life with a fighter
WHEN THERE ARE TWO FIGHTERS IN THE HOUSE
No Ragrets UNCUT · Life outside the ring
When your husband is a fighter, life already revolves around Muay Thai more than most people's probably does.
When you're both fighters, it gets a little ridiculous.
LIFE REVOLVES AROUND TRAINING
Our weeks are basically built around training. What time we're leaving for the gym, what we're eating before training, what we're eating after training, who's sore, who's injured, who needs their gear washed and whether either of us actually has the energy to do anything once we get home.
And that's when neither of us has a fight booked.
Throw a fight camp into the mix and everything goes up another level.
THE FOOD
There is so much meal prep.
Calories get logged, food gets weighed and suddenly you're having conversations about carbohydrates that would bore absolutely anyone else to death.
The worst part is when Mark has more calories to play with than I do.
Nothing humbles you quite like sitting down with your carefully weighed little dinner while your husband is across from you with a plate about three times the size.
And no, I don't ask if I can have some of his.
I just stare at it.
WHEN ONE OF US IS IN CAMP
When one of us has a fight coming up, the other pretty naturally falls into support mode.
There are extra training sessions, sore bodies, early mornings, late nights, meal prep, weight checks and eventually the fun that is fight week.
You learn pretty quickly when someone needs encouragement and when they probably just need to be left alone and fed whatever amount of food they're currently allowed to have.
There's also something really nice about having someone at home who actually understands it.
You don't have to explain why you're tired after training or why you're going to the gym again. They understand why a fight that lasts nine minutes can take weeks of preparation.
They've done it too.
WHEN WE'RE BOTH IN CAMP
We've also experienced both being in fight camp at the same time.
Would not recommend.
In theory, it sounds great. You're training together, eating well together, keeping each other accountable and working towards the same thing.
In reality, you've got two tired, hungry people training constantly and trying to make weight living under the same roof.
We've also fought on the same card before and learnt that we actually much prefer not doing that.
That's not to say we wouldn't do it again though. If the opportunity came up for both of us to fight on the same show, we'd absolutely take it. It's pretty special getting to share a fight card with your husband, even if it makes the night a little more chaotic.
Normally, one of us gets to be there properly for the other. Help with the little things, be in the corner, make sure everything is organised and actually focus on their fight.
When you're both fighting, you're trying to do all of that while also preparing yourself to get in the ring.
It's a lot.
But we'd probably still say yes.
WATCHING EACH OTHER FIGHT
Being the person outside the ring is almost its own challenge.
When I'm fighting, I have something to do. I'm focused on what's happening in front of me.
Watching Mark fight means I have absolutely no control over what happens once that bell rings.
And he gets the same experience watching me.
There's a strange side to loving someone who fights. You know exactly what they've put themselves through to get there. You've watched the camp, the hard sessions, the injuries, the weight cut and everything else that came before fight night.
Then eventually you have to stand there and watch them fight someone.
Completely normal relationship behaviour.
THE GOOD PART
As much as Muay Thai takes over our lives sometimes, I wouldn't really want it any other way.
We get to train together, travel to fight shows together, corner each other, celebrate the wins together and understand the harder parts without having to explain them.
We've both seen each other exhausted, injured, hungry, nervous and probably not particularly pleasant to live with.
But we've also watched each other do things most people will never experience.
Muay Thai is something we genuinely share.
It's part of our relationship, our weekends, our holidays, our friendships and a ridiculous amount of our conversations.
Our house might revolve around training schedules, sweaty clothes, meal prep containers and fight dates more than your average household.
But that's life with a fighter.
Or in our case, two of them.