Invisalign and Me
Blogging about my journey with invisible braces! Sharing my tips and tricks on living with Invisalign.
Invisalign and Sports
Can I Play Sports whilst wearing Invisalign?
So many times I've been asked, "Can you play sports with Invisalign aligners in?" and "Can I keep my Invisalign trays in when I play sports?"
And so many times my answer to both questions has been a resounding YES.
Yes, you damn well can play sports whilst wearing your Invisalign trays! Your aligners do not affect anything, and pose no hazard (unlike traditional wire braces).
Should you keep your aligners in during sports?
Invisalign braces were specifically created in order to be super adaptable for most, if not any, lifestyles.
When playing sports with Invisalign trays in, you have two choices:
1. Take your aligners off for sports
OR
2. Keep your aligners in for sports.
Simple, innit?
The Verdict
You can take the aligners in and out whenever you please. They pose virtually no hazard to the insides of your mouth (unlike traditional metal braces). In fact, I like to think of my Invisalign aligners as a kind of mouth-guard whenever I play sports. My teeth are snugly secure inside the trays and they feel safer that way.
If you need to wear a mouth-guard, use common sense. Can the mouth-guard fit over your aligners? If yes, leave them on. If not, then pop your aligners in their box for safe-keeping and put them back in after you're done. En garde!
What it comes down to is personal preference. Honestly, having your aligners in doesn't affect anything, from balance in basketball to competitive rowing on a lake. I've never removed my aligners specifically for a sport, whether that be swimming, badminton, volleyball, surfing, or whatever.
Since you're meant to wear your trays for 22 hours a day, I'd say keep those babies IN if you can!
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Can I do water sports with Invisalign?
Yes.
Can I do boxing with Invisalign?
Yes. Although check whether it will fit under your mouth guard if you wear one.
Can I play tennis with Invisalign?
Ya, you can.
Can I play basketball with Invisalign?
Hell yeah.
Can I do bungee-jumping with Invisalign?
Of course you can, you daredevil!
Can I leave my Invisalign in if I do Water Sports?
The answer is a resounding YES.
Yes, you can bloody well do water sports whilst wearing Invisalign! And although you could remove them, I'd keep them on.
Personal experience
I've done all kinds of water sports in my life. Swimming, diving, snorkelling, surfing, kayaking, rafting, white water rafting, water aerobics, water volleyball, canoeing, jetskiing, parasailing, rowing, paddle-boarding, wind-surfing... You get the picture.
Since starting my Invisalign treatment, I've done about 9 of those water sports. And throughout all of the water-related activities I've done during my Invisalign treatment, I've kept my aligners on. I've never had any problems. I'd keep them on for any future water sports.
My Verdict
Invisalign braces were specifically created in order to be super adaptable for most, if not any, lifestyles.
You can take the aligners in and out whenever you please. They pose virtually no hazard to the insides of your mouth (unlike traditional metal braces). In fact, I like to think of my Invisalign aligners as a kind of mouth-guard whenever I play sports. My teeth are snugly secure inside the trays and they feel safer that way.
Whether you remove your aligners or not comes down to personal preference. Quite honestly, having your aligners in doesn't affect anything, from balance in basketball to competitive rowing on a lake. I've never removed my aligners specifically for a sport, whether that be swimming, badminton, volleyball, surfing, or whatever. I'm no health and safety expert, but I don't see any harm in leaving them in.
Since you're meant to wear your trays for 22+ hours a day, my verdict is that if you're going to be frolicking in water for hours on end, just keep those babies IN!
P. S. Beware of the 'ick'
By ick, I mean, beware of your aligners getting really, grossly, grimly icky after doing any kind of water sports.
Water sports that involve going beneath water at any point - e.g. snorkelling, diving, surfing or white water rafting - means that water WILL enter your mouth. Chlorinated water, salty seawater and lake/river water WILL get trapped in your aligners. It WILL most likely taste like utter crap. But the braces themselves will be no less effective. Just make sure you rinse them out as fast as possible after the activity. Soak them in anti-bacterial or alcohol solution for a little while afterwards to kill all the germs, then give them a good scrub.