There are plenty of things you can do to spice up your sex life, even if you've been with your partner for a long time. But you don't need to buy fancy sex toys or to contort your body to make things extra streamy. All you need is a break from how you and your partner usually interact. And the best way to do that? Embracing some out-there role play ideas.
Role play is basically a vacation from your everyday lives without having to go anywhere. It can be an opportunity to re-write your own sexual history, enact a long-held fantasy, or simply be sexual in a way that is distinctly different from your typical persona. If you can get over an expected bit of initial awkwardness, role playing might just lead to the best sex you've ever had.
And as sex therapist Dulcinea Pitagora points out, engaging in erotic role play in a mindful way can do much more than fuel to the fire in your loins. “The type of communication and trust involved in releasing one’s everyday self to explore within the context of role play can enhance bonding and intimacy between partners,” she says. Plus, the sexual creativity, excitement, and intensity that comes with sharing your role play ideas and then acting on them can flow over into other types of interactions.
Before the Games Begin
Before engaging in any sort of role play, you and your partner have to have a serious conversation, Pitagora explains. That's when you negotiate the roles, find common interests, establish boundaries, and set soft and hard limits. Both parties must consent to every aspect of the scene and the roles you'll be taking on. You should also establish safe words or gestures that will slow or stop the scene and make sure they're crystal clear.
This process doesn't only define the roles and interaction of that particular sex scene you're creating; it also helps foster a sense of collaboration that can deepen your connection and intimacy outside of the bedroom.
The Aftershow
What happens after sex is referred to as “aftercare,” Pitagora says—and it's an equally collaborative process. “Aftercare can involve deconstructing the scene and what worked and didn’t work, or cuddling, snacking, Netflix & chilling, making out, basically whatever all parties agree helps them get back into their everyday headspace,” Pitagora says.
If you’re interested in the idea of stepping outside of the box in the bedroom, we’re here to help you get started. Check out these 40 role play ideas that go beyond the norm. And if you want some more sex-spiration, check out these 30 Sex Stories So Hot They’re Better Than Foreplay.
Switch It Up
Is one of you the more dominant partner in your relationship, while the other is more submissive? A great intro to role play that doesn’t entail much in the way of theatrics is to explore that dynamic.
Pitagora says that once you establish your roles, you can either exaggerate those pre-existing dynamics in the relationship, or you can reverse them. "[It] can simply be about who is going to be dominant and who is going to be submissive, or perhaps partners will switch roles at some point during the scene,” Pitagora explains.
Special Delivery
If you don't feel like cooking tonight and want to explore a new role play idea, this is your ideal scenario. Let's say you order a meat lover’s pizza and you thought you had a $20 bill in your pocket. But when the sexy pizza delivery person arrives, it's nowhere to be found. You ask if you can make it up to them another way, and well... you get the idea.
Under Your Spell
Or what about a role play scene in which there's the hypnotist and the hypnotized? The latter is no longer in control of his or her actions. Even though the hypnotized party is just pretending to be under the hypnotist’s power, playing out this scenario is perfect for those looking to push their own personal boundaries and to potentially get over inhibitions—even if temporarily.
You're My Inspiration
Indulge your artistic side by having your partner come into the room, disrobing, and posing as a model for you. As you gaze upon your newfound muse, you faithfully draw, paint, or capture their visage in whatever way moves you. Just make sure it moves you to the bedroom.
Strangers in the Night
If you want a sexy fresh start with your partner, simply pretend you’ve never met them before. “This type of role play can involve a pick up in a bar, or an online hookup,” says Pitagora. She notes that playing a stranger or anonymous person allows for a creative exploration of sexual identity and preferences. You also have to use your skills of seduction to flirt and explore your partner with fresh eyes.
In his book 123 Frisky Fantasies & Erotic Roleplay Ideas,Michael Kortekaas suggests modifying your behavior to seem like someone else and dressing in clothes your partner hasn’t seen you in before to add to the allusion.
Hit the Stacks
You find yourself browsing a seldom visited section of your local library, and suddenly, you spot someone who seems to be into what you're into. No one is likely to see you two, but the trick will be getting each other off in near silence.
Kortekaas details no fewer than nine library-based role play scenarios in his book and suggests academic ensembles to get into the role. So put your hair up with a pencil and hit the stacks.
