Kaitlyn Bristowe is a proud winner of Dancing With the Stars‘ coveted mirrorball trophy. But it didn’t come easy.
The former Bachelor and Bachelorette alum — as well as co-host of the latter program — recently stopped by Tori Spelling’s misSPELLING podcast, where she offered her fellow DWTS vet one word of retroactive advice: “I just would have said, don’t injure yourself. That was like my main focus was to stop getting injured all the time.”
Though Bristowe swept season 29 with pro partner Artem Chigvintsev, beating out celebrity contestants with competitive advantages like figure skater Johnny Weir and cheerleading coach Monica Aldama, she revealed that she’s “still suffering years later from cracked ribs and pulling a muscle that was under my ribs, and my tendonitis will flare up every time I wear heels now.”
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Spelling, who was eliminated first on the most recent season of DWTS, pointed out, “I mean, you won, so worth the injuries or no?”
Bristowe’s answer was a resounding “yes,” with the Canadian TV personality going so far as to declare, “I’ll do it again.”
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“It’s crazy because one of my girlfriends had won it from the season before,” Bristowe continued, referring to Hannah Brown, the winner of DWTS season 28 and the star of The Bachelorette season 15. “I was like, ‘Why did you not prepare me?’ And she was like, ‘I don’t think people should prepare them, because then they won’t do it.'”
Bristowe explained that “it would be scary to know how much work and injury you go through to get to the end. Like, it’s crazy to get to the end.”
Bristowe was transparent about the physical toll Dancing With the Stars took on her while filming season 29 back in 2020.
Early into the competition, Bristowe advised Chigvintsev and series producers that she may not be able to continue in the competition at all, having sustained an injury to her ankle. But she was able to rally, scoring 22/30 on a foxtrot that easily carried them through to the following week.
She’s also isn’t alone in discussing injury and ailment brought upon by the series’ tough production.
Marie Osmond fainted while dancing the samba with Jonathan Roberts on season 5’s “Latin Night,” but quickly recovered. Pro Kym Johnson wasn’t so lucky when her celebrity partner, former NFL star and coach Hines Ward dropped her on her head during a season 12 rehearsal. She was taken to a hospital for her injuries and eventually returned to the dance floor.
You can listen to Bristowe’s full interview on the misSPELLING podcast above.
Dancing With the Stars season 34 premieres live Sept. 16 on ABC and Disney+ and streams the next day on Hulu.
