‘DWTS’ Contestant Says Show Is Hard on Spouses: Alexa PenaVega Says ‘It Is Incredibly Flirty’

Dancing With the Stars isn’t just tough on the celebrity dancers’ bodies, it can be tough on their relationships! Alexa PenaVega opened up about her time competing against husband Carlos PenaVega on Season 21 of the ABC dance competition in 2015 during former pro Cheryl Burke’s Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans podcast, revealing that it was a difficult time for their marriage.

The two actors, who tied the knot in 2014, competed separately alongside pros Mark Ballas and Witney Carson in Season 21, with Alexa and Ballas coming in sixth place and Carlos and Carson making it to fourth place before their elimination. Bindi Irwin and pro partner Derek Hough ultimately won the Mirrorball Trophy.

Burke sparked the discussion on the Monday, Nov. 4 episode of her podcast, asking Alexa if she had encountered any “body image issues” while competing on the show. While the Spy Kids star revealed that “surprisingly” she didn’t have any trouble with body image on Season 21, the show “brought up other issues” in her relationship.

“It was early in our marriage, and we literally said we don’t know how spouses do this show without doing it the way we did. So we fully understood the dynamics of the show,” Alexa admitted.

She continued, “Like, if Carlos was doing this and I was watching this girl dance with him all close and the rehearsals or whatever, it would be so hard. And for Carlos, at that season of his life, he was such a jealous man that even though he understood the dynamic, it was still hard for him. And you know how it is – it is incredibly flirty.”

From the start, Alexa and Carlos “set big boundaries” for themselves and their partners, which wasn’t easy to do. “You know how it’s like super flirty backstage and whatever,” the Sleepover star said. “So, I love Mark. We got along great. But, like, if it was ever flirty, I’d just be, like, ‘I don’t do that.’ I was a little mean, but it was only to set good boundaries. And then we figured it out and we ended up having a really great partnership.”

She continued, “But I know it was really kind of rocky for everybody because when we went on the show, we literally said, ‘Look, we’re a married couple. You guys are our partners, and we are so excited to team up with you, but that doesn’t mean we ditch our marriage and this becomes our number one. Our marriage is still first.’”

Alexa clarified that neither she nor her husband had issues with their partners when it came to those boundaries, putting the blame “more on the producers,” who she claimed were “trying to make it, like, ‘Alexa only cares about her husband. She doesn’t care about the competition at all.’”

While the competition did take its toll on the couple at the time, ultimately, Alexa had a great experience overall. “The show is just so fun to watch, and it feels good. Like, who doesn’t love a good feel-good story where they’re not great at dancing, but look at how far they’ve come,” she said. “Like, that’s awesome. I love the premise of it. It’s just the behind the scenes can be tough, but it was as difficult as it was fun because there were really, really high highs.”