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January 19, 2020 9 min read

 

How to Grow a Thicker Beard


Introduction


Beards have become synonymous with a certain kind of masculinity, and it’s easy to see why. From bartenders to lumberjacks, from forward-thinking intellectuals right the way up to the modern business executive, a well-crafted beard adds decisiveness and capability to the first impression people have of you. It’s also worth mentioning that it just plain lookscool

 


But as any man who has once tried to grow a beard will tell you — and goodness knows there are plenty of us out there — the road isn’t always an easy one. You may have started out like most of us as youths, eagerly awaiting the arrival of a few scraggly hairs, religiously checking and rechecking our chins in the mirror; only to discover that the beard, once it finally turns up, justisn’t quite right, somehow. 


Maybe it’s because it doesn’t cover enough of your face; maybe it’s because the colour isn’t what you were expecting. More often than not, the reason has to do with the fact that many of us don’t know how to grow a thicker beard.


The Thing About Thickness


Thickness is one of the three main tenets of beard-dom, along with length and texture. It’s also one of the most complicated things to get right. Just ask any teenager how to grow a thicker, faster beard, and see how many (if any) solid, actionable tips they’ll be able to provide you with. The internet isn’t always a great help, either; try typing in ‘how to grow a thicker beard’ and take a look at just how many results turn up (hint: the answer is slightly more than three million). 


With so much information out there, how can you know who to trust? And make no mistake, when it comes to beards, trust is the most important of values. A badly-grown beard will instantly make you look like a bit of a fool in a way almost nothing else will. 


That’s why the team here at Urban Beard has decided to create the definitive guide to beard thickness, saving you from the trouble of mining through countless articles, many of whom offer conflicting advice. 


Whether you’re a young’un just getting started out on your beard journey or whether you’re a seasoned veteran who still isn’t quite cracked the code, the information below is guaranteed to make growing a thicker, faster beard as easy as possible. We’ve done our research, trawling through dozens upon dozens of sources, in order to make sure that every single tip we provide in this article is based on sound science, as well as easy to put into practice.


Step One: Get More Sleep


It’s advice that professional athletes and hobbyists alike all over the world are receiving more and more these days, and it’s backed up by solid medical evidence. Getting more sleep (even as little as an extra hour or two) each night will return exponential benefits, especially if you can manage to chain more and more successive nights of great sleep together. The logic behind this simple tip is, unsurprisingly, simple as well.


Testosterone is the single most important hormone in your body that will play a part in helping you learn how to grow a thicker beard — and testosterone is overwhelmingly more efficiently regenerated while sleeping. Take the old adage that you need eight hours of sleep a night, for example. 


True, in today’s high-stress, fast-paced world, it can often be hard to fit all of those in. But if you drop just a few hours from that figure (we’ll use five hours as an example) your testosterone production can be decreased by up to 15%. 


It’s not just quantity when it comes to sleep, however; quality is arguably more important. The perfect eight-hour stretch will involve multiple cycles, each of which in turn represents your body sinking through the stages towards REM sleep, and then slowly coming back out of that state. There are a ton of factors that can mess that up — blue light is the most frequent offender in the 21st Century. 


To truly guarantee that the sleep you’re getting is as restful as possible, don’t interact with any screens whatsoever for an hour before heading to bed. Prioritize sleep, and your body will make you glad you made the decision.


Step Two: Improve Your Diet (and Drink More Water)

 


Red meat has long been associated with manly men, butas science has been telling us more and more recently, that’s not quite the whole story. We’re coming to realize that a seriously healthy diet involves vegetables just as much as animal proteins, as well as complex carbohydrate source — so neglect those leafy greens at your peril. 


The changes you make to your diet don’t need to be enormous in order to have an enormous effect on how quickly you can grow a thicker beard. Even simple ones can make a sizeable difference. For example, try to make sure every meal you eat contains at least some vegetables as well as sources of protein, and you should be in a good way.


Another important tip is to drink as much water as you can. Dreaming about how to grow a thick beard, especially as a teenager, is all well and good; but at the end of the day, it grows out of your face, so taking care of your skin is of vital importance. 


Plenty of research suggests that most of us aren’t drinking near enough water, which is leading to chronic dehydration and, as a result, dryer skin — which in turn creates a less-than-ideal breeding ground for the thick, full, vibrant beard of your dreams. Aim for at least eight glasses a day, with more water intake on especially to days or days when you do a lot of exercise (see the tip below for more tips on how to make that happen).


Step Three: Get More Exercise


Getting more exercise is another great way to increase natural testosterone production, and in turn making it easier to grow a thicker, faster beard, even as a teenager. Not only that, it’s one of the cornerstones of a healthy lifestyle, so you should probably be hitting the gym more often anyway.


The best exercise regimen for men is one that includes both cardiovascular training and resistance training. In plain English, this means that you shouldn’t just be lifting weights; you need to be running, swimming, or cycling as well. The ideal exercise program for you is going to vary hugely depending on the time you have available, your current level of fitness, and whether or not you have any niggling injuries. 


As a general rule, aim for lifting weights at least three times a week. Each of those sessions should involve a brief warmup period of cardiovascular work, but don’t think you’re getting off that easy — you’re going to want to be getting a sweat on as well. 


