Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev Balance 'Butterflies' and 'Weekly Check-Ins' to Keep Their Marriage Strong
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Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Artem Chigvintsev and Nikki Bella
Nearly six months after their romantic wedding in Paris, Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev have dedicated themselves to maintaining a lasting marriage.
Even though the two finally got their fairy-tale ending when they said "I do" last August, Bella exclusively tells PEOPLE that the couple recognizes they still must consciously put in the effort to nurture their relationship.
"My life coach was saying ... 'You should have weekly check-ins,'" says Bella, 39, while chatting about Thursday's premiere of the E! special Nikki Bella Says I Do. "She has told me how many marriages it has strengthened to have that, just weekly check-in on 'How are you? How are we? What's going on? What are you feeling? What do you like? What don't you like? What can we do better?' I think stuff that's really important."
In fact, Bella had a check-in with the Dancing With the Stars pro, 40, as recently as New Year's Eve.
"We knew we weren't going to go out that night, so we had a sitter for lunchtime. That was our New Year's celebration — we just checked in with each other," she explains. "Even at times when it can get heated, I feel like I understood him more. I was like, 'That's something I need to take with me' when I heard about the weekly check-ins."
She continues, "I think it's so important for a relationship to keep it strong and going. Because it also gives you the opportunity of even what you want for sexy time or fun time. It's not just about making the person better, telling them how they can be better. It's about everything in the relationship."
Brandon Hickman/E! ENTERTAINMENT
This approach has not limited the pair from enjoying a relationship filled with passion.
"We still get butterflies for each other," she says. "Our sex life is incredible. ... It is really good. It's good that we still get all giddy with each other, which is fun."
Another key element to keeping their relationship on track is making time for date nights, though doing so is not without its challenges. The duo has to balance setting aside special time with each other alongside caring for their 2-year-old son.
"It is tough with Matteo, date nights, because then you're relying on the nanny," explains Chigvintsev. "And then being new parents, it's like we always question 75 things and we always feel guilty. But the date nights are just going out for a good meal."
Adds Bella, "That, and then when Mateo goes down we like to open a bottle of wine, binge Love Island. That's our fun night."
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RELATED: Nikki Bella Says Exchanging Vows Was Her Favorite Moment from Parisian Wedding to Artem Chigvintsev
Bella and Chigvintsev's journey to the altar will be featured in the four-part E! special Nikki Bella Says I Do. Because fans of the former wrestler got to see many of Bella's most personal moments on her former Total Bellas series, she wants them to be apart of her wedding experience as well.
"My fans mean a lot to me, the Bella Army, the E! viewers that have just been a part of my journey from day one. They've been through so much with me, ups and downs, amazing moments, barrier-breaking moments, making history," she says. "To not give them the perfect ending, and what they've been behind me for and hoping for, I feel like I was cheating my fans."
"My fans have become my family. I'm definitely a person who recognizes that I'm only in the position and the place I'm at is because of my fans, because without them I wouldn't be here," she adds. "I felt like I would've been cheating them [by] not giving them this."
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Nikki Bella Says I Do airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on E!
