For many years now the shaving industry has tried its hardest to encourage us to shave our facial hair off. They try to make all types of facial hair seem like a big hygienic problem that we should all rid ourselves of.
It’s fair to say they have failed, in fact, facial hair is now more popular than ever, with men all over the world going for new and exciting looks all the time.
One facial hairstyle that is hugely popular at the moment is the heavy stubble beard. Also known as the 5mm beard, this type of beard has actually been found to be the hottest facial hairstyle today.
If you’re not ready to grow a full beard yet or simply want to try out a new style, this easy-to-maintain, fresh, well-groomed look is the one for you.
Today, in this blog we will be looking at everything you need to know about this style of beard, including the different styles, how to grow the beard, trimming techniques, and more.
If you want to learn more or give growing a heavy stubble beard a try, be sure to stick around.
What Is The Heavy Stubble Beard?
Commonly referred to as the 5mm or 10-day beard, the heavy stubble beard is a popular facial hairstyle that typically grows to 4mm to 5mm in length.
It is referred to by many as the 10-day beard. This is because it takes most people roughly 10 days to reach the required length.
The main difference between this style of facial hair and other beards is the length of the heavy stubble beard.
While this style of beard requires 5 mm of hair, other stubble beards only need a length of 1mm or 2.5mm, growing in just 4 or 5 days. Light stubble beards only need a length of 0.5 mm to 1 mm. This beard style usually takes 1 to 2 days to grow.
You could say that the heavy stubble beard is a common short beard that simply requires a lot less time to maintain.
It gives you the perfect opportunity to have a beard without needing to do much growing or maintaining. You won’t need to spend months growing the beard and hardly any time maintaining it.
How Attractive Is The Heavy Stubble Beard?
Okay, so how attractive is the heavy stubble beard, and why is it so popular? For starters, you only have to look at this type of beard to understand why many men go for this style of facial hair. The 10-day beard gives men a fresh, well-groomed, attractive look.
You don’t have to take our word for this either. Recent studies have actually shown that the attractiveness of a man peaks at the “heavy stubble phase”.
Using both men and women in their studies, researchers suggest that the 10-day beard is a lot more attractive than having no facial hair or a full beard.
Results from various studies also revealed that this style of beard makes a man look more masculine, healthier, and mature. Strangely people even believe someone with a heavy stubble beard could be a better parent.
If you’re wanting children soon maybe it’s time to start growing the 10-day beard.
Heavy Stubble Beards Compared With Other Types Of Beard
If you’re a lover of all things beard you may have already tried other styles of beard before. Here is some information for you in regards to how the heavy stubble beard compares to other popular styles of beard.
Heavy Stubble and Light Stubble
The main difference between heavy stubble and light stubble beards is length. A light stubble beard isn’t as long as a heavy stubble beard.
Your beard is considered to be light stubble when it reaches a length of approximately 0.5mm. This style of beard requires a lot more care than the heavy stubble beard. You will need to trim the beard more regularly to maintain its length.
Heavy Stubble and Medium Stubble
It is a similar story when it comes to the differences between a heavy stubble style and a medium stubble beard. Medium stubble beards are again shorter in length than the heavy stubble beard.
It is, however, longer than other stubble-styled beards that men go for. The medium stubble beard grows to 3mm long and is a lot easier to maintain than light stubble.
Heavy Stubble and Full Beard
Most men opt for a heavy stubble beard over a long full beard. This is because it takes a lot longer to grow a full beard.
Therefore it needs a lot more care and maintenance to ensure it stays healthy, clean, and sharp. If you’re not sure which beard to go for, we recommend first growing a heavy stubble beard and seeing what you think.
This style of beard looks great on everyone’s face, but there are some people it may suit more than others. The 5 mm beard works perfectly on men with square or oval-shaped faces.
An oval face is usually narrower and longer. Men with square-shaped faces will suit this style of facial hair more than others because the heavy stubble style helps to balance and soften strong masculine features, for example, angular cheekbones.
Those of you with round faces may suit a longer beard more. This type of beard will balance the width of your face and also give it some length.
Most Popular Heavy Stubble Beard Styles
The Classic
This classic style of heavy stubble beard is the most sought-after style of this type of facial hair. It is probably the simplest style too.
