Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindsey Steinholt.
Hi Lindsey, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
The short story is: I’m an attorney turned fitness coach. The long story is a little more nuanced…So, here it goes:
After practicing law for seven years, I decided it was not what I saw myself doing for the rest of my life. I had always been interested in health and fitness from the standpoint of maintaining a certain aesthetic appearance. I thought, why not help others do the same? I initially obtained my Nutrition Coach certification through the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) in 2021, thinking I would help people with their nutrition for the purpose of “health,” but mostly weight loss. However, something just didn’t feel quite right. I didn’t feel right in my relationship with food or my body. Today, I know that I demonstrated disordered eating behaviors and had an unhealthy relationship with food, exercise, and my body. At the time, I was unlearning a lot of these behaviors and ways of thinking – mostly, thanks to social media and the body positive movement.
Around the same time, I began to dive back into resistance training (after training for my first half-marathon in 2020). At one point, I remember working out in my garage and having a neighbor come up to me and ask if I ran classes – as in, did I train or coach other people? The thought had never really crossed my mind before. However, over time, as I grappled with my feelings around nutrition, body image, health, and body size, I began to consider whether pursuing a fitness credential was the better option for me. I didn’t feel confident coaching people on their nutrition if I wasn’t certain about my values. This ultimately led me to obtain my Personal Trainer certification through NASM in May 2022.
At this point, I knew I wanted to operate my own business, but I also knew I needed to start somewhere. So, I began coaching at a local commercial gym in June 2022. I remained there until November and decided to launch my business in January 2023 – I called it Made for Movement. Not only do I love alliterations and M4M has a nice ring to it (in my opinion!), but I felt like it resonated with how I felt (and still feel) about the health and fitness space. We are all made for movement – in whatever capacity that may be – and movement has the ability to change us.
Currently, as a Fitness Coach and business owner, I predominantly work with female clients (though, I have several male clients as well) and my goal for my clients is to get them to value their exercise and nutrition routine as more than a means to an end (e.g., to achieve a certain goal weight or aesthetic goal). I want them to know that it’s okay not to love everything about their body, but that doesn’t mean we can’t respect ourselves and continue to work on improving our health (both physical and mental). I want my clients to feel capable and empowered and I believe these can be achieved by pushing ourselves physically and getting out of our comfort zones. I have some amazing clients who have been with me for going on two years and I feel incredibly lucky to work with such wonderful people.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Starting your own business is never easy. I knew this going in. However, what I didn’t expect was the feeling of loss I have felt after leaving law. Though I remained with my law firm part-time between 2021-2024, my work with the firm really slowed down starting in spring 2023. I also experienced a personal loss when my mentor, colleague, and friend passed away from cancer in October 2024. This was the point at which I knew I needed to fully sever my ties with the firm. I officially left in December 2024.
Once the time and effort I put into my business began to surpass my work as an attorney, I started to have a bit of an identity crisis. My husband and I moved into a new neighborhood in May 2022 (the same time I obtained my Personal Training certification) and that came with meeting lots of new people. One of the first questions people ask is: “So, what do you do for work?” This one stumped me for the longest time. I would always fumble my words, responding with something awkward like, “Well, I’m currently in a transition, but my background is in law…” In response, I’d usually get, “Oh wow! You’re an attorney?” Then, that’s what they’d zone in on and I’d have to explain all about being an attorney. It took a long time for me to start leading with “I run my own fitness coaching business,” which, sadly, is not met with the same “wow factor.”
Simply put, letting go the respect and prestige that comes with calling yourself an attorney has been hard. Not that I consider myself to be a cocky person, but I invested a lot of time, energy, and money (yes, I’m still paying off law school loans) into my legal career. So, giving that all up has been a difficult pill to swallow, but it has gotten easier with time, learning to believe in myself, and developing more certainty that I made the right decision.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I operate my fitness coaching business, Made for Movement (M4M), out of my home gym. Currently, I work with people (predominantly, women) in person, but am exploring online training as well. I specialize in strength training, but I believe that multiple exercise modalities are critical for overall health and longevity. For that reason, I also incorporate training in the areas of mobility, power development, muscle growth, and cardiovascular functioning.
I love educating, so explaining why we’re doing something is a huge part of my coaching approach. I also love seeing people push themselves outside of their comfort zones. The best example I can think of right now is box jumps (literally jumping onto a 12 inch or taller wooden box). No one likes box jumps at the beginning. The box is incredibly intimidating. Yet, just recently, several of my clients conquered their fear and successfully completed box jumps for the first time. While it might sound trivial, this kind of breakthrough truly transcends the gym. Once they gain confidence in themselves in one area, that can seep into other areas of their lives. I’ve seen it in my own life and it is truly magical. This is the stuff I work on with my clients. These performance goals are what I like to emphasize. It helps give clients something to work on that is within their control – unlike the scale. I also spend time discussing nutrition, goal development, habit formation, and recovery because all of these things can impact someone’s performance in the gym – and in life.
I operate my business on four pillars:
(1) Movement: it sounds cliche, but I firmly believe that movement can act as medicine – physical and mental.
(2) Fuel: this includes proper nutrition, self-care, and sleep.
(3) Balance and flexibility: we are not robots. We have to accept the fact that we aren’t going to be perfect and that’s okay. Rather than an all-or-nothing way of thinking, I encourage my clients to start replacing that with “always something.”
(4) Fitness has no look: anyone can be a fit person, regardless of their body size/shape.
I do my best to take a body-neutral approach to coaching. By that, I mean we aren’t going to prioritize changing your body’s appearance (though, that may be a secondary goal or outcome); we’re going to prioritize your overall health and well-being, getting you stronger and fitter so you feel more capable to tackle everyday life and achieve your goals.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
I have a horrible long-term memory, so this is a tough one for me. I would not consider this a single memory, but rather a collection of memories. Nevertheless, I remember long summer days that turned into nights when I was somewhere between 10-12, playing with the neighborhood kids in our family’s pool while the moms sat around and talked, bringing us yummy food and snacks as the long days wore on. I loved those times because I got to be outside with my best friend, enjoying life and not having a care in the world. Good times.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://m4mllccoaching.wixsite.com/website
- Instagram: @m4m_coachlindsey
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086604384314
- Other: M4MLLC.Coaching@gmail.com
