Austin-based multi-hyphenate Christy Carlson Romano has been acting since she was a kid. She’s done television and stage and paused to attend college at Columbia in New York, where she met her now husband, a former Marine. She’s a podcaster and started a podcast network, a mom and an entrepreneur. She’s accustomed to pivoting and adapting, skills easily underestimated when she began competing on the current season of Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test alongside contestants like Denise Richards, Brody Jenner, soccer star Landon Donovan and Travis Kelce’s ex-girlfriend Kayla Nicole.
We caught up with Christy when she returned from filming in Whales, England for a chat about the show and what she has on deck for 2025.
When the opportunity to compete on Special Forces came up, did you have any hesitation?
I did have hesitation because I hadn’t worked out in a really long time. I asked my husband if it was a good idea and as my partner, what he thought I would get out of it spiritually. He thought it would be really character-building for me and thought it would be something I could add to my list of life experiences and really reflect on being female and 40 in the entertainment industry.
Had you previously watched the show?
I hadn’t previously watched the show, but I’d seen a lot of promotion for it and it seemed like a really crazy thing for actors to do.
Once committed, how long did you train before leaving to film?
I trained for three and a half weeks pretty much three times a day.
What did your training entail?
My training entailed swimming while wearing combat boots and clothing, holding my breath underwater as long as possible, running with a weighted vest and a weighted hunting backpack, getting screamed at by my husband as if he was the DS, holding squat positions for a really long time… already had the training of being a mom who never sleeps, so that wasn’t really hard for me to anticipate, but I swam quite a lot and it ended up helping me.
Your husband is a former Marine, what advice did he give you?
My husband told me my mental strength is my superpower, because you can build muscles, but you can’t build mental strength, so that’s what I was really focused on. It’s something I acquired being a child performer and pivoting so many times in my career that I feel like I had a mental resilience of never giving up. My husband being a Marine helped me understand the concept of adapting and overcoming because we’ve been together forever and through adversity, I’ve seen him adapt and overcome and I’ve been there adapting and overcoming as well. I think there’s a kindredness some of the veterans have to that of child performers.
What about the experience did you enjoy the most?
I think the bragging rights at having done it. I also enjoyed the promotion leading up to it because I knew what people are going to watch and it’s insane. The insane situations that we electively put ourselves in is wild and I think people will be shocked to see how I performed and approached each challenge.
What were your initial thoughts when you saw the other contestants?
We didn’t know who was going to be on until the morning the show starts. When we were in England to get processed to go to Whales they kept us separate and we weren’t allowed to leave our rooms. They do it in a way that’s very dramatic and when you see the other contestants either you know them, or you know of their face but they may not know you. I definitely fan-girled when I saw Denise Richards and Stephen Baldwin.
Is there anyone you bonded with on the show you keep in touch with?
I’m definitely bonded with most of the recruits, everybody kind of has a trauma bond together in that we all went for a singular experience that I think everyone received and it didn’t matter how many days you made it, you put yourself on the line and you pushed yourself to the edge.
Knowing what you know now, would you do it again?
I would do it again because I’d want to perform even better. I’m very proud of my performance and without giving anything away, I’d want to do it again.
What else are you excited about in 2025?
I’m finishing writing my memoir and I anticipate in the fall or shortly after we’re going to get a release date. There are a lot of things that need to be done in my next steps, but the thing about Austin is I get to live here and breathe into my creativity and grow into my next phases of life. I’ve changed a lot since I moved here in 2020. I went from your average youtuber with a cooking show to a podcaster to a partner at my own podcast company to now being a contestant on this extreme reality show. I truly don’t know what’s next for me, but what I love about living in Austin is that I know I have so much support. Austin has been such a supportive community for me, more so than anywhere I’ve ever lived. I’m really grateful for the support from my friends and I know they’re rooting for me, which in short is a celebration in itself.