'The Bachelor' 's Sean Lowe Says There Were 'Growing Pains' Early in His Marriage with Catherine Lowe

Sean and Catherine Lowe have built a lasting marriage together after The Bachelor, but they've also endured some bumps along the way.

During an appearance on the Unzipped podcast on Wednesday, the Bachelor Nation duo spoke to co-hosts Shenae Grimes-Beech and AnnaLynne McCord about the challenges they faced early into their marriage.

"In the beginning of our marriage, we had growing pains, which for those newlyweds out there who are listening and like maybe it's a little rocky, that's normal. That's what we've come to find out," Sean, 37, said. "There was a bit of pressure because we did a lot of public appearances and things like that. And you have to put on a brave face, even though maybe 30 minutes prior we just got into a ugly spat at home."

Sean continued, "We've grown and [Catherine] has tried so hard to just be like the best wife possible. She's an incredible mother and, hopefully, I've grown up a little bit too in our marriage. Those rocky times that we experienced the first year or two, thankfully we don't experience that too often anymore."

One factor that has helped the pair improve their marriage over time was learning to understand each other's love languages.

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"He's a word of affirmation guy. So, like, whenever he's having a hard day, just being there and saying something that, he's doing a good job or 'I get it,' empathizing with him," Catherine, 35, said while Sean added, "She loves to be validated. It took me a long time to figure this out instead of solving her problems, which most guys I think are problem solvers."

Sean additionally noted that "the key" to forging a successful marriage is being with someone who is your best friend.

"If you get caught up and looks or like the romance, whichever one, anyone who's married knows romance is going to ebb and flow. It's not always going to be hot and heavy, but you always want to be with your best friends," he said. "So our favorite time of the day — no offense to our kids — is when we put them to sleep and we get two hours to just hang out on the couch together and watch our favorite TV shows.

"She's my best friend, that's what I want to be doing with those two hours that I have alone," he added.

Sean and Catherine got engaged during his season of The Bachelor, which aired in 2013. The following year, the couple tied the knot in a televised wedding ceremony.

Now, the pair share three children: sons Samuel, 4, and Isaiah, 3, and daughter Mia, 1.

Last November, Catherine spoke with PEOPLE exclusively about instilling good values into her kids at a young age.

"You have to be on point teaching your children, but you also have to do it yourself because they're going to mirror you," she said at the time. "Sean and I are constantly trying to check ourselves. We need a reminder that, 'This is my priority; I want my children to be kind, I want my children to be respectful,' and it really does start with the parents."