Naser Mohammadkhani celebrating his birthday in homeland

Athletes, their partners and relationship pros agree: Good communication is the essential ingredient for making these types of relationships work. That means talking about everything from what takes priority – a family event or a long run – during training to where the partner is going to meet you after the race to how the athlete is feeling after any given workout. “Every relationship involves two people, with two belief systems and two sets of priorities,” Miller says.