The Maximum Hydration Method - Ultra Defined Wash And Go’s For All Hair Types

It’s no secret that when I first went natural my go to style was…. straight hair. Hmmm it may seem counter intuitive to go natural and not enjoy your natural texture but straight hair was all I knew how to care for at the time and truth be told, I was loving the sudden thickness that natural hair had given me along with the length.

As time went on though and I began to be more confident in natural styling, curly sets especially braid outs became my go to styles with the occasional wash and go thrown in for good measure.

These days it’s not very often that I come across something new in the hair world but a few weeks ago I did. Even though it has been around for a few years, essentially what I came across was a method on how to achieve root to tip curl definition which essentially equates to wash and go hair for any hair type, including 4c hair. I will let that sink in a minute…. Intrigued?

Now I remember the very first hair chart that was introduced by Andre Walker which interestingly did not include a 4c hair type. The type 4 category was divided into 4a (visible curls when dry) and 4b (no visible curls when dry) but as time went on and various hair charts came into existence, so our sistas who felt that they didn’t quite fit into a particular box coined other texture types like 4c and c-napp.

If I’m being honest I don’t think everyone’s natural hair fits perfectly into the letter and number system seeing as our individual curl type (waves, kinks and coils) and sizes (from large to tiny pen spring size) vary so widely. Not to mention that what each of us see is subjective. Where I may see 3c, someone else will see 4a or even 4b! Still people continue to feel the need to place themselves neatly into a box…but I digress.

What is the maximum hydration method?

I would like to start by saying that it’s kind of sad that so many of us have gone natural in order to enjoy our natural texture only to find that because our hair does not curl evenly, wearing that very texture results in a myriad of tangles, knots and single strand knots. For this reason, even though we still love our natural textures, we have to accept its limitations so we find ourselves relying on styles like braid outs or twist outs in order to achieve a textured look with less tangling. Even more of us are forced into having to wear our hair stretched 95% of the time. Enter the Maximum Hydration Method.

The Maximum Hydration Method (MHM) is a unique regimen specifically formulated for those with low porosity kinky* hair. With this method, the idea is that ALL hair types including 4c hair has the ability to clump into neat coils, curls or ringlets and the reason why many ladies do not achieve clumping is because their hair does not uptake, nor hold on to enough moisture to allow this to take place. In essence, frizz is a sign of low moisture in the hair strand.

Added to that is the fact that many of us, even as part of our healthy hair journeys are not using appropriate products or techniques for our hair, this method aids by removing these harmful products and replacing them with natural ingredients that allow your hair to be the best version of itself that it can be. The regimen will not change or ‘loosen’ your texture, but what it will do is allow you to wear your unadulterated natural curls perfectly clumped in wash and go’s which remain tangle and knot free. And yes, this also applies to those with 4c hair.

While the regimen was initially created for those with low porosity hair, with small adjustments those with medium to high porosity hair can also enjoy its benefits.

The regimen appears to have originated perhaps on BHM forum with a user called Pinke Cube being the ‘spokesperson’ for the regimen although it is unclear if she is the inventor. The thread on BHM is epic at butt numbing 167 pages at the time of writing this but I have included most of what you need to know here