Excuse Me, Officer
“Do you know why I pulled you over?” a cop asks as you roll down your window. Of course you do, but you also know this cop is hot. Whatever you have to do to help them see past your minor infraction, you'll do it.
Your Biggest Fan
It must be fun to be a rock star and have total strangers fawning all over you. Get a taste of it by creating a role play scenario in which you're a music legend yourself. You've just come off stage and you're looking to decompress with a starstruck admirer who's caught your eye.
Teach Me Everything You Know
Even if you and your partner have both been around the block, assume the roles of someone who is sexually inexperienced and someone who has some special techniques to share. Kortekaas says that this scenario is an opportunity to “rewrite your sexual history and recapture (or create) the exciting thrill of first-time sex over and over again.”
Hate to Love You
Hate sex can be immensely gratifying, but you don’t have to wait until your partner has seriously irritated you—or vice versa—to have it. Just get some mileage out of a past transgression or pretend that they’re someone else that you genuinely loathe and then have fun making up.
Cheaters Sometimes Prosper
Meet your partner in an unfamiliar place, like a hotel, and try to disguise yourself. Then, you can have a lot of fun taking off that wig and those sunglasses. This role play scenario "creates a feeling of the forbidden and taboo and simulates a dangerous situation in which getting caught could have dire consequences,” says Pitagora.
Past Due
Every time your landlord comes over to fix something, there's some serious flirting going on. So, you decide to go over to their apartment and make the move. This sexual encounter is long overdue.
Business & Pleasure
One of you is a sex worker and the other is the client who's hired this person for the night. Put the money on the nightstand and wait for the doorbell to ring. If you’re the sex worker, list what’s on offer and what’s not. If you’re the client, set out what you’d like to happen. Once you’ve done the negotiating, you can have sex that’s entirely transactional.
Seriously Hot Yoga
While your downward dog is decent, your yoga instructor is eager to give you a thorough adjustment. “The stage is set for physical interaction, the touching of bodies, as well as a certain amount of physical rigor,” says Pitagora. “This, like many role plays, has the potential for humor incorporated with creative seduction. And there is nothing wrong with laughing during sex because sex can be hilarious and sexy at the same time.”
Put Your Differences Aside
Let's say you're an activist, protesting a certain politician's decision or lack of action. The tension couldn't be higher, but you're also oddly attracted to this person you fundamentally disagree with. And let's face it, after picketing, you need a release.
“Scenes like this can provide a stress release in acting out fantasies based on real-life events, but with desired outcomes that can be controlled, to temporarily suspend the often uncontrollable outcomes of real life,” says Pitagora.
The Spy Who Shagged Me
Trying to get your partner to reveal the truth doesn't have to be a fight—it can actually be sexy. Create a role play scenario in which one of you is a spy and the other is interrogating them, a la Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
"A scene like this will appeal to those who enjoy creative back storylines," says Pitagora, adding that there can also be elements of creative seduction and some turning of the tables with this role play idea.
Don't Wake the Kids
You're a single parent on the dating scene and you've hired someone to watch your kids for the night. After another online meet-up gone wrong, you come home to find the kids fast asleep and the nanny is looking good. And with a little wine in you, you're ready to make a move.
Feeling Feral
Get in touch with your basic instincts and imagine copulating like wild beasts. This could be a great one to enact if you happen to find yourselves alone in the woods.
I'm A Professional
Pretending you're both porn performers doing a scene can give you the opportunity to say all those corny porn lines and then engage in the sort of sex positions that have become porn mainstays. If you have trouble thinking of specifics, load up a clip you're both into and act out what’s happening on screen.
Long-Distance Lovin'
Absence makes the heart grow fonder, so why not try some long-distance sex? Get into the mindset of being on other sides of the world by heading to different rooms in the house. Then have a steamy FaceTime or Skype session that's fueled by trumped-up feelings of yearning. Releasing that tension will feel oh so good.
May-December Romance
“Interestingly, many people engage in aspects of age play role plays without knowing it, such as when calling a partner ‘daddy,’” says Pitagora. With this role play idea, the constraints of social taboo are pushed by people pretending to have a much wider age gap than they do.
The Brains & The Brawn
The hottest football player or cheerleader has a paper due that they're entirely ill-equipped to write. The straight-A student offers to help them out. Soon, they realize they have some serious chemistry and those nerdy glasses are coming off, along with everything else.
