“This article on athletic hairstyles for girls is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of SoCozy. All ideas and opinions are my own and not edited by the sponsor”
Having straight hair, I remember the years long before having kids hoping and dreaming of one day having a little girl with curly blonde hair. But little did I know that I would actually get what I wished for and the struggle of detangling matted hair would be a daily reality. And that when my children would start playing sports, that sweat and fine hair would be the bane of my existence.
What’s worse? When I thought I had hairstyle solutions and they would be too painful or bothersome to my tender-headed athlete.
Over time though, we have found that for both daughters, there are some simple ways to put their hair up during active play or great styles for the specific sports they’re involved in.
Tools to maintain hair when your child has a sensitive scalp
- Hair ties that can easy be cut out of hair. Even the ouchless fabric hair elastics have gotten stuck in my daughter’s hair. But grabbing some colorful elastics that can be easily identified and snipped out make all the difference.
- SoCozy HUSH line of hair products. The challenge of tangles, frizzies, and unruly hair are made so much easier with the SoCuzy HUSH line of products. We used to not use product in my kids’ hair because of all the nasty chemicals, but this option is a healthy and non-toxic, serving all of our needs quickly. Plus it is convenient to grab it in Target’s baby aisle while we’re there!
- Flexible-bristled brush. This, coupled with SoCozy detangler is our magic solution for daily tangle issues, especially after hair and scalp gets sweaty from sporting events and playing outside.
- Gentle Grippy headbands. While many times the grips can be torture to little ones with tender heads, we have found two versions that are perfect. One is the braided style where only one of the strands in the braid has an anti-slip grip. The other is the kind where the grips are simply small dots and not long lines. It breaks up the pressure put on the head or pull on the hair.
Sports and their Hairstyles for Tender Scalp Girls
With all hairstyles, we love using the SoCozy HUSH Sensitive styling foam to help secure flyaways and make sure that hair isn’t an issue while trying to play and have fun!
Dance & tumbling
The struggle here for kids with tender scalps is how to keep the hair tight and out of the face without hurting. While it’s pretty classic to see a bun, this puts a lot of tension on the hair and can be painful. So our favorite is the flipped low-pony. It keeps its form and stays tight without being painful to the scalp.
Basketball hairstyles for girls
Because with basketball, girls will need to be able to see and their hands move around their face when shooting, we have found a mid to high ponytail is the best option.
Best hair for young girls in Baseball or Softball
From my own experience, I have found that low pigtails do the trick for any sport that requires a helmet. This or braided pigtails. However, french braids inside of helmet can be painful.
Soccer hair for young girls
Because kid playing soccer are using their feet and looking down or far away a simple ponytail is sufficient or leave hair down and use a headband or leave it down and pull half up.
While a low ponytail or pigtails are also options, our favorite is to simply use the headband!
Swimming
While in the water, kid need to be able to have hair out of their face and out of the way of their arms if it’s that long. We found that loose french braids or two mid-high pigtails did the trick and don’t hurt the scalp much. And from my own life experience, french braid are how I always go into the water, even if the hair isn’t braided past the base of the scalp.
What other athletic hair tips do you have for tender headed kids?
How to keep curls from tangling when wet
Homemade Shampoo Project
Easy Hairbun alternative

Kara is an author and advocate for positive, grace-filled parenting. She is homeschooler to her 4 children living on a farm in New England. She believes in creative educational approaches to help kids dive deeper into a rich learning experience and has her degree in Secondary Education & Adolescent Childhood Development. She is passionate about connecting with and helping other parents on their journey to raise awesome kids!

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