Classic-styled beards consist of 4 mm to 5 mm long facial hair that has grown for approximately 10 days without too much maintenance. The only maintenance carried out when achieving this style of beard is some trimming.
If you’ve ever been interested in growing Robert Downey Jr-like facial hair, you will want to grow this style of facial hair first. Out of all the heavy stubble styles, we will look at, this is probably the go-to beard for those with average-shaped faces.
Hollywoodian Style
This variation of heavy stubble beard is a little more wild and unique. It also requires more care and maintenance. Despite looking a lot different, the only real difference between this type of beard and the classic is that you need to trim your cheeks and neck.
Though you might need to spend more time maintaining this style, it is probably the most impressive type of heavy stubble beard.
Goatee Styled Heavy Stubble
If you want a combination between a heavy stubble beard and goatee, this is the look you should go for. You will however have to have a lot more patience to get this look. Facial hair will need to grow for up to 4 weeks.
This should mean that your beard is then 7.5mm to 9mm thick. When it is, you should trim the whole beard to 5mm long, leaving the goatee untouched.
This style looks great on men with an average face shape. It will balance out facial features brilliantly.
Mustache Heavy Stubble Beard
Another interesting variation of the classic heavy stubble beard is the heavy stubble beard with a mustache. The only difference between the classic and this style is that the whiskers on your upper lip are left a lot longer than the rest of the beard.
If you have an oval, round, or square face, this look could be great for you.
Patchy Heavy Stubble Beard
A patchy heavy stubble beard is absolutely perfect for anyone who has a patchy beard. This style gives you a great opportunity to grow a beard that looks fantastic. There isn’t too much difference between this style of beard and the classic heavy stubble style.
Extended Goatee
Similar to the normal heavy stubble goatee style, this type of beard involves trimming your whole beard but leaving the goatee untouched. The only difference between the two is that with this style, the goatee is left to grow longer.
It should extend further past your chin. As this style of goatee is longer, you can expect it to take longer to grow. This style of stubble beard suits men with oval or round faces more as it adds length to their face and balances out a rounder chin.
Chinstrap and Goatee
The chinstrap and goatee-styled stubble beard is a great combination for those who want a face with extra length and depth. If you have a strong chin line, this look could be a good one for you.
This style can be a little more time-consuming and harder to maintain, but the results will be worth it.
To grow this style of facial hair, you will first need heavy stubble facial hair. After this, you should trim the beard to form a sharp line that runs from your ears to the start of your chin.
The chin strap should be about 10mm thick. Finally, all you need to do is shape your goatee.
Growing Your Own Heavy Stubble Beard
Now we know what styles of heavy stubble beards are available to us, let’s start looking at how we can grow our heavy stubble beards.
Growing your heavy stubble beard will take roughly 10 days. Having said that, due to the different growth rates from man to man, it could take anything from 8 to 12 days for your heavy stubble beard to grow.
The first thing you need to do when growing heavy stubble-styled beards is to put your razor away. Until your heavy stubble beard has grown, there is no reason for you to go anywhere near your razor.
When we said it was easy to grow this type of beard, we weren’t joking. All you have to do for the first 8-12 days is let your facial hair do its thing.
After those 8 to 12 days, your face should have a fairly uneven growth of 4 to 5mm thick stubble. This stubble should cover your face and neck.
Now the only thing to do is style the beard to the heavy stubble beard style you desire. It is completely up to you which style you want to achieve.
In our opinion, if you want an easy-to-maintain, stylish look, you should simply trim your beard to an even length and clean up the edges. This will give you a well-maintained, attractive style that looks great.
For some of the other styles such as the goatee and extended goatee, you will have to wait longer for the beard to grow.
In this time you could trim your mustache and tidy up your neckline with a good-quality stubble trimmer or scissors. This will keep things more manageable.
Trimming and Beard Maintenance
Trimming
The key thing when it comes to growing any type of beard is how you look after it. How you do this is even more important when working with a 5mm thick beard because there isn’t a very big margin for error.
After your 10-day beard has grown, you can get to work on shaping it. If you’ve picked the classic style your first port of call is to trim your entire beard before shaving your neckline.
To do this, you will need an electric beard razor or trimmer with a 4mm guard. You can then trim the whole beard. The best and correct way to trim your beard without making any mistakes or missing patches is to start from your neckline and work up to the chin.
