for nearly a year after their marriage gwyneth paltrow and her husband brad falchuk lived apart in separate homes to keep things fresh as per the advice of her intimacy teacher gwyn and her husband lived in the same house four nights a week while the rest of the three nights brad lived in his own house close to the actress oh all my married friends say that the way we live sounds ideal and we shouldnt change a thing gwyn said of her unconventional living arrangement in an interview much like gwyn several couples today are experimenting with a new relationship format living apart together lat to keep the spark alive in a relationship to pursue their hobbies or just enjoy some metime according to nyu graduate ambika shahani who works in mumbai as an investment banker and takes two days off in a relationship the practice has allowed her to breathe staying together all the time can be very overwhelming some days you dont feel like getting up in the morning but your partner is a gym freak and forces you to workout there are days i feel like watching my kind of shows and veg out in front of tv with a pizza and he wants to go out with friends there are days you want to come home and dont feel like talking at all these are the things we can do in break days and present our best selves in a relationship my boyfriend and i are happiest this way consent is very important for such relationships a recently conducted worldwide relationship survey by the university of bradford reveals that more and more couples are opting for off days in a relationship apart from lat terms like weekday couple two days off couple are defining modern relationships today heres a look at the why and how of itreasons why couples want days off to keep the spark alive virtually every relationship starts out the same way you cant keep your hands off each other you get excited at the mere thought of them you love all of the same things and you never have disagreements then suddenly it all changes you no longer want to have sex every day you crave space and you realise that not everything is perfect before a couple reaches this point a me time break in a relationship can save the couple and help keep the spark alive says dr shalini malhotra a relationship expert based out of mumbai for me time londonbased psychotherapist and broadcaster lucy beresford author of the book happy relationships thinks taking a day or two off in a relationship allows for something called individuation some people might like a calm space to go to or a little meditation room yoga write a book poetry or paint but presumably some have more mundane wishes such as space where lids are replaced on bottles and jars and the toilet is flushed the house is