How Toxic Gymnastic Culture Helped this Christian Mom Take on the World’s Toughest Test

Published: November 10, 2025

Shawn Johnson, Andrew East — NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JANUARY 30: (L-R) Andrew East and Shawn Johnson attend the The American Heart Association’s Red Dress Collection Concert 2025 on January 30, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for The American Heart Association)

By Mallory Mattingly

Former Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson East got real about how her gymnastics career affected her ability to show emotion.

“My entire career was fear-based,” Johnson East, 33, said in a new episode of SPECIAL FORCES: WORLD’S TOUGHEST TEST. “I had a lot of people very high up telling me that I was worthless and not wanting to see me succeed in gymnastics, who controlled my fate, and if I showed emotion, I was cut.”

“The only emotion you could ever show was a smile, but if you did that while lined up, you were no longer on the National team,” she added.

As Johnson East became attached to the sport, she learned to “shut off all emotion,” something she had to navigate on this season of SPECIAL FORCES.

“I think that was part of the reason why I was scared going into this, [I] was like, what would that bring out in me?” she wondered.

Johnson East also got candid about the mental health battles she struggled with during her time in gymnastics.

“I lost my identity for a long time,” she said. This ultimately led to depression and “obsessive behavior such as past eating disorders,” PEOPLE reported.

“As a 12-year-old, the only way I really understood how to achieve that [body] was to eat less and restrict myself. I remember kind of obsessing over it,” she admitted. “I went as far as literally not eating any carbs. I wouldn’t allow myself to eat a single noodle of soup. It got to the point where my body was like, shutting down.”

SPECIAL FORCES: WORLD’S TOUGHEST TEST gives celebrities and opportunity to “take on demanding training led by an elite team of ex-Special Forces operatives.”

Johnson East shared a clip of her time on SPECIAL FORCES. In the clip, the former gymnast had to fight fellow contestant Brianna LaPaglia.

“Hahahaha well…. never thought I’d get my face beat in on national television but here we are. That was a thrill. @jarrod_houston I think it’s time I learn how to fight 😂😂😂. @realityclubfox Also, @briannalapaglia GIRL, don’t feel bad! You better feel PROUD! You crushed that challenge hahaha still love you!” Johnson East wrote in the caption of the post.