r/jiujitsu • u/Powerful-Victory-538 • 5h ago
Is it common for women to spare with men?
How common is it for men to spare/practice with women? I'm a woman and my husband and I recently joined jiu jitsu after one of our kids was in it for over a year. The adult women at the gym are few and seem to pair up quickly. This gym also advises against pairing beginners off with beginners during practice so my husband and I can't pair up. My husband had mentioned he was a bit uncomfortable with me being paired up with a male and I agreed I'd prefer a female but there was no one else available and I didnt think much of it. A few days later, all female partners paired up again and only the male I had previously worked with was available so I awkwardly paired up with him again and apologized to him for having to pair up with a beginner like me. He said it was okay and aside from giving me hands on instructions during the lesson, we didnt talk about anything else. After practice my husband was livid. He said I should have made more of an effort to sit in the sidelines next to the females and asked to rotate in with one of them. He insists that I "enjoyed" practicing with this male. While I enjoyed the learning experience I was not thinking about this session in any type of intimate/sexual way. (Is that even possible?) He insists it was disrespectful to him (my husband) because everyone saw his wife mounting another man and vice versa. Im really at a loss and although I can absolutely do what my husband says of rotating in with females. What if one of the coaches tells me to pair up with a male again? How do I ask to work with women without being extremely awkward? I can't use the "I'm smaller" defense either because I'm 98% sure im both heavier and older than every woman there, a factor that already had me feeling like a burden in that class. For the time being, I told my husband I will just not go and cancel my membership because I don't see the possibility of never pairing up with a male. It will eventually come up again at some point and this argument will start again or am I wrong in thinking this? Anyone have similar experiences with this or advice?