Casey Starchak Explains What Happened After Temptation Island Season 2

Thanks to the release of Temptation Island in the U.K., a new audience of people are getting to experience the highs and lows of some of the previous contestants. Specifically, Season 2 islander Casey Starchak, who chronicled his fitness and mental health journey following his immensely sad conclusion on Temptation Island.

RELATED: 'You Weren't Trustworthy': The Most Brutal Breakups On 'Temptation Island'
 
Fans of the show will no doubt remember Casey’s immense falling out with his now ex-girlfriend, Ashley. He later revealed that the conclusion of the season was just the beginning of his self-growth journey. As we await the premiere of a new season of Temptation Island and close out Mental Health Awareness Month, we thought it’d be a good time to take a look back at Casey’s journey both during and after the show. 

What happened to Casey Starchak? 

The short version is, Casey was cheated on by his girlfriend, Ashely, while on Temptation Island. However, the story is a bit more complicated than that. Casey mouthed off to the other single women in the house early on and said he would be “fine” if Ashely broke up with him. That was shown to her at a bonfire and she took that to mean their relationship was done. So, she thought nothing of engaging in a love triangle with Deac Conti and Ben Knobloch. Eventually, she settled into a comfortable romance with Ben and Casey had to watch her make out with him in bed at a bonfire of his own. He did not take it well.

Did Casey and Ashely stay together? 

Photo: USA Network

Undeterred by her moving on with another guy, Casey held out hope that they’d be able to stay together after the finale. In fact, he used the final bonfire to propose to Ashely, but the damage was done. She rejected his proposal and left the island with Ben. It was revealed at the reunion (which Casey did not attend) that Ben and Ashely broke up when she saw Casey again after the show and allegedly kissed him. However, the kiss was not enough to rekindle their relationship.

Casey’s fitness journey

Although it didn’t come up on the show, Casey had been a fitness buff for 12 years prior to his time on Temptation Island. However, the events of filming the show and the emotional turmoil it caused him made him lose some of his gains, his appetite and his motivation — heartbreak will do that to you. Two years ago, he took to YouTube in a lengthy video to describe what he did to get his life back on track after Temptation Island, specifically with regard to his mental health and fitness. 

Before being on the show, he said he had competed in physique shows and spent all of 2017 and 2018 bulking up. However, when he went to film Temptation Island for a month, his regular workout routine had to be put on the back burner. 

“That five weeks of filming Temptation Island was the most major setback I’ve ever seen for essentially anyone in fitness,” he says in the video. “I went from looking super big and shredded months before to looking like I didn’t even work out. There was no gym at the show, first of all. We had no weights, no gym, we had some bands and some yoga mats. There was no working out.”

He added: “Of course, if you are not working out for a month you’re going to lose a lot of your gains, a lot of your progress.”

How is Casey today? 

There was no secret that following his very public breakup, Casey was at a low point in his life. After realizing he needed to change things up, he got to work on bettering himself. He explains that the first thing he did was seek therapy. In fact, he advocates for everyone who is struggling to get into therapy immediately as a first step. Next, he began surrounding himself with people who made him feel fulfilled. Although he wasn’t yet ready for a relationship, he says he started making a point to hang out with friends every chance he got, even when he was exhausted. Finally, he took focused on his fitness by working with a coach who put him on a diet and exercise plan. 

Today, Casey feels like he’s in the best shape of his life and is even in a committed, long-term relationship with a new woman. He tries to live his life as proof that focusing on one's health, both physical and mental, are the two most important things someone can do even when they're at an immense low point in their life like he was following Season 2. 

Tune into Temptation Island Season 5 on June 14 on USA Network. Catch up on past seasons only on Peacock.