I started training with Stevens about 8 months ago and he has been a tremendous help in getting me into the best shape of my life while also greatly reducing my chronic musculoskeletal pain. Prior to working with Stevens, I had been doing physical therapy for shoulder/neck pain and arm numbness. Although it was helping, I wanted faster results and to incorporate more practical strength into my sessions. I started looking for a trainer who could help me with functional strength. I talked to a number of trainers who didn’t fully understand what I was looking for and just offered the typical group exercise format moving through a set list of exercises. I was therefore so excited to find Stevens’ website which promised efficient workouts designed to correct dysfunctional movement patterns and reduce chronic pain.

Stevens has been even more helpful than I could have imagined when I first started working with him. Although I was initially just looking for workouts that could help me with my upper body posture/pain issues, he was able to help me identify how different muscle imbalances throughout my body contributed to a pattern of dysfunctional movements. For example, I have had tight hamstrings and hips my entire life and believed that I was just built to be inflexible. Stevens’ collection of methods have allowed me to move in ways that I didn’t think were possible for me, and I can even now touch my toes without bending my knees (after warming up!). Stevens has also guided me through some exercises similar to those that I had been previously doing in physical therapy, but because he was able to tell me how it should be feeling and identify when I was using the wrong muscle groups, I was able to progress and build strength much faster than I had been previously. 

Aside from reducing my chronic pain almost to the point of complete elimination, the best part about working with Stevens has been how much that I have learned. I previously considered myself to be relatively fit and knowledgeable about physical fitness. I have actively attended group fitness classes over the last 10 years and occasionally read fitness magazines and books. I was therefore very surprised to learn how incorrectly I had been performing some common movements. In fact, Stevens helped me discover that many of my movements that seemed to have decent form from an outside perspective were actually over-reliant on my joints and/or on overactive muscles. This discovery was super important for explaining why my progress had previously been slow while doing other group fitness programs. Even after 8 months, I still learn something new in almost every session. Although I plan to continue working with Stevens for the foreseeable future, I now have enough knowledge about how my body should be moving and how exercises should feel that I can work out on my own without falling back into old bad habits or exacerbating previous pain. I also am now able to quickly eliminate any pain that arises throughout my day because I can identify what is causing the pain and what I need to do to correct it. 

I cannot stress enough how knowledgeable Stevens is in a huge number of areas. He is truly a “nerd” when it comes to fitness and health. He is incredibly driven to help his clients feel their best and live pain-free lives, but is also driven by curiosity and a genuine passion for physiology. When I learned that a specific joint disorder (EDS) ran in my family and may have contributed to my chronic stiffness, Stevens read up on the disorder both to satisfy his own curiosity and in order to help me as efficiently as possible. He even was able to lead me through some breathing exercises to help me re-build aerobic capacity while recovering from a mild case of covid. 

/Samantha M./

In addition to his knowledge and skill as a trainer, Stevens is also a pleasure to work with and has a great attitude. He is great at finding the right balance between motivating his clients to work hard while also not being overwhelmingly pushy or intimidating. He cares about his clients and gets just as excited (or more) as I do when I have a new breakthrough in my progress.  I strongly recommend Stevens to anyone who is looking to normalize their bodies and movement patterns, has a specific injury/issue to work on, or just wants more efficient progress in their workouts.

Stevens totally changed my perspective on how knowledgeable a personal trainer could be and the most rewarding aspect of working with him has been how much I have learned about how the human body works generally and how my body works specifically (e.g. postural issues, muscle imbalances/weaknesses). He focuses his training on the total body and getting you to a place where you are powerful in all the ways that the body naturally moves - not just simple movement patterns like squatting and bench presses, although I learned A LOT about how to properly do those exercises too. If everyone could work with a trainer like Stevens they would find their time in the gym to be much more impactful and efficient.
My personal experience:
I’ve worked with Stevens for over a year and under his tutelage I was able to get in the best shape of my life and eliminate my chronic back pain. I even developed a stronger core and had visible abs for the first time in my life!
Before working with Stevens I had been regularly going to the gym for 5 years and would have considered myself knowledgeable about weightlifting and exercise.
I ended up injuring myself whilst dead lifting and began to experience severe lower back pain which also impacted my mobility and kept me from being able to reach my fingers past my knees.
A coworker recommended me to work with Stevens and in my first session with him, he was able to isolate where I had injured myself (small tear in my left glute) and gave me some stretches and mobility exercises that totally eliminated the pain and allowed me to bend touch my toes with ease. I continued to work with Stevens over the next year and made huge improvements in every aspect of personal fitness.
/ Vishal F. /

I’ve worked with Stevens over the past two years, and simply put, he is by far the best. Stevens combines an encyclopedic knowledge of training methodologies, proper form and nutrition, with an enthusiastic commitment to his work and clients. Best of all he truly listens, tailoring workouts to achieve your goals, within the schedule and time you have available. Not only does he push me through strength, core, and cardio training, he helps me with my daily meals and nutrition to keep me on track to meet my goals.  He makes each workout challenging, creative and most importantly fun. I consider myself lucky to have found Stevens and wholeheartedly recommend him to anyone interested in setting the foundations for improved fitness and living a healthier lifestyle.

/ STEVEN H. /

I met Stevens about 2 years ago while trying to do a “deadlift.” The reason for the deadlift being in quotes, is what I was doing resembled very little of what a proper deadlift should look/feel like. Stevens approached me and politely asked if I have/had back issues or back pain. I thought it very perceptive of him, especially since I had major back surgery about 1 year before that (years of ski falls took their toll) and have been on and off from the gym because I would constantly pull something which would make me stop going. He said that if I had time, he could give me some pointers, and proceeded to spend the next 45 minutes showing and explaining the proper technique of a deadlift to me. After I came home that night, I analyzed why I constantly hurt myself at the gym and concluded that not only had I never actually learned how to do any of the exercises properly, I also never worked on my long-lasting issues stemming from my ski injuries, including the back injury itself. At this point I realized that unless I wanted to have another surgery soon, I needed to really be serious about not just going to the gym, but about doing it safely and efficiently.

 Next day I saw Stevens at the gym and asked him if he could help me with my new-found goal and Stevens happily obliged. I’ve spent the better part of the year working out with Stevens 3 times a week. Not only have I gotten much stronger, but I have not had a single instance of hurting myself doing the exercises, which was something that used to be a common occurrence.

 I have also started doing things that I never believed I could. In one of our workout sessions Stevens did a head stand, and I mentioned in passing that I wish I could do that. Two month later I was able to do head stands, another month after that I was able to do them with my head off the ground (on my folded arms).  Then I saw Stevens doing a hand stand, and this time I plainly asked for him to teach me. This was a much harder endeavor, as this not only requires great balance, but solid core form. As of now, I start every workout session doing hand stands. To me, it’s a great introduction to the workout routine, and as I’m learning a skill this also gets me excited for the rest of the workout. And yes, I can do hand stands, which is something that I never would have thought I was capable of.

 The main reason why I love working out with Stevens is his knowledge and passion about what he does. He tries to make every session fun, but never by making it easy. After every session I feel I worked my butt off, learned a great deal, while actually having fun and enjoying myself.

 If you want to know how to work out the right way, grow muscle, become stronger, while having