Best Hair Removal Methods for Athletes

Athletes and sports people remove unwanted body hair especially before a sports meet. Removing body hair is not just a matter of aesthetics for them but of necessity as a hair-free body helps them in several ways. For instance:

• Smooth legs are aerodynamic. Though performance gains seem to be in the nano-second range, it still does help athletes.

• Hair-free legs improve wound healing if an athlete falls and gets a rash

• Smooth legs are easier to massage as the oil is not gummed up in hair

Hair growth

To understand hair removal better, it is important to understand the growth cycle of hair. Our hairs are in different phases of their growth cycle such as:
• Anagen phase or the growth phase
• Catagen phase or the transitional state
• Telogen phase or the resting phase
• Exogen phase or the shedding phase

At any given time, a random number of hairs will be in the various stages. Further, the rate of hair growth varies in different regions of the body. Hair growth also varies with sex, age and hormonal variances. The effectiveness of hair removal method depends on the phase of growth.

Different hair removal methods used by athletes
Given below are the advantages and disadvantages of various hair removal options available before athletes:

Shaving

Shaving is one of the most popular methods of hair removal among athletes. It is inexpensive and can be easily done at home. However, there are several downsides of shaving for athletes. The results of shaving lasts for only 4-7 days hence you need to repeat the process every few days to maintain hair-free skin. Shaving may cause you cuts and skin irritation. Some people also develop ingrown hair which may become infected and develop into painful, ugly pustules.

Plucking

Plucking individual hairs out with tweezers or with the help of a thread is an effective method of hair removal. However, this may be painful and not feasible for removing hairs from a large area, as it may take a lot of your time and efforts.

Waxing
Waxing is a popular and highly effective method of removing body hair. It helps to pull off large areas of hair at a time quickly. This method is relatively inexpensive and does not cause as much pain. However, sensitivity differs for people and for different areas of the body. Waxing keeps unwanted hairs at bay for 15 days to 2 months depending on your hair growth. Many female athletes prefer to wax their bikini line.

On the downside, waxing is not a very comfortable option to many people as they find the procedure painful. Most people get waxing done by professionals who charge exorbitantly for their services. You need to spend money on a regular basis for a smooth hair-free skin. Some people are also uncomfortable in exposing their private parts to a waxing professional. Some people also use sugaring instead of waxing. Both the hair removal procedures work in a similar manner.

Depilatories
Use of depilatory creams does not cause pain and is less expensive when compared to waxing. One can use depilatory creams at home and get rid of unwanted hair. However, many people find use of depilatories very inconvenient and messy. The chemicals in depilatories may also damage the skin, especially in the sensitive areas of the body.

Laser

Laser therapy is emerging as one of the most popular method of hair removal. This method keeps body hair away for several months and even years. Laser therapy is being increasingly used by women to remove pubic hair as most other methods of hair removal do not work effectively in this area. Women also commonly use laser therapy to remove hair on the other parts of the body.

The disadvantage of laser therapy is that it is quite expensive and is painful for some people. It can also be risky especially if conducted by untrained professional or without adequate precautions. Laser therapy works best on fair-skinned people with dark hair. It does not work well on dark or tanned skin. Several sittings are required to get effective results.

Electrolysis

Electrolysis is an effective method of permanent hair removal that is in use since several years. This method destroys the hair follicle so that no more hair growth is possible. Electrolysis also helps to remove ingrown hair. However, electrolysis is a time consuming and tedious process especially when removing large areas of hair. This method is expensive, painful and may leave scars if not conducted well.

Choose a hair removal method that best suits your needs, convenience, pain threshold and your budget. You may also choose different hair removal methods for the different parts of the body. Enjoy a hair-free skin and your favourite sports!

Ultra hair away
Article explains all hair removal treatments including products like ultra hair away, hair nomore, ingrow go and suggetions to avoid unwanted and ugly hair