Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Matthews.
Hi Jennifer, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. Before we get into specifics, can you walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I began my professional career as a dancer, pouring my heart into the sport I loved — until chronic injuries to my knees, hips, and low back forced me to stop before I expected to. Losing dance was devastating. Like many athletes who lose their sport, I felt unanchored and unsure of who I was without it.
I spent four years in physical therapy rebuilding my body and two years in therapy supporting my mental and emotional health. During that process, I rediscovered my love for learning and teaching others. I had always taught dance, and learning so much about exercise led me to become a certified personal trainer in 1999, a certification I held for more than two decades.
Over the years, I worked in both physical therapy clinics and fitness settings, including Equinox, where I became a Master Instructor, training clients and mentoring new trainers through the Equinox Fitness Training Institute. What changed everything for me was a pattern I couldn’t ignore: about two-thirds of my clients would start strong — full of enthusiasm — and then slowly stop showing up for themselves and their goals. It didn’t matter if they were executives, parents, or young professionals; something got in the way, progress would slow, and their vision and goals slipped out of reach.
On one hand, I empathized with their struggle. On the other hand, I was curious. With the loss of dance still echoing in my life, I wanted to know — Why do we stop ourselves? And how can we keep going no matter what life throws at us?
Those questions became the bridge that led me to personal growth coaching — helping people not just reach goals but understand how behavior and mindset truly drive sustainable change.
In 2008, I earned my professional coaching certification through the Coach Training Institute, and from the moment I started coaching, I knew I’d found my path. Coaching offered something fitness didn’t — a non-judgmental space where people could access their own inner wisdom and build lasting change from the inside out. It connected the dots between vision and sustainability, between what we want and how we make it happen.
From 2009 to 2014, I worked as a health coach for Caesars Entertainment, MGM Grand International, and Boyd Gaming, helping over a thousand employees improve their health and well-being. It was an incredible opportunity to see the impact of coaching — but also one of the hardest seasons of my life.
During that time, my personal life completely unraveled. I went through a painful divorce during my third trimester, and my son experienced a near-fatal birth complication. These experiences challenged me to the core. And I still felt determined to create a life that allowed me to provide for my son while being as present as possible as a parent. Because of the love and support of family and friends, I made it through and found strength I didn’t know I had.
The loss of dance — and surviving that chapter — became the foundation of what I do today through neuroscience-based coaching and leadership work.
Tell us more about the Move Strong Method®. What is it and how did it begin?
After my divorce and the early years of rebuilding from dance, I returned to school and earned my M.A. in Transpersonal Psychology — the study of human potential — from Sofia University (formerly the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology). I wanted to understand not only how people recover from change but how they evolve through it.
During that period, while raising my young son, I began developing what would eventually become the Move Strong Method®, a neuroscience-based coaching system designed to help people navigate transitions, adapt to change, and create their ideal daily habits.
What I originally designed as a transitional coaching program for athletes moving from sport to life quickly evolved into a behavioral change coaching model that supports people from all walks of life.
Founded in 2016, Move Strong Method® is a structured process grounded in neuroscience and psychology that helps individuals, leaders, and organizations build resilience, strengthen emotional intelligence, and make effective decisions under pressure.
Today, I work with professionals at every level — from individuals pursuing personal growth coaching to executives and teams engaging in leadership and development coaching that transforms company culture. With all my clients, my mission is the same: to help people move themselves forward with purpose, strength, and intentionally positive impact.
What sets Move Strong Method® apart from other coaching approaches?
What sets us apart is how the Move Strong Method® combines neuroscience, psychology, and coaching into a predictable process for behavior change.
Our approach isn’t about lofty motivation, big promises, or one-size-fits-all success formulas. It’s about giving people easy-to-use, repeatable tools they apply as they see fit.
We help clients understand how behavior actually works and how they can rewire patterns for long-term results.
What are you most proud of, brand-wise?
I’m proud of how Move Strong Method® makes both personal and professional development approachable.
At its core, it helps people focus on three skills that are always within their control:
- Awareness — strengthening your ability to recognize what’s happening inside and around you.
- Emotional intelligence — building the skill to respond rather than react.
- Conscious choice — creating new habits through deliberate intention.
These may sound simple, but they’re the backbone of effective personal growth coaching and leadership development. Again and again, I’ve seen clients excel not by being told what to do but by realizing how much influence they have over their own lives and that the change they’ve been waiting for is already within them.
For readers who might not be familiar, what else should we know about you personally?
Before all of this, I was an athlete. Today, I’m a mom first and a coach second. My son and I are adventurers at heart — committed to family even through divorce. I made a promise to take him to every country of his heritage before he graduates college: six in total. So far, we’ve explored Ireland, Scotland, and England together.
I still remember traveling alone to Canada for a business trip early in the life of Move Strong Method®. I knew only one person there — the event organizer — but I went anyway. As a single mom, leaving my child for that trip took courage and faith. There’s a photo of me standing by a lighthouse from that trip that I love. It reminds me of the courage it took to step out, the hope that guided me, and the light that’s always there when I choose to move forward.
What do you want people to know about your brand and offerings?
Move Strong Method® offers a range of coaching and training programs for individuals, leaders, and teams.
For individuals, our self-guided online programs focus on personal growth coaching and habit transformation — helping people improve focus, break free from limiting behaviors, and build daily awareness at their own pace.
For organizations, we specialize in leadership and development coaching that equips executives and teams with neuroscience-informed tools to improve communication, strengthen emotional intelligence, and make better decisions under pressure.
Our team programs support:
- Executives and leaders navigating high-stakes decisions or major transitions.
- Teams working to enhance collaboration and productivity.
- Organizations seeking to build an emotionally intelligent, resilient, and self-led workforce.
At the heart of it, my message is this: change is inevitable, but struggle doesn’t have to be. With the right tools and support, anyone can learn to meet change with resilience, pivot to new habits, and discover strengths they didn’t know they had. That’s the essence of neuroscience-based coaching — and that’s what Move Strong Method® is all about.
Are there any masterminds, communities, books, podcasts, or tools that have helped you do your best work?
As a single parent and business owner, my first and most valuable “mastermind” has always been my family. I’m fortunate to have an inner circle of talented professionals from marketing, healthcare, event management, performance, engineering, and business development — all of whom contribute to my growth as a coach and leader.
Audible is also a go-to mentor. My favorite listens include Who Not How for building with others, Who Moved My Cheese and The Yes Brain for reframing change, and The Four Agreements for deepening self-awareness. And, Decoding Boys has helped me parent my son with more empathy and compassion.
I also draw inspiration from Eric Franklin’s work on movement, and my clients often reference Good to Great, Dare to Lead, Crucial Conversations, The Obstacle Is the Way, and The 10X Rule — all of which tie beautifully into philosophies behind leadership and development coaching.
Here is where you can learn more about the Move Strong Method® and Coach Jen:
- Website: movestrongmethod.com
- Instagram: @movestrongmethod
- Facebook: facebook.com/movestrongmethod
- LinkedIn (Personal): Jennifer Matthews
- LinkedIn (Company): Move Strong Method®
Image Credits
The image credit for my speaking on stage goes to Orange Photo https://www.instagram.com/orangephoto/
