So you’re getting into the fight game but worried about the handy engineering from your dentist? I can understand. Because Boxing often involves getting punched on the chin and the mouth, braces generally aren’t designed to withstand constant punches like that.
I’ve already covered how to train in MMA with braces in another article if that’s your preferred martial art. If Boxing is your chosen specialism, then keep reading.
In short, can you do Boxing with braces?
You can do Boxing with braces by wearing a custom mouthguard. Some boil and bite mouthguards also work with braces but are not as protective. Your orthodontist should mold them as they need to cover your gums, teeth, and the braces themselves.
If you want to learn all the solutions available to you, keep reading this article!
Table of Contents
Risks Of Boxing With Braces
While it’s true that you can do Boxing with braces on, there are still some serious risks that you have to evaluate for yourself before making a hasty decision.
Having metal wires strapped into your teeth makes the degree of damage potentially way higher than Boxing without braces at all.
And if you’re first getting into Boxing, then knowing how to use footwork and defend properly can be a big factor in taking a dangerous hit to your mouth.
There have been situations where a rogue punch in sparring has connected so well that it caught the braces and can force the teeth away from the gums with more force, losing much more than just a tooth but potentially several in one go.
This is extremely rare, but accidents happen every day.
The possibility of still losing teeth will be there, but what’s a more common consideration for most people with braces is whether they will damage the intricate handiwork of their orthodontist and force them to go back for another expensive fix-up.
Braces of any kind cost a lot of money to get fitted originally and taking part in combat sports, which you can’t blame on anyone but yourself, is a risk to your pockets.
If you don’t have the money to fix any damages you might make to your braces, then it’s worth reconsidering Boxing at all. At the very least, choosing the safest Boxing sessions you can perform – that means no sparring!
Instead, you can do plenty of Boxing training sessions like partner drills, pad work, heavy bag, footwork, and working with an experienced coach who can tailor each session for what you need.
Boxing Sparring With Braces
To do sparring in Boxing while wearing braces, you must have an orthodontist mold and craft a custom sports mouthguard for you. The best way to remain safe during sparring is to have a delicately created mouthguard for your teeth and braces.
Like I mentioned earlier, a lousy strike into your teeth could knock out any mouthguard and take your braces and teeth with it. And this most regularly happens with poor quality or improperly fitted mouthguards (like a regular boil and bite).
If you want to do sparring with braces, you’ll need to accept the added risks you are taking. Most definitely review the mouthguard solutions I outline below and be sufficiently prepared.
In some gyms, there is the ability to do what is known as touch sparring, or technical sparring, which focuses a lot more on footwork and movement such as positioning yourself to avoid strikes or counter them and is much less focused on actually striking your opponent.
But when you’re in the sport of punching and being punched, accidents will happen, and a black eye or a broken tooth is just one wrong step away.
Wearing A Boil And Bite Mouthguard With Braces For Boxing
The cheapest solution to protecting your braces is to buy a boil and bite mouthguard. Some have enough material to cover braces and your teeth simultaneously.
Most boil and bite mouthguards are not suitable to be used with braces at all, so you have to make sure to do some research and pick out the best one available to you.
Luckily for you, I already have an excellent recommendation for a boil and bite mouthguard that works with braces:
★★★★★ 5/5
STREETBEEFS QuickFIT by Impact Custom Mouthguards
Not quite fully custom, but suitable for braces.
When you have braces, a custom guard likely isn’t suitable. But this QuickFIT version makes it possible to get decent protection!
Impact Mouthguards are one of my favorite brands in the fight gear space, and they have their QuickFIT mouthguards, which are suitable for fighters who wear braces.
They’re also the leading provider of custom mouthguards for fighters, but their customs aren’t suitable for braces.
Their QuickFIT mouthguards come in a variety of different colors and fantastic designs to choose from, too:
It’s important to note, though, that boil and bite mouthguards are often simply not protective enough to offer adequate protection for your gums, teeth, and braces all at the same time.
Boil and bites give the essential protection needed, but rarely the best.
Wearing A Custom Mouthguard With Braces For Boxing
Generally speaking, your standard custom mouthguard won’t be suitable for wearing with braces. Even though they are custom, most brands send you a kit in the post to take the mold yourself and send it back to them for manufacturing.
But for braces, it’s crucial that when you’re going for the custom option, you get a proper mold taken from your orthodontist, which is then specially crafted for your teeth.
The reasons are two-fold.
Firstly, custom mouthguards are fairly costly anyway, and the fitting process can take a couple of weeks, so it isn’t an immediate fix or worth that expense if they don’t work correctly with braces.
And secondly, a custom mouthguard is usually less protective material to offer better comfort and breathing experience, which means that they might not have enough mold to surround braces and your teeth simultaneously, which is a risk to your braces and your teeth!
★★★★★ 5/5
Octopus Guard by Impact Custom Mouthguards
Flex your tentacles with this Octopus version; tons more styles are available.
It’s a leading custom mouthguard that will protect against impact to the jaw. Don’t cheap yourself on anything less!
Whilst I think the Impact custom mouthguards are incredible, they are clear about it themselves that they’re not suitable for braces, and you should go for the QuickFIT mouthguards instead.
Wearing An Orthodontist Mouthguard With Braces For Boxing
An orthodontist-approved mouthguard is likely to give you the best protection for your braces and teeth in Boxing. You may even be able to perform light sparring while wearing one, so you can keep training and improving most of your skills until the braces are ready to come off.
Of all considerations in this article, I would tell you that the best solution is to work with your orthodontist to create a mouthguard special for you.
I know that it will cost big bucks, but it probably is the safest option if that’s what you care about the most!
Bottom Line: Can You Do Boxing With Braces?
It should be safe to do Boxing with braces as long as you wear an adequately protective mouthguard. The mouthguard would most likely need to be custom-fitted to provide the proper protection around your gums, teeth, and braces.
The best option is typically a customized mouthguard molded by your orthodontist.
By now, you should feel more confident about the options available to you, and you can continue Boxing, improving your fight skills, all while keeping your teeth protected and straight.