regular swimmer but I have been slacking over the past six months. The best science at the moment says wet your hair before going into the pool (takes about 15 min for full saturation) and coat your hair with silicone which repels water. I didn’t really follow this rules to the letter. I chose to use coconut oil the night before because it prevents the hair taking up so much water and then I would wet it before getting into the pool with a swim cap(I was good about this part).
I think conditioner is alright because it is water based and if it contains some silicone then that might help too. I do tend to feel that the conditioner does end up in the water because I can usually smell and taste it from other swimmers. There’s really nothing in conditioner that can penetrate into the hair but I think the physical coating of the hair by conditioner may help a little bit.
I think if you have been doing this for a while and your hair looks as great as it does, keep doing it. Just wondering after you finish your swim and take off your cap, does your hair still feel like there is conditioner on it?
JC, it still feels saturated afterwards. I don’t know if it’s because I put conditioner on when it’s dry.
Thanks for your input, I really appreciate you chiming in
I try to swim 3 times a week. I agree that it really helps to wet your hair with regular water before putting a cap on (1. it limits how much chlorine your hair ingests, 2. helps a silicon cap slide over your hair). Never really got into putting a conditioner or serum in before the swim because I add so much afterwards (shampoo, 1 minute deep conditioner, oil, serum for slip).
do you know of any caps that keep your hair dry? I’ve tried and tried, and water always seeps in. Let me know if you have any ideas.
Anon, there are pretty much no caps that keep the hair dry in my experience. They just work to keep hair out of the water
I have only been natural since July ’09, but I love to swim and in my permie days I was able to keep my hair dry like so(you’ll need 2 latex or rubber swim caps, a plastic shower cap, and some bobby pins): wrap hair (or twist it or whatever),place the shower cap over your hair and secure the hairband flatly w/a bobby pin or two. Place the swim caps on your head, covering the plastic cap. The main tricks to this are to make sure the bands of the caps are flat and flush w/ your scalp and to NOT cover your ears w/the caps. I took swimming class during the fall semester of my freshman year of college and had speech class directly after (gotta love that). I never had to give a speech w/wet or even damp hair. I’ve used that trick ever since! I didn’t get to swim last summer, but I’ll be using on my natural hair THIS summer! (Tip:I always used basic swim caps from Sports Authority or Walmart, not the chin-strap old-school kind)
This is a very interesting blog and so i like to visit your blog again and again. Keep it up.
Sharon
I’m interested in purchasing the Ear Band-It but I don’t want to spend the money if it won’t work. In the past I braid my hair, and then put on a silicone swim cap to go swimming. Since I swim in the morning before work I really like to keep my hair dry so I don’t have to do anything before work. Therefore I won’t be saturating my hair with conditioner before entering the pool. Does the Ear Band-It really keep your hair dry? I really want to add swimming back into my workout routine but I don’t want a wet head before work. Any suggestions are much appreciated!
Thanks for this blog. It’s given me a bunch of confidence as I am 6 months into my transition!