We recently connected with Nicole Steen and have shared our conversation below.

Nicole , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

My parents were very adamant about me doing well in school, in addition to staying active and doing what I loved. To make sure this happened, they enrolled me in the best schools and had me work with the top coaches for my extracurricular activities. At a young age, I started reading and excelling academically. I began dancing at age 3, and by age 10, I had already won numerous awards, traveled the world competing and winning championships, all while maintaining straight A’s in school. My parents had to work multiple jobs just to make sure my siblings and I had everything we wanted. They made so many sacrifices so that I could accomplish my goals and live out my dreams, while at the same time teaching me the importance of hard work and self-discipline.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am an international dance and fitness expert and owner of Nicole Steen Fitness LLC, where I teach my famous workouts to people online and in person all over the world. I started working out at the young age of three when my mom took me to a mommy-and-me fitness class with her. I absolutely loved it! From there, I was involved in a variety of physical activities, including ballet, baton twirling, gymnastics, and more. I started to excel and began competing in competitions throughout the country, where I ended up winning many titles, such as World Baton Twirling Champion, International Dance Champion, numerous beauty pageant titles, amongst other awards.

Staying active and fit as a young girl was everything to me. I loved competing, and I loved winning even more. From childhood, I went on to become a cheerleader and captain of the USC Song Girls for the USC Football and Basketball teams. I danced for professional football and basketball teams, as well as musical artists like Rihanna and Snoop Dogg.

I was so passionate about all of this and knew I wanted to continue my dance and fitness journey. I was constantly working out and taking classes, and one day my coach at USC told me I should start teaching at the school’s gym. So I studied hard and received my AFAA and ACE certifications and became a fitness instructor at the USC Lyon Center. I also took a course at USC on how to become a fitness instructor, which taught me everything about nutrition, the body, health, and fitness. Once I graduated, I took this knowledge of fitness I had attained and started working at local gyms, such as Bally and LA Fitness. I loved helping people get fit and improve their health. I started to realize how much fun this job was, and years later, I was asked to teach at Equinox, where I really took a dive into building relationships with my students who wanted me to train them privately.

Teaching at the gym, filming fitness videos with different fitness companies, and private training was a great experience for me. But once the pandemic hit, I was out of a job because training at that time involved working out in person. One of my students suggested I start teaching Zoom workouts online, which I did, and they became very successful. When the world opened up again, I started losing my clients to the gym and had to pivot and start selling my recorded workouts On Demand for those who couldn’t work out with me in person or who live in a different country and can’t make my Zoom classes.

My On Demand workouts gave my students and fans the opportunity to work out with me anytime and anywhere! With over 300 workouts, which include Cardio Latin Dance, Cardio Dance Choreography, Buns of Steen® Booty Workout, Buns of Steen® Tone N Twerk Workout, Abs, Zumba, Kickboxing, Booty Barre, and more, people who subscribe to my On Demand workouts never have to miss a day with me. This means people have no excuse to skip a workout.

At Nicole Steen Fitness, I am solving the problems of obesity and depression that are taking over people’s lives today. My workouts not only help people look good, they also help people feel good by increasing their overall health, sense of well-being, reducing stress, and pumping up those endorphins! Health is wealth, and I am so happy I can share my expertise and make a difference with my business.

Making a difference is key to me, and what makes me different than others is that I am able to do it all! With my background in clinical psychology, I use all of the studying and research I did in graduate school at Pepperdine University to help my students and clients reach their health and fitness goals while also working together on their mental health. Along with this special ability I have as a therapist/trainer, I am one of the few trainers who is knowledgeable in all genres of fitness, whether it be dance or weightlifting, kickboxing or ballet barre. I am able to give my students and clients exactly what they want and what they need to succeed.

In fact, we all want to succeed at something. And even with all that I have accomplished, the proudest moment of my career is not dancing for the biggest artists or training the hottest celebrities, but it’s getting the numerous letters, emails, and direct messages from people all over the planet saying how much I have changed their lives with my workouts. Seeing the smiles on my students’ faces when I am teaching my daily online workouts is everything to me.

Knowing that I can bring joy and happiness to these people who are having a rough time in life is what I am most proud of. This is why I do what I do! God has blessed me with so much, and I just want to share it with everyone. It is my lifelong goal to get people of all walks of life fit and healthy and loving the body they live in! I want to help rid people of depression and self hate and bring about joy and self love because in the end we were put out on this earth to succeed, to win; and that’s why My motto is “Let’s All Win!”

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

A story of my journey that illustrates my resilience is the story about a horrific car accident I was involved in a few years ago. I was on my way to teach a dance class when I was T-boned by a driver who wasn’t paying attention. I was severely injured and doctors said I was lucky to be alive. They were very concerned that I wouldn’t be able to walk again.
I was devastated. I loved to dance and I didn’t know what I would do if I couldn’t do it anymore. But I knew I had to fight. I started physical therapy and I worked hard every day.

It was a long and difficult road, but eventually I started to regain my strength and I was able to workout and dance again. I was so happy to be able to finally resume doing the things I loved.

This experience taught me a lot about resilience. I learned that no matter how hard things get, you can always overcome them if you never give up. I also learned that it’s important to have faith in yourself and in your ability to achieve your dreams.

I’m so grateful that I was able to overcome this challenge. It made me a stronger person and it gave me a new appreciation for life. I know that whatever challenges I face in the future, I can overcome them because I have the strength and resilience to do so.

I hope my story inspires others to never give up on their dreams, no matter how difficult things may seem. If I can do it, anyone can.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Many times in my life I have had to pivot in order to keep my head above water. I have always been a teacher at heart. I taught cheerleading, dance, gymnastics, baton twirling, fitness, and even high school health and college prep. I love sharing my passion for fitness with others, and I have always found ways to make it accessible to everyone, regardless of income.
After graduating from college, I started teaching at the gyms. I loved my job, but I wasn’t making enough money to survive. So I decided to use my Master’s degree to become a high school teacher. I was the official dance teacher and dance team director, and I loved being able to share my love of dance and fitness with low-income kids who couldn’t afford to go to a dance studio or gym.
Unfortunately, after four years, the school decided to get rid of the entire dance program. I was laid off, but I didn’t give up. I pivoted to full-time teaching at a dance and cheerleading company. I loved working with my fellow instructors, but the higher-ups created a negative and stressful environment.

I knew that I had to make a change. I pivoted again and became more involved in dance and fitness full-time. I was teaching 20 classes a week, driving all over Los Angeles to get to the next class. It was a lot of work, but it helped me to become financially stable.

Then the pandemic hit. All instructors were furloughed because the gyms were closed. I no longer had a steady income, so I pivoted one last time and started teaching for myself online. I quickly built a successful business, Nicole Steen Fitness LLC.

When people see me, I want them to see an example of resilience. I have faced many challenges in my life, but I have always found a way to overcome them. I hope to be a true inspiration to anyone who has ever felt like giving up. My story is a reminder that we can all achieve our dreams, no matter how many times we have to pivot along the way to make it happen.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.NicoleSteenFitness.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/nicolesteenfitness
• Facebook: Www.Facebook.com/NicoleSteenFitness
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-steen-b3719296
• Twitter: Www.Twitter.com/NicoleSteenFit
• Youtube: Www.YouTube.com/@NicoleSteenFitness
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=TOrHlhVy54-TEq45F-iRTw&utm_source=ishare
• Other: Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nicolesteenfitness?_t=8bl4b71YGle&_r=1

Image Credits
Whitney Gamble- Peach West Photography