How To Grow Thick Locs

One of the beautiful things about locs is that they come in varying shapes and sizes, from hundreds of Sisterlocks to those with only a few Organic locs. Despite the diversity amongst the sizing of locs, it is still very common to see smaller sized locs, and not so common to see thicker locs. This article is for those of us that prefer a thicker set of locs and wonder, “How Can I Grow Thick Locs? “

WHAT I CHOOSE THICK LOCS

I always knew I wanted thick locs, but about 18 months into my journey my locs weren’t evolving into what I had envisioned so I went searching for solutions. I stumbled upon KOKABUTA’s series for growing thick locs and that helped me lot; I also learned a few other important tips along the way. So if you’re interested in learning how to thicken your locs, without combining your locs, check out the 5 tips that helped me to grow thicker locs.

Month 1 vs Month 24

5 Tips on How to Grow Thick Locs

1. Forget everything you think you know. Many people believe that they have to maintain their locs every two weeks or that they have to use tight hold products for retwisting their locs, and the list goes on; however, all of these notions, amongst others, are common misconceptions that actually prevent you from attaining thicker locs because those practices are more commonly used on small traditional locs.
2. Throw away any unnatural products. Many of the products on the market that are specifically “for locs and dreads”, like Jamaican Mango and Lime, are actually horrible for locs. If you’re not using all natural products, like natural aloe vera gel or flaxseed gel, you’re likely causing unnecessary buildup in your locs. The excess buildup will prevent the loc matrix from forming and disrupt the stages of hair locking which can create points of weakness or thinning in the locs.
3. Leave your hair alone. This is the most crucial factor in cultivating thick locs. It is also healthier for your hair and scalp that you don’t cause undue tension through constant retwisting or style manipulation. When you leave your hair alone, your locs are able to flourish and thicken up because they’re not constantly “made” into condensed retwisted or interlocked bundles. The ideal timeframe for a retwist is between 4-6 weeks— no earlier!
4. Change your diet. Your skin, nails, and hair are all part of a system in your body that receives nutrients last, if at all, once your major systems are nourished. In other words, you need to be healthy on the inside first to see the benefits like, continuous hair growth, length retention and thicker hair, on the outside. Increasing your water intake to at least half your body weight in ounces of water per day and consuming a lot of vegetables are great habits to implement into your lifestyle.
5. Feed your hair & stimulate your scalp. The key is to keep your hair hydrated with moisture daily, sealed with a natural oil and protected a night. You also need to keep your scalp clean and stimulated with techniques like loc brushing, and moisturizing on a daily (or at least every other day). Moisturizing your locs will help tremendously to prevent breakage and thinning, so you want to make sure it’s done properly!
6. BONUS:No more going to bed without a scarf and drying out your locs! Protect your locs at night with a satin scarf, to prevent dryness, lint accumulation, and tension from rolling over your locs at night .

When you first adopt these tips into your regimen, if you’re not already using them, there are a few things to be mindful of, so be sure to check out the next post “3 Things to Know Before You Start Thick Locs“.

Share any other tips that you have learned in your journey to cultivate thicker locs!