How to look good while you workout – 3 long-lasting hairstyle tutorials you can wear all day

Do you ever skip exercising because of your hair?

There’s no need to use your hair as an excuse with these three long-lasting gym hairstyle tutorials that will keep you looking good while you workout and beyond.

Don’t use this excuse…try these pretty hairstyles instead! (pic by @SoniaStyling)

I’ve teamed up with the fabulous Julie from Me, My Best And I for these gym hairstyles. Julie is much fitter than I am (just check her blog for more wellness and beauty posts) and she’s also recently gone for a lob.

She was struggling with styles for shorter hair that would stay in while she worked out. Together we created a Dutch braid updo, a French braid updo and a sporty version of the bubble ponytail.

They can be done in any hair length from shoulder length and longer.

Now a bun or ponytail is the quickest style for your workout but I find they often get in the way. Does this happen to you too? If you’re doing a class and need to be on the floor, a bun or ponytail is always in that awkward and uncomfortable position.

These braids are sleek and keep your hair up and out of the way. They also are comfortable to wear for any type of exercise from yoga to kick-boxing.

The easiest style is the bubble ponytail, which only takes a minute longer than your everyday ponytail but looks 100 times cooler.

Give these styles a try for your next workout. They’ll stay in the whole time and still look good enough to wear out for the rest of the day too.

Gym hairstyles – Bubble ponytail hairstyle tutorial

What you need:

• 5+ clear hair elastics, depending on how long your hair is

Step-by-step:

1. Brush your hair to remove any knots. If your hair is curly then skip this step.
2. Take a section of hair from the top of your head and secure with an elastic.
3. Pick up the next section of hair, from near your temples, add it to the first section and secure it tightly with an elastic.
4. Take the next section from level with your ears and combine it with the previous section with an elastic.
5. Continue adding in equal sections of hair down the back of your head, securing them in bubble section with an elastic.
6. Once all your hair is added, place elastics down the length of your ponytail in equal sections.

Styling tips:

• Use clear hair elastics or choose elastics that match your hair colour. This makes for a sleeker finish to your hairstyle.
• Faux-hawk it – stretch out the bubble sections of your ponytail even more to create an edgy faux-hawk look.
• To get extra volume – you can backcomb your hair lightly at the top and crown to create more volume at the top.

Gym hairstyles – Dutch braid updo hairstyle tutorial

What you need:

• 2 hair elastics
• bobby pins

Step-by-step:

1. Create a middle part and clip the left side up out for the way for now.
2. At the top of the right side, take a piece of hair at the top and split it into three sections for the start of your braid. Then you take the left section under the middle and the right under the left.
3. Continue your Dutch braid, adding in hair to the left section and bringing it under to the middle. Repeat on the right and keep adding in hair as you braid under.
4. Braid all the way down, finishing near the nape of your neck. Once all your hair in combined, keep going in a regular braid.
5. Secure your braid with a small clear elastic at the end.
6. Repeat on the left side, creating a Dutch braid down the centre of the left section, finishing near the nape of your neck.
7. Cross your braids over and curve them up the outside of your braids.
8. Pin them in place with bobby pins.

Styling tips:

• Brushing your hair before you begin makes braiding much easier. Unless your hair is curly! Don’t brush curly hair unless you want a ball of frizz.
• The Dutch braid is just the reverse of the French braid. It’s sometimes called an inside out braid or reverse braid. It’s exactly the same as a French braid, but instead of bringing the pieces over into the middle, you bring them under and into the middle. All the sections that add in and the extra hair you combine will go underneath making this braid hold really well.
• If you have long hair – pin your braids all the way around into a crown, or twist them into a low, flat braided bun at the back of your head.

Gym hairstyles – French braid updo hairstyle tutorial

What you need:

• 2 hair elastics
• bobby pins

Step-by-step:

1. Part your hair in the middle, clip the left side out of the way as we’ll braid the right side first.
2. Start your French braid by taking a section of hair at the top of the right side and splitting it into three equal pieces. In the same way you form a regular braid, you bring the right section over into the middle and your left over the right.
   When it comes to doing the third piece, when you bring your right into the middle again, you want to grab a little extra section of hair from the right side of your head and combine it with that piece and bring that into the middle.
   Then on the left side bring that piece into the middle and add in another section of hair from the left hand side. This way you keep forming a regular braid but you keep adding in sections of hair as you go.
3. Continue braiding down to your lower hairline. Secure the end of your braid with a small hair elastic.
4. Repeat on the left side, creating a French braid all the way down to to your lower hairline.
5. Cross your braids over and fold the ends underneath. Tuck in the tails of your braid and pin them in place with bobby pins.

Styling tips:

• Braid position – I like to place the French braids just above the ear and curve them around to follow your hairline.
• Angle your braids – to keep your braids sitting flat against your hair, angle your braids in the direction that you want them to finish.
• If you have long hair – twist your braids together, in a kind of pretzel shape, to create a low braided bun.
• Fold your braids – folding and pinning them in place means they sit flatter than a traditional twisted bun. The flatter your hair sits, the more comfortable it will be for your workout.

Now there are no hairy excuses as to why you have to skip working out! Which style is your fave gym hairstyle? How do you style your hair for a workout?