Written from firsthand experience with a deviated septum and checked against clinical sources. We make Ventriq Nasal Strips, so we are always upfront that a strip relieves symptoms rather than fixing the structural problem. Read our methodology or our editorial policy.
If you play padel, the best nasal strips are the ones built to stay in place through long rallies and constant back and forth movement without pulling at your skin between games. Padel is not always flat out effort like running or football, but a long doubles match on a warm court with barely any real downtime between points can still leave you breathing harder than you expect, and if your nose cannot keep up you end up gasping through your mouth right when you want to stay composed for the next point. A strip will not turn you into a sharper player or add pace to your smash, but it takes one small obstacle out of the way so you can keep breathing through your nose for longer.
I started using nasal strips for sleep after a consultant otolaryngologist at a private hospital in Dublin diagnosed me with a significantly deviated septum and recommended surgery to fix it. I played rugby for over a decade and broke my nose more than once along the way, so my septum was never exactly straight to begin with. I put the surgery off to keep playing and built Ventriq as a way to breathe properly in the meantime. I have played a fair amount of padel with friends since taking up the sport later in life, and the pattern is a familiar one. You start a match breathing evenly, then a long rally or a run of tight games arrives, your nose cannot move enough air, and you find yourself breathing through your mouth by the time you walk back to serve.
Why Nasal Breathing Matters in Padel
Padel sits somewhere between tennis and squash in terms of effort. Points are often longer than tennis because the ball stays in play off the glass and mesh walls, and with four players sharing a smaller court there is less ground to cover than singles tennis, but a tight doubles match can still run to well over an hour with barely any real rest between games. Your aerobic base is what keeps you recovering between points, and how you breathe has a direct effect on how quickly you settle before the next rally starts.
Nasal breathing slows your breathing rate, warms and humidifies the air before it reaches your lungs, and triggers a calmer response in your nervous system than mouth breathing does. The nose also produces nitric oxide as air passes through it, and nitric oxide acts as a bronchodilator and a vasodilator, meaning nasal breathing helps open your airways and relax your blood vessels a little, which supports the steadier state you want between points rather than during them.
The catch is that the nose can struggle to move enough air once a rally runs long or the court is warm and enclosed. A deviated septum reduces the cross sectional area of one nasal passage, and combined with the nasal cycle, where the tissue inside your nose alternates which side is more congested on a roughly four hour rotation, the restricted side can feel almost fully blocked during a long point or a close final set.
How Nasal Strips Help Padel Players
A nasal strip works on the outside of the nose. It spans the lower cartilage and uses a spring action to lift the lateral nasal wall outward, widening the internal diameter at the nasal valve. The nasal valve is the narrowest point in your entire airway, and it is the same spot that pinches inward if you press gently on the side of your nose while breathing in hard.
For a padel player with a deviated septum, the strip helps most on the side where the deviation crowds the valve area, which often shows up during a long defensive rally against the back glass. For a player with no structural issue, the main benefit is stopping dynamic valve collapse, where the cartilage gets pulled inward under a heavier breathing load during a fast exchange at the net. In both cases the practical payoff shows up between points, when holding nasal breathing keeps you calmer and more composed heading into the next rally.
I use the Ventriq Sport Nasal Strips whenever I play. They are stiffer than a standard sleep strip, built to stay put through sweat, and the adhesive holds through a full match without lifting at the edges, even on a warm afternoon on an outdoor court.
Our pick for padel
Ventriq Sport Nasal Strips
Drug free strips built to stay put through sweat and hold the nasal valve open, so you keep breathing through your nose when the effort ramps up. From EUR 20, with buy more save more packs.
Shop Ventriq SportSleeping or recovering instead? See Ventriq Sleep, or read how to choose the right strip.
What to Look for in a Padel Nasal Strip
Not all nasal strips are built the same, and for padel a few things actually matter:
- Adhesive strength: a long match in the heat means sweat, and a standard strip will start lifting within twenty minutes. A sport strip is built to grip through that.
