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Guide · Step 5 of 5By Klineva · Updated on 5 October 2026 · 8 min read
After a hair transplant, you first need to rest completely for at least 5 days. After that, you return to exercise in stages: walking from the first week, without your scalp sweating, then a gradual return to sport after one month. Contact sports, swimming pools, the sea and helmets have their own rules. These timings are guidelines: if in doubt, ask your medical team for advice. Here are the details, followed by the instructions to follow before the operation.
Your brand-new grafts need a calm environment to take root. Getting back to exercise therefore happens in stages, from complete rest in the first few days to a return to sport in general.
Avoid any physical activity for at least 5 days. Sexual intercourse should be avoided for 15 days. Otherwise, make the most of the time to relax and rest without feeling guilty.
After these days of rest, walking is possible, provided your scalp does not sweat. No jogging, no rope skipping and certainly no CrossFit. It is even inadvisable to tilt your head down too far during the first few days. Your scalp is like a freshly sown lawn: it needs careful, gentle care.
For the whole of the first month, no sport, however light, and no exertion that makes your scalp sweat.
Jogging, weight training, calisthenics (bodyweight exercises) and most other sports can be gradually resumed one month after the operation. However, we recommend checking with your doctor before resuming any activity, especially if you are in any doubt.
Yoga and Pilates are generally gentle, but they count as sport. Like other sports, they should be avoided during the first month so that your scalp does not sweat. After that, return to them gradually.
During the first month, sweating should be avoided. It irritates the scalp and can jeopardise how well the grafts take. Strictly avoid saunas, hammams and sport.
If you do sweat, you can clean your scalp by gently dabbing it, to limit the risk of infection. The washing itself is explained in detail in our guide: Washing your hair after a transplant.
Contact sports such as rugby, boxing, combat sports or football should be avoided for a month and a half. A blow to the head could damage the grafts, dislodge them or make them fall out. Even a badly placed elbow can damage the result of the operation. We recommend asking your medical team for advice before you resume.
Chlorine and salt water may irritate your scalp after the operation. Avoid swimming pools and the sea for at least a month, even with a swimming cap.
Wearing a helmet is a problem for cyclists and other sportspeople. Right after the operation, wearing one during the first few weeks is strongly discouraged, because it rubs against the grafts and disrupts their healing. You therefore need to take a one-month break from sports that require one. For caps and beanies, see also our post-operative instructions.
Two weeks before your hair transplant, it is recommended to reduce, or even avoid, any intense physical activity. Why? Because sport and exercise increase blood flow to the scalp, which can cause excessive bleeding during the operation. It is therefore better to put the dumbbells and trainers aside for those two weeks.
Coffee, tea and especially energy drinks or sports drinks should be avoided at least on the day before and on the day of the operation. Caffeine and other stimulants overstimulate the body. They also raise blood pressure in the scalp, which complicates the operation, just as exercise does. Opt for a soothing herbal tea instead.
All the other instructions to follow before the operation are gathered in our guide: Getting ready for a hair transplant: the checklist, from the month before to surgery day.
Not following these recommendations may lead to several complications. Excessive bleeding, infections and displaced grafts are just a few examples of the problems that can occur. Going back to your daily jog too soon can mean having to return to the surgeon for touch-ups.
Ignoring the advice also means exposing yourself to a longer recovery and a reduced chance of success for the transplant. You have invested time and money in this operation: it is better not to compromise the result for the sake of a few exercise sessions. Patience is your best ally.
At Klineva, the medical team gives you the guidance suited to your case, including for your sport. If you are considering a hair transplant, ask for your free diagnosis – send us your photos and an adviser will get back to you within 24 hours.
real patients, with the number of grafts and the time elapsed since surgery
Leave us your number: an adviser will get back to you within 24 hours. We’ll ask for the photos for your diagnosis after this first conversation, by WhatsApp or email.
Brand-new grafts need a calm environment to take root. Sweating irritates the scalp and can jeopardise how well they take, and a blow to the head could dislodge them or make them fall out. That is why all physical activity is avoided at first for at least 5 days, and all sport until one month after the operation, before resuming in stages.
Yes, but not before one month has passed. Jogging and weight training, like most other sports, can then be gradually resumed. Until then, walking is possible from the first week, provided your scalp does not sweat. We recommend checking with your doctor before resuming any activity, especially if you are in any doubt.
Contact sports should be avoided for a month and a half. A blow to the head could damage the grafts, dislodge them or make them fall out. Ask your medical team for advice before you resume.
You need to wait at least one month. Chlorine and salt water may irritate the scalp, even with a swimming cap.
During the first few weeks, wearing a helmet is strongly discouraged: it rubs against the grafts and disrupts their healing. You therefore need to take a one-month break from sports that require one, such as cycling.
Yes, after the first month. Although they are generally gentle, yoga and Pilates count as sport: no scalp sweating for a month. After that, return to them gradually.
It is recommended to reduce, or even avoid, any intense physical activity in the two weeks before the operation, because exertion increases blood flow to the scalp. Also avoid coffee, tea and energy drinks at least on the day before and on the day of the operation.
step 5 of 5: after the transplant
Guide · Step 5The first days after a hair transplant, from day 1 to day 30 after surgeryPossible swelling, scabs, itching, shedding of the transplanted hairs: what is normal, week by week.Read the guide
Guide · Step 5Post-operative instructionsThe medical team’s instructions, on one clear page.Read the guide
Guide · Step 5Washing your hair after a transplantThe washing steps, how often to wash and the team’s video.Read the guideAn adviser will get back to you. We’ll ask for the photos for your diagnosis after this first conversation.
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