I’ve read that mouthguards are designed and manufactured for boxers but as time goes by, as different sports emerge and different rules have been changed, it is now used in different contact sports.In basketball, players are using this to protect their teeth during a physical game (saw LeBron James wearing this at the Olympics); in American football, it is a must-have to protect the players from concussions (attached in the facemask for easy use); in MMA (mixed martial arts) a must-have also, no need to clarify why.
Mouthguards generally protect the upper teeth.I remember watching the good old boxing days of today’s boxing legends, mouthguards are “bulky,” I mean it seems it will really do affect your breathing, unlike today’s mouthguard that perfectly fits the wearer’s mouth.
Different mouthguards are now out in the market today from the stock to boil and bite to custom-made.Stock mouthguards are inexpensive but doesn’t give enough protection; these are pre-formed. Boil and bite is also inexpensive but give good protection and good fit.Custom-made mouthguards are the most expensive and gives the perfect fit and protection—but this is costly.
I’ve bought a boil and bite TKO mouthguard (picture) at only Php 68.00 ($1.51).Kinda cheap but fits quite ok, doesn’t affect my breathing.I must have one to protect my teeth from the other experienced gym-mates, their heel fight knock my teeth off!Other boil and bite mouthguards costs around 500 to 1000 pesos ($11 to $23) and the custom made mouthguards costs around 3,000 to 5,000 pesos ($67 to $111).Take note that this is based on Philippine pricing.
Before using the mouthguard: first, try to be comfortable with it and second, make sure it will not affect your breathing (in full contact sports, e.g. Yaw-Yan, boxing, muay thai, BJJ, Kali, etc. poorly-fitted mouthguard definitely affects your breathing, you might be out of gas soon).