- Spring tension: more tension means more lift and a more open airway, which matters most during the longer rallies where padel differs from a quick social game.
- Fit and position: a strip sitting too high on the bony part of your nose does nothing. It has to sit across the lower cartilage where the nasal valve actually is.
- Skin tolerance: if you play a few times a week, you want a strip that does not leave your skin raw after you peel it off.
I have tried a lot of strips over the years. Most were fine for sleep but failed the moment sweat and a long rally got involved. The Ventriq Sport strip holds better and keeps the airway open through a full match, whether you are on an indoor or an outdoor court.
Does It Actually Improve Performance?
I will be straight about this. The research on nasal strips producing measurable performance gains in trained athletes is mixed. Some studies show small improvements in perceived effort and breathing efficiency. Others show no meaningful change in aerobic measures under laboratory conditions. A strip is a breathing aid, not an engine upgrade, and it will not add power to your smash or speed to your reaction at the net.
What I can tell you from my own experience, and from what other players tell me, is that the subjective difference is real. Breathing through your nose between points feels less effortful and less drying, and it is easier to stay composed heading into a tense point in a close final set when you are not gasping through your mouth. If you want the deeper look at the general evidence, I have covered it in Do Nasal Strips Improve Athletic Performance.
Nasal Strips if You Have a Deviated Septum
If you have a deviated septum and you play padel regularly, nasal strips are probably more useful for you than for the average player. You are starting every match with your airway already restricted on one side, so anything that gives part of that width back makes the long points and the close final sets easier to manage without switching to your mouth. External strips work best when the restriction sits at the nasal valve rather than deep inside the nasal cavity, which is the most common pattern after an old injury to the nose. I have written more on this in Best Nasal Strips for a Deviated Septum.
If your breathing also wrecks your sleep after a night match or a long weekend of padel, How to Sleep Better with a Deviated Septum covers what has worked for me overnight.
My Recommendation
For padel, get the Ventriq Sport Nasal Strips. They were built for active use and they stay on through sweat and a full match without pulling at your skin. If your main issue shows up overnight rather than on the court, the Ventriq Sleep Nasal Strips are the right pick for bedtime, and plenty of players use both, a sport strip for matches and a sleep strip overnight. If you also play tennis, the same thinking applies, and I have covered that in Best Nasal Strips for Tennis. If you also play table tennis, see nasal strips for table tennis. If you also play squash, see nasal strips for squash. And if you are unsure which shape or size will actually fit your nose, see how to choose the right nasal strip.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are nasal strips allowed in padel?
Yes. A nasal strip is a mechanical breathing aid with no drug action, so it is not on any prohibited list and nothing in the rules of padel bans wearing one during a match.
Will a nasal strip fall off during a long or sweaty match?
A standard sleep strip often will, since it is not built to grip wet skin. A sport specific strip uses a stronger adhesive designed to hold through sweat, so it stays in place through a full match on an indoor or an outdoor court.
Where exactly should I place a nasal strip?
Position it across the fleshiest part of your nose, over the lower cartilage rather than the bone. If you feel the spring tension lifting your nostrils when you breathe in, it is in the right place. Sit it too high and it does nothing.
Do nasal strips help with long rallies in padel?
They help you keep breathing through your nose for longer during and between long rallies, which can make it easier to settle before the next point. They will not raise your aerobic ceiling, but reducing airway resistance can make your breathing feel more efficient at the pace padel demands.
Do I need a deviated septum for nasal strips to work?
No. Dynamic nasal valve collapse, where the side of the nose pulls inward under a heavier breathing load, is common even in people with a perfectly straight septum. A strip prevents that collapse and improves airflow either way.
Can a nasal strip help if I only play padel socially and not competitively?
Yes. The benefit comes from keeping the nasal valve open under effort, and that applies whether you are playing a relaxed social match or a competitive one. Anyone who notices they switch to mouth breathing during longer points may notice a difference.
