Alexa PenaVega says Dancing With the Stars is hard on spouses: 'It is incredibly flirty'

Dancing With the Stars can be difficult for a young marriage. Just ask Alexa and Carlos PenaVega.

Alexa recently dished about her time on the show and got particularly candid about the impact it had on her relationship with her husband. The two actors, who wed in 2014, both competed separately on Dancing With the Stars season 21 in 2015.

The topic came up when Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans podcast host Cheryl Burke asked Alexa if doing the competitive dancing show brought up any "body image issues" for her.  

"Surprisingly, it did not," Alexa told Burke, before adding that it "brought up other issues" instead. Specifically, she said, "It was early in our marriage, and we literally said [to each other that] 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."

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."

Alexa explained that right off the bat they decided to "set big boundaries" for themselves and their pro partners, Witney Carson and Mark Ballas, which was "super hard" for everyone on the show.

"You know how it's like super flirty backstage and whatever," Alexa told Burke. "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."

The Spy Kids actress 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 No. 1. Our marriage is still first.'"

Alexa was quick to clarify, however, that her and Carlos had no issues with their partners when it came to their boundaries, but it was "more the producers" who were "trying to make it, like, 'Alexa only cares about her husband. She doesn't care about the competition at all.'"

Alexa explained that trying to balance all the manufactured drama with a new marriage took a toll on her, but ultimately she had a positive takeaway from her time on the show. "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. 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," she said.

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Alexa and Ballas would go on to finish in sixth place in season 21, while Carlos and Carson made it to fourth place. Conservationist and TV star Bindi Irwin and pro partner Derek Hough ultimately won the Mirrorball Trophy.