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AIRWAAV creates mouthpieces that claim to make you stronger, faster, and better rested, which sounds like a similar pitch as copper-infused socks and magnetic bracelets. The brand’s premise is that by optimizing jaw alignment and tongue positioning, you can trigger better neuromuscular responses and keep your airway more open during stress and sleep. So when AIRWAAV landed on my desk with claims covering strength, endurance, recovery, and mobility, all from three mouthpieces, I figured this was either going to be the most interesting thing I tested this year or a very expensive way to protect my molars. Spoiler: it landed somewhere in between, and that in-between is worth talking about.
To see if these claims held up, I spent a month testing AIRWAAV’s three-piece lineup. The PX1 and PX2 are built for training, offering a loose and snug fit, respectively, while the RX1 is a dedicated sleep piece designed to keep your airway open overnight. I wore all three in rotation through heavy squat sessions, cardio days, and countless nights tracked by a Garmin monitoring my sleep stats. But before I could get to work, I had to get them ready for my mouth.
Getting The AIRWAAVS Fitted Wasn’t the Hard Part
If you’ve ever molded a bite guard before, this process will feel familiar. If you haven’t, it’s still simple enough that I got all three dialed in on the first attempt, no do-overs, no lopsided bite. AIRWAAV gives you the option to fit them at home using the microwave or boiling water method, and the whole thing takes minutes. My only advantage here is that I’ve done this before with other mouthguards, so I knew what “firm but even pressure” was supposed to feel like. If this is your first rodeo, just follow the instructions closely and you’ll be fine.
The AIRWAAV PX1: A Modern Version of an Old Lifting Trick
Anyone who’s spent time under a barbell knows the instinct to clench your jaw on a heavy rep. Powerlifters have been biting down on mouthguards, towels, whatever’s handy, for decades, because there’s something about that clench that seems to wake the rest of your body up. AIRWAAV’s whole pitch on the PX1 is basically a refined, purpose-built version of that instinct. The bite plate positions your jaw so your teeth make full contact when you clench, which the brand says triggers a stronger neuromuscular response throughout the body, like flipping a switch that tells your muscles to stop holding back.
I used the PX1 mostly for strength work, heavy squats, deadlifts, and a couple of grinding overhead press sessions where I needed something to bite into besides my own back teeth. The fit is comfortable and slightly open, more like a flip-flop than a running shoe, and it was the one of the two performance pieces I reached for without thinking twice. But, did I add weight to my lifts because of it? No. My back squat didn’t magically jump. But there’s a real difference between grinding your molars together on a max effort rep and having something built to take that pressure instead. My jaw didn’t feel wrecked afterward the way it sometimes does after a heavy training block, and that alone made me want to keep using it.
The AIRWAAV PX2: Snug, Secure, and a Little Awkward With a Water Bottle
The PX2 is the tighter, more form-fitting sibling, made for anything that involves sustained movement rather than a single max effort. Distance running, cycling, Hyrox, that kind of thing. The idea is that clenching gently while keeping your tongue forward under the front bar opens your airway and can cut your respiratory rate by as much as 20 percent, which in theory means less lactic acid buildup and more gas in the tank late in a workout.
I wore it through running sessions and a handful of high effort cardio days, but the reality was simple: I didn’t feel it. No noticeable drop in effort, no sense that my breathing had opened up in some new way. It’s entirely possible I wasn’t clenching and positioning my tongue exactly right, this is a specific technique, not just shoving a mouthguard in and going. But from a pure “did this change how hard cardio felt” standpoint, I couldn’t tell you it did.
What I can tell you is that drinking water with the PX2 in is its own small comedy. Try talking with a mouth full of marbles and you’ll get the idea. The fit is snug enough that pulling it out mid-run or mid-ride to grab water breaks your rhythm, and if you try to sip around it, expect some dribbling down your shirt the first few times. You adjust eventually, but there’s a learning curve nobody warns you about.
Choosing Between the PX1 and PX2
On paper, both models offer the same core performance benefits, so choosing between them really comes down to how you want the thing to feel in your mouth while you’re working. The PX1 features a wider bite channel designed for a more relaxed, loose fit. I found this ideal for high-intensity lifting where I just needed a solid surface to bite down on during a heavy set without feeling like the guard was glued to my teeth. The PX2, by contrast, is much more form-fitting and secure, built to stay exactly where you put it even during constant, jarring movement like sprinting or cycling.
If you are considering trying out one of these and aren’t sure which style of fit you’ll prefer, AIRWAAV does sell a hybrid pack that includes one of each. It’s probably the smartest way to start if you’re planning on splitting your time between the squat rack and the road and want to see which one clicks with your training style.
The AIRWAAV RX1: This One is Interesting
The RX1 is the one built for sleep, and it works on a different mechanism than the training pieces. Instead of a clench cue, it’s shaped to gently guide your tongue forward while you sleep, keeping it from falling back and narrowing your airway the way it can with a conventional bite guard, or with nothing at all. Think of it less like a mouthguard and more like a doorman making sure your tongue doesn’t block the entrance to your own airway all night.
I already sleep in a bite guard because I grind my teeth, so the transition for me was easy. If you’ve never worn anything in your mouth overnight, budget a few nights to adjust, because your tongue doesn’t get to rest where it normally would, and that’s the entire point of the design.
The first night I wore it, my Garmin logged two and a half hours of deep sleep, up from my usual two hours. That’s the kind of jump that gets your attention. I’ll say upfront that sleep tracking on any wearable, even the good ones, tops out around 80 percent accuracy, so I’m not treating one good night as proof of anything. And sure enough, the following nights settled back closer to my normal two hours of deep sleep, no repeat of that spike. But what did stick around was a drop in recorded waking events. Fewer disruptions, more consistent nights. It’s a smaller, quieter kind of improvement than “better sleep instantly,” but it’s the kind that’s easier to trust because it didn’t try to blow me away on night one and then disappear.
Left Two sleeps tracked while wearing the AIRWAAV RX1 and the Right Sleep graph is without – Notice my normal awake spikes, those disappeared when wearing the RX1
Between grinding my teeth and preferring this fit over my old bite guard, the RX1 did earn a permanent spot on my nightstand.
Final Thoughts on AIRWAAV: Do They Realy Work?
Here’s where I landed after a month of clenching, running, lifting, and sleeping with these things. This isn’t a category that’s going to turn an average lifter into a powerlifter or shave minutes off a 5K. This is 1 percent territory, the kind of gear you reach for after your training, your sleep, and your recovery basics are already dialed in and you’re hunting for small edges. AIRWAAV never promised a transformation, and I didn’t get one. What I got was a lifting session where I wasn’t grinding my molars on a heavy set, and nights where I woke up less often. Small things. But small things add up when you’re already doing everything else right. While the PX2 didn’t quite find its place in my routine, the other two did.
The PX1 stays in my gym bag. The RX1 stays on my nightstand. The PX2, however, is being shelved; it ultimately felt like it got in the way more than it helped during my runs and rides.
One practical note: these are HSA and FSA eligible, so if you’ve got funds sitting there that need to be used, this is a legitimate way to spend them. If you’re curious enough to try the mouth pieces, AIRWAAV backs these with a 30-day trial, which tells you they’re confident enough in them to let you test it risk-free before committing. If it doesn’t work for you, you send it back. At that point, the only real risk is whether you’re willing to spend a few weeks finding out if that extra 1% is actually there for you. For more info or to try these our for yourself, visit airwaav.com.
