I trained my hair to become less greasy, and literally anyone can do the same

I was preparing to get in the shower this morning and finally shampoo my hair but… then I saw that it looked totally fine. My mouth actually fell open—I haven’t washed my hair since Sunday, and yet there’s no grease in sight and my hair—dare I say it—even looks quite good. I’m shook. In the past, I have been an everyday shampooer. And then I started doing every other day. Now, this? It’s as if I’ve somehow manipulated my hair to correspond with my hair-washing laziness.

Once I began telling my friends and colleagues about this phenomenon, I learned that it’s not just me. Hair training is actually a thing.

“Yes, you can absolutely train your hair to reduce the oily texture,” says Maria Ruiz, stylist at New York’s Eddie Arthur Salon. Say whaaa? “This is coming from someone who has very oily hair.” So there’s hope for even the greasiest-prone strands.

All you have to do is, well, train it. Teach your hair to require less washes and it will obey you if you’re diligent. “To start training your hair, you must cut down on washing your hair as often as you may do now,” she explains. “Constantly washing your hair stimulates the sebaceous glands, which creates even more oil. So I suggest washing your hair every other day at the most—washing your hair two to three times a week is ideal.”

It sounds outrageous if you’re a religious shampooer, but it’s totally possible to put. the. hair. wash. down. It’ll also make the transition easier if you nix certain other products in your hair primping routine: “Help avoid an oily scalp by avoiding conditioner at the scalp, using dry shampoo, and by not over-brushing the hair,” says Ruiz. “Also, make sure to use the right shampoo for your hair type. You don’t want to use anything too heavy that’ll weigh the hair down. Getting rid of an oily scalp is certainly a process but these few tricks should help.”

De-greasing my own head happened slowly—so don’t get frustrated if you can’t go a week sans shampoo right off the bat. Just incrementally increase the days between washes, take care of your strands, and before you know it, you’ll have precious, shampoo-free time added to your schedule.

In related news, here’s how to have healthier hair overall. And this is everything you need to know about the “no-poo” method.