Try to either run, swim, cycle, or do something similar for at least three hours a week, split up into three one-hour sessions. The benefits on your testosterone production will become obvious after four weeks at the latest, which is coincidentally the normal growth cycle of a beard. 


Here’s what we’re going to recommend, although it’s not for the faint of heart: take a picture of your beard today, and then shave it all off tomorrow. Work out according to the above advice (including improving your diet and getting more sleep) and allow your beard to grow for a month. At the end of four weeks, take another picture of your beard. We’re willing to bet you’ll be staggered by the difference. We like to call this the Four Week Challenge, and when it comes to how to grow a faster beard, there’s no better method.


Step Four: Make Regular Use of Beard Oil


In general, the huge market for supplements can be a little misleading. With vitamin replacements available everywhere you turn — and all kinds of snake oil being peddled under misleading promises — it can be hard to sort the wheat from the chaff. A  high-quality beard oil, though, is one notable exception to the rule; and if you’re wondering how to grow a faster, thicker beard, it should be one of your first points of call.


A proper, well-designed beard oil will perform a number of tasks in your favour. These include, but are not limited to:


  • Moisturizing your beard and the skin underneath it
  • Eliminating dandruff (helping your beard to achieve that lustrous shine you see all over the place in ads)
  • Getting rid of that all-too-common beard itch that plagues men the world over
  • Increasing the overall fullness of your beard

 

Article: What does beard oil actually do?

 

You’ll want to be careful, though — only use beard oils that make use of premium natural products, like jojoba, grapeseed, and argan. Not only will this help your beard to smell better, it’ll make it feel better too. Make sure to apply a light layer at least once a day, as using too much can cause the loss of the natural oils your beard already produces. 


Step Five: Trim Correctly


If you’re not keen on waiting out the duration of our recommended Four Week Challenge, you’d better be aware that trimming your beard the wrong way can undo all the good work you’ve already put in when it comes to learning how to grow a thicker beard. 


Ideally, you don’t want to chop so much of it off that it loses its shape. On the other hand, if you want to keep it nice and tidy, you’ll need to make a decent dent. This can be a tricky line to tread, so if you’re not keen on going to a professional barber, you’ll need to make sure you’ve got the right tools for the job.

 

 

Article: How to trim your beard correctly

 

The most important piece of kit you’re going to want to invest in is a solid beard trimmer — one with multiple settings and heads is best, as it allows flexibility that more straightforward options can’t provide. If you don’t know where to begin, the best bet is to begin with the longest setting, as that’ll prevent you from causing any serious damage to your look. 


Start by defining the neckline (one or two fingers below your jawline is usually a good rule of thumb), and only then move on to shaping the rest of the growth. As a final note, never trim your beard after the shower, as facial hairs tend to be longer and thicker when they’re wet, meaning it’s easy to misjudge where and how much to shave.


Step Six: Chill Out


This probably seems like a lot of information, but as long as you apply the steps in a consistent, day-by-day way, you should be golden. The last thing you want to do is let it stress you out — and that brings us to our final tip.


Stress constricts blood vessels, lowering the amount of nutrients that can make it to your hair follicles via your blood, while at the same time having a negative impact on your testosterone production. Both short-term and long-term stress will be harmful to your goal of learning how to grow a beautiful, thick beard, so by chilling out you’ll not only be more relaxed, you’ll also end up with a more impressive end product.


The best way to start a mindful destress habit is to start meditating. Again, there’s no point in overcomplicating matters here. Simply sit down, close your eyes, and focus on your breathing for five minutes at a time. That’s really all there is to it — once you sense your thoughts beginning to wander, gently bring your attention back to your breath. 

 

Article: Best 5 oils that will help you grow a full beard

 


It’s tough at the beginning, but it really does induce a sense of whole-body calm, and it can be pretty addictive in its own right. Over time, feel free to extend the length of your meditation sessions; the benefits will be enormous, and you’ll find yourself much less stressed on a daily basis. 

 

A black and white shot of a man with a thick beard gazing to the right, wearing a cap.

 

Conclusion


We hope you enjoyed this all-inclusive, final word on how to grow a thicker beard. Suitable for teenagers as well as for fully-blown adults, the tips above are designed to be actionable and straightforward, meaning that you don’t need to break the bank in order to make them happen. To tell the truth, you won’t even need to make massive changes in your daily schedule. Finding just an extra half-hour or so in the day can make all the difference.


As with all long-term growth, the most important thing is to make the new habits stick. Making sure to apply at least a degree of each piece of advice on a daily basis will ensure that you’ll be growing a thicker, fuller beard sooner rather than later. 


If you’re confused about any of the strategies mentioned above — or if you’d like some personal advice about how to grow a nice, thick beard — feel free to  get in touch with us here at Urban Beard. We’d love to listen to your situation and offer any help we’re able to. Until the next time!

 

Want to learn more? Here are a few articles you maybe interested in:-

    1. Article:  What’s the Right Beard for your Face Shape?
    2. Article: How can I fix my patchy beard?
    3. Article: Groom Your Beard: Tips And Advice From The Best Barbers