Articles by Rick Faye
Drills >>
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A Brief Biography: Guro Dan Inosanto >>
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The MKG Menu and Jeet Kune Do: >>

Articles by Jon Baklund
Private lessons >>
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Having fun while training. >>
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Physical, Mental, & Spiritual income from the martial arts. >>

Articles by Paul Boyajian
Accelerating Toward Your Goals: Learning in the Martial Arts Studio >>

Articles by Bob Carver
Giving Back >>

Articles by Roy Harris
What Makes a Good Instructor? >>

Articles by Sarah Kennedy
Training With Your Significant Other >>
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Curing Depression With Muay Thai >>

Articles by Peter Kwong
It's All In The Detail >>

Articles by Roy Liang
Teaching and Training Young (4 to ~7 yrs) Kids in the martial arts. >>

Articles by Tim Mousel
The Thaiboxing Workout: A Scientific Approach >>
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The Making of a True Martial Arts Master >>

Articles by Diana Rathborne
Self Defense Self Assessment for the Martial Arts Instructor >>
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Personal Safety For Women >>
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Mind Over Matter >>
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Competing With Your Instructor >>
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Basic Truths >>
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Muay Thai in Minneapolis, Minnesota with Kuhn Kru Rick Faye >>
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Be Safe - Be strong: Simple self defense tips >>

Articles by Rudy Rogers
Warriors and the Weed >>
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Progressive P.C.T. >>
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Ram Muay: Thai Boxing's Calm Before the Storm >>
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Martial Arts and Your Health: An Interview with Scott Schmaltz >>

Articles by Scott Schmaltz
Overcoming Fitness Plateaus >>
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Genetically Modified Foods >>
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Misconceptions of IBS >>
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Toxins In Meat >>

Articles by Anthony Sell
Building rapport with your students - 5 Sure-fire ways to improve your teaching skills >>
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Infusion-based Learning - Making the most out of your seminar experiences >>
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Lessons from NAGA - Why competition is an Important Experience. >>
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The Wisconsin Martial Arts Camp Experience >>
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Growth and Expectation in the Martial Arts >>

Training with your mate can be richly rewarding, but it can also be pretty frustrating. Early on in my martial arts training, I discovered that I was far more likely to become a martial arts “princess” when I was training with my husband Trevor (and vice versa), than when I trained with people I didn’t know as well. For years, I avoided Trevor when it was time to pick partners. One too many bickering sessions had made class unpleasant and unproductive for us, and I was determined not to let it happen again. However, as I gained more experience, I began to see my home time with Trevor as a valuable training resource. I’ve watched many other couples, as well as close friends, have this same problem at our gym. This has been especially true with people who don’t like to train with anyone but each other. It has always surprised me that anyone would choose this scenario, considering my own experience. I would so much rather work with someone who is new than spend my training time arguing or being upset! When you know someone well, you know what really gets to them -- and while this may be a useful source of inspiration (especially in muay thai), most of the time it just gets in the way. It is far too easy to take things personally with your mate or close friend. I don’t know how many times Trevor has said to me (when I’ve accidentally whacked him), “Ow...can’t you be more careful? Quit trying to hurt me.” This is pretty funny, considering the amount of punishment he’s willing to take from other people without saying anything about it! These experiences have taught me two things. First, I don’t spar with Trevor (except for occasional knife sparring), nor do I train muay thai with him. For those of you that know Trevor, you’ll understand why I don’t like kicking thai pads with him (he’s 6’ 7“). Mostly, however, I’ve found that we are far too competitive and sensitive with each other to train effectively in these areas. Second, I try to train with other people as much as possible, and save my time with Trevor for homework. The ability to train with a variety of people is incredibly valuable, and it is one of the things I like the most about MKG. All that aside, I have to say it is a blessing to live and be in love with a fellow martial artist. Nobody’s jealous when I spend Valentine’s Day weekend at an Inosanto seminar. There’s always someone to appreciate my accomplishments and failures and discoveries. We are a source of support and inspiration for each other, and neither of us can slack off for very long. Best of all, we are both happy and healthy as long as we keep training, and this has made for a rich and enduring relationship. To all the other couples training together out there, I say: learn to train together regularly, but don’t become dependent on each other. Figure out what areas of training are difficult for you as partners, and find other people to train with in these areas. Go to class by yourself. Have your own interests, and develop your own strengths and weaknesses at your own pace. Use your partner’s skills to help improve your own, but don’t worry about being better (or worse) than them. Remember, although you are in this together, you are each on your own path. That’s good relationship advice as well!