Chris Soules Reveals Post-‘Dancing With The Stars’ Plans

Chris Soules has been a staple on ABC’s Monday night line up for several months now, first as the “Bachelor,” and now as a celebrity contestant on Dancing With the Stars. The Iowa farmer, who proposed to Whitney Bischoff in The Bachelor season finale, revealed to Time Monday what he plans to do once his television stardom comes to an end.

“Once I’m done with ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ I am headed straight back to Iowa. Hopefully I’m here for a while, and have a nice long run on ‘Dancing’ before heading back to Iowa and doing what I do.”

Soules’ loyalty to his community and profession was a central element of his Bachelor season, as he was clear about his intent to remain in his small town even after the cameras went away. His official website supports the farming industry with its prominent quote.

“I am proud to share and promote the American farmers’ story. It is part of my life, and it is a narrative I am honored to tell.”

The length of Soules’ run on DWTS depends on judges’ scores and viewer votes. CarterMatt came up with its own assessment of how the rest of the season will go, and predicts Chris and his partner, reigning champion Witney Carson, will end up in seventh place with gymnast Nastia Liukin and pro Derek Hough taking home the mirror ball trophy. The blog would have put Chris and Witney further back in the pack, had they not pulled off a comeback performance on week three of the program.

Soules was at a disadvantage coming into the show, as he told Time he had less time to rehearse than did the other contestants because of the overlap with his Bachelor commitments. Producers of Dancing With the Stars approached him a few weeks before the finale of The Bachelor aired. Soules credits Carson with helping him to pull off some solid performances.

“When I first started, Witney [Carson] didn’t know if I was going to be able to get there! But after a few days of training, it started to click. It’s really challenging. And those professionals make it look so easy. It’s just incredible the way they make their bodies move. When I watch them during the live show, I just don’t know how they do it.”

Monday night Chris and Witney and other Dancing With the Stars contestants will tell the story of their Most Memorable Year in dance. The program airs at 8 p.m. eastern and pacific.

[Chris Soules image courtesy of Getty]