'Dancing With the Stars' celeb Debbie Gibson calls time on show 'springboard' for her life

— -- The competition on "Dancing With the Stars" heated up in the ballroom for Latin night on Tuesday, but one couple's moves weren't enough to keep them in the contest.

Singer Debbie Gibson and her pro partner, Alan Bersten, were eliminated after their Argentine tango, but she told "GMA" the short-lived experience inspired her.

"As brief as the journey was on the show, it was profound and it's now a springboard for the rest of my life," Gibson said.

The pop star explained that being on "Dancing" helped strengthen her physically since experiencing health issues that had previously held her back.

"I've been through some health challenges in the past few years and I wasn't getting better in my house, laying [around] the house and going to practitioners," she said. "I said I need to get the inspiration and the joy back in my life ... I've reacquainted with my body and my strength again and it's been a blast."

Bersten, a first-time "DWTS" full-season pro partner, said he felt he and Gibson left the ballroom right as they were hitting their stride.

"It was incredible, and I had the best partner. We had such a great time together, and it felt good to leave on a high note," he said.

"It was bittersweet, obviously, because we were steadily progressing ... You've just got to keep smiling, keep dancing and move on. It did feel great, though, to go out on a high note and win our best scores," Gibson added.

Judges Scores:

Frankie Muniz and Witney Carson, cha cha: 25
Lindsey Stirling and Mark Ballas, salsa: 24
Jordan Fisher and Lindsay Arnold, samba: 24
Vanessa Lachey and Maksim Chmerkovskiy, salsa: 23
Sasha Pieterse and Gleb Savchenko, samba: 22
Drew Scott and Emma Slater, rumba: 21
Debbie Gibson and Alan Bersten, Argentine tango: 21
Victoria Arlen and Val Chmerkovskiy: rumba: 20
Terrell Owens and Cheryl Burke, samba: 19
Nick Lachey and Peta Murgatroyd, Argentine tango: 19
Derek Fisher and Sharna Burgess, paso doble: 19
Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev, samba: 18

"Dancing With the Stars" returns next Monday for "A night of guilty pleasures" at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.