Some of you may remember my 9 year old is a boxer as well as a wrestler. She is gassing out while sparring because of the mouth guard. I am worried she may have a similar problem that I did when I was younger. No matter what the weather or conditions when exercising my nose would become congested. We don't have this problem in anything else as she doesn't wear a mouth guard for her other activities but obviously it's not an optional piece of equipment. Anyone have any suggestions?
1. Get her to do focused breathing exercises while wearing the gum shield. 2. Get her to wear the gum shield at all times during training. 3. Buy her a gum shield with upper and lower jaws, which have a hole in the middle to make breathing easier.
Hmm... I'm not a pro but since I'm bored and I like to brainstorm here's my two cents. Is it possible she's allergic to the mouth guard or something in her environment, just a what if. How much boxing experiencedoes she have with a mouth guard in, when iI first started with a mouth guard it was uncomfortable and it took some getting used to. Put the guard in, and play in the back yard or whatever a kid does idk, frankly I don't like children, that's another story. After some activity with the guard in try some light med ball drops I know she's four but it could work.
We had one of the ones with the hole, apparently USA Boxing won't allow them. Now she uses one that covers the top teeth which is I guess what they prefer. We are working on 1 and 2 already. And thanks!
I can sympathise with her. I have the same problem. Its exercise induced allergic rhinitis - otherwise known as rhinorrhea and it can occur as nonallergic rhinitis. You might want to try nettie pots before going on to flonase, inhalants and similar meds - I'd stay away from OTC stuff - some of those can lead to behavioural anomalies that mimic ADHD. Make absolute certain to use lab-grade sterilised water! There've been some horror stories from people using tap water. If she's not suffering from hay fever or other similar allergies, tell the doctor you suspect non-allergic, excercise-induced rhinorrhea and see what he suggests. BTW, I don't think it her mouth guard. That would show signs of contact dermatitis, hives around the face, etc.
The only reason the mouth guard really had something to do with it is she is used to breathing through her mouth during exercise because they don't require mouth guards for wrestling. I had the exact same condition when I was younger so it doesn't surprise me. I had forgotten about it but it would happen during football and basketball.
I used to have the exact same problem back when I started aikido so I too can sympathize. The only solution I ever found was self control. I found that if I forced myself to keep my mouth closed during exercise and during training the blockage in my nose would go away. I would jog, bike, and train with my lips closed tightly even when my lungs were screaming for air. It was torturous for a while but after a time things got better. The cause may not be the same and this is only what worked for me. Your mileage may vary but it is likely worth trying. Good luck to your daughter.
Yeah, sorry - I was referring to Bodyshot's comment regarding her having some sort of allergic reaction to the material in the mouthguard - like a latex allergy. I have that as well in all things where I'm physically exerting and movement is involved - I've noticed it dosen't seem to occur with lifting. The worse part of it is if I can't blow my nose after a while, it comes out on its own - usually at the most awkward moment. Running in winter used to be the worst but the last time my nose was broken a couple of months ago, its become a major problem. Again, the best approach is to tackle the source/root of the congestion - a good ENT might help.
Well this at least gives me hope that she is not doomed so far as this ending any possibility of her being able to do this. Thanks for the heads up!
Not sure about, because I never had to try it but when in another forum the same question came up, one of the tips has been, to wear the mouthguard during other daily activities - like when watching TV. Put it in, get used to it and it might/ should be better, when you use if during exercises - that was the idea behind it.
Can't help but wonder if one is just desensitising themselves to working with a reduced 02 availability. When my own kids were boxing, we had the dentist to make custom guards for them. It seemed to help. There are some studies that show a fairly significant difference in breathing ability between custom and the off-the-shelf variety... I'm having trouble uploading the pdf as an attachment but here are a couple of links for anyone who is interested. If you want the full article and not just the abstract, click the "get pdf" tab. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1600-9657.2011.01106.x/full http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1600-9657.2005.00354.x/abstract?deniedAccessCustomisedMessage=&userIsAuthenticated=false
I've never had this problem, but I do have horrific allergies year-round. Xlear nasal spray works most of the time. I reserve the neti pot for severe congestion days. Just my 2 cents.
Does she breath with her mouth outside of exercise? Do you see her breathing with her mouth when she is in a passive state? She might just be too used to breathing with her mouth, like a bad habit. Upper chest breathers are also often people who breath through their mouths. Breathing with the "stomach", or the solar plexus area, engages a larger portion of your lungs and is the proper way of breathing, typically making it easier to breath through the nose, so that's another thing you want to look for. She might also get too worked up during sparring and if she can't breathe like she normally does during exercise, with her mouth, she gets out of breath even faster from a mental side of things. Like a slight constant panic throughout the spar. So like others said, this side of the problem can be dealt with by getting her used to it by exercising with a mouth guard. Telling a young kid to relax during sparring isn't gonna happen, but if she's used to exercising with a mouth guard it will probably help alleviate some of the tenseness. And if you breathe through your nose constantly, your nose will become less congested because air keeps passing through.
So on the advice of some people on a Boxing forum we went to the dentist to have custom made mouthguards made. When you put them in they lock into the top teeth so they are not floating in your mouth. Sometimes they leave them in now and forget they are there. Huge difference.