Fasten Your Seatbelt
You’ve been flirting with the flight attendant since you boarded. Now that most of the other passengers are asleep on this long, overnight, transatlantic flight, it’s time to see just how friendly the skies can be. And in this scenario, you're not confined to the minuscule square footage that airplane sex usually entails.
In the Name of Science
One of you is conducting important research on sexual response and recording the kinds of stimuli that provoke the strongest reactions. The other is a study subject who just has to submit to the rigors of science.
A Serious Workout
We know why you're flexing at the gym. You have your eye on your trainer, who looks so good making you sweat. Perhaps it's time you hit the showers together.
Han Isn't Solo This Time
Whether it's a scene from Harry Potter, Star Wars, or Titanic, most of us know our favorite movies by heart, so this is another good role play idea for those who don't feel comfortable thinking on the fly.
“Those who really get turned on by science fiction and fantasy can let their sexual creativity run wild by playing the roles of their favorite movie characters and turning their favorite scenes into sex scenes,” says Pitagora. This type of scene can also involve cosplay, where players put extra energy into dressing the part, or fan fiction, where they act out a scene they wish happened onscreen.
Rebel, Rebel
One of you is the scion of the country club set. The other is a bad kid who wants to lead him or her astray. If you like John Hughes' movies, this is an idea you’ll be able to get behind.
Cyborg Bang
Engage in a bit of futurism and imagine that one of you is a sexy android programmed for pleasure while the other is someone who’d prefer to get busy with an android than with a fellow human being. We get it.
Wrestlemania
Big WWE fans? Then pretend to be two wrestlers trying to pin each other down. “This type of role play works well for those who enjoy reciprocal physical intensity in scenes, and can incorporate ... a sense of competition among peers,” says Pitagora. “As with all role plays, it’s important for all players to be aware of their partners' vulnerabilities and to remember safe words.”
Wax Off...
Sure, you can get unwanted body hair waxed or lasered, but if you want to get smooth downstairs in a way that's sensual and maybe even less painful, one of you could give the other a shave that’s up close and personal.
Bite Me
Vampirism has the potential to involve an intersection of many different role play ideas. Whether it's power dynamics, a fantasy/science fiction backdrop, pain and discipline, or fear play that you're into, feel free to sink your teeth into Dracula's world.
Swinging for the Fences
Even if you’re not ready to do this in real life, you can still get a taste of the excitement of a super '70s key party via role play. To get into the idea of your partner being with someone else, wear something they’ve never seen before or try out a new scent.
The Pat Down
One of you is a security officer. The other is a small-time smuggler who's hiding some contraband. There are only a few places this illicit substance can be hidden, but the officer will stop at nothing to find it.
Putting On a Show
If you're into the idea of having sex in public, pretend you have an audience. You might just find that you like being egged on by a crowd.
Out of this World
According to Pitagora, an alien abduction scene "taps into a variety of role play aspects, such as power dynamics, the science fiction/fantasy backdrop, unconventional medical experimentations, and of course, there can always be anal play." It's outer space. Anything goes.
Down Payment
The real estate agent that's showing you around a place you’re thinking of buying is even sexier in person than they look on their billboard. There are tons of beds around, so let's see if you can close this deal.
Double Trouble
Imagine that your partner was separated at birth from their identical twin. They look the same, sound the same, and even smell the same. But they sure don't act the same. The newly-discovered twin is the opposite of your partner in some exciting ways—and with role play, you can explore them all.
Rescue Me
The enduring role play about firefighters seems to work for a lot of people. After all, firefighters have a reputation of being sexy and brave. And is there anything more romantic than someone literally saving you or you risking your life for someone?
Heathenistic
In his book, Kortekaas establishes a scenario in which one partner plays the part of a Pagan priest or priestess who has a reputation in the village for helping people out with their sexual problems. Kortekaas explains that playing out this scene in an exotically-styled room that's lit with aromatic candles will help set the mood.
King Me
Here's a fun period role play idea: You're an aristocrat and your partner is paid to wait on you hand and foot. Whether it's disrobing you or giving you a bath, your servant sees a lot and maybe, they like what they see. So, why not extend bath time today? And for more ways to maximize the pleasure, try out these 30 Sizzling New Sex Games Every Couple Should Play.
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