Once this is done, you can dust off your razor and begin finishing the finer details of the beard. To do this make sure your razor is nice and sharp. Alternatively, you could use an electric shaver.
Using your razor of choice, give your beard a neater appearance by shaving your neckline and cheeks. An easy way to do this is by finding your Adam’s apple. Front there work your way up to your earlobe. Do this on both sides.
When evening out your cheek line, use the line from your nose as your guide. This should be from the tip of the nose where it meets your cheeks.
Maintenance
Maintaining your heavy stubble beard is just as important as growing and trimming it. Regular maintenance will ensure your beard stays clean, fresh, and most importantly, attractive.
At least once a week you should use your trimmer to go over your beard so that it stays at its desired length. Doing this will help you have a beard that looks smart and fresh all week, every week.
In terms of keeping your beard clean and hygienic, there are a couple of things you can try. First of all, you could use a beard or face moisturizer to keep your facial hair and skin in good health.
Secondly, you can use a beard exfoliating scrub and a small bristle beard brush to remove any dead skin and dandruff. This will also help prevent any ingrown beard hairs. You should moisturize your beard daily and exfoliate it twice a week.
Heavy Stubble Beard Do’s And Don’ts
Do’s
Do shape the edges of your neckline and cheek line. This will give your beard a neater finish.
Do try different styles. You might find a new style you love.
Do wash your beard every day.
Do exfoliate two or three times a week.
Do moisturize your stubble beard daily.
Do give your beard a break now and then. This will keep things looking good and give you a healthier beard.
Dont’s
Don’t shave your beard off as a result of itchiness. The itchiness will pass.
Don’t use too many tools. Using too many tools will get confusing.
Don’t be impatient. The key to a great beard is patience.
Don’t neglect your beard. Look after your beard and it will look after you.
Don’t trim your heavy stubble beard too short. This will turn it into a short stubble beard.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Can You Fix Patchy Stubble?
First of all, we would like to say that there are plenty of ways to make a patchy beard look great so never worry about how it looks now. Having said that, if you want to improve a patchy beard, there are things you can do.
Eating healthily, drinking plenty of water, and increasing blood flow through regular exercise are just three ways you can care for your beard. You could also use beard oil.
By doing these things you will give your beard a healthy glow, keeping the skin below your beard healthy, clean, and well moisturized.
Some people also make the most of supplements, but you should ask your doctor for advice first.
How Much Can Stubble Grow In A Day?
How much stubble grows in a day is very much dependent on the individual in question. Every man is different, so their facial hair grows at different rates.
On average though, a beard will have a growth of 0.35mm a day. Your hair type and growth rate will impact this figure.
How Many Times Should I Trim My Heavy Stubble Beard A Week?
Men should look to trim their heavy stubble beard 2 or 3 times a week. By doing this their beard will look sharp, fresh, and well-groomed every day.
Taking 5 minutes to trim your beard every 2 to 3 days also makes life a lot easier. If you don’t trim your beard for a week or two, it will take a lot longer to trim and will be a lot more tedious to do.
Final Thoughts
We hope you have found our guide to heavy stubble beards useful. Growing a heavy stubble beard is an easy way to look great. This quick-growing beard is currently the hottest facial hairstyle around and it’s not hard to see why.
Growing to 5mm long, there are multiple different styles to try and it’s very easy to maintain. All you need is a bit of time, a good razor, and a stubble trimmer with a 4mm guard.
Now you know what is possible and how to grow this style of beard successfully, your next step is to decide which style you want to go for and which one suits your face.
When you’ve decided, put that razor away and start your 10-day wait. After those 10 days and a bit of trimming, you will look and feel amazing. Good luck!
My name is Doug, and I've been growing a beard on and off for many years now.
I've not had a perfect journey on the road to growing a beard. I've spent more time than I want to admit learning about growing a beard. I'm not one of those blessed with perfect beard-growing genes. So, I've encountered many frustrating and challenging obstacles along the way.
I hope some of my mistakes and victories along the way will help you on your journey to your perfect beard. Of course, reach out if I can help and share this content with your friends that are beginning or struggling on their journey as well.
Beards are becoming increasingly popular and fashionable. This is because they help men feel more confident and look better than ever before. Contents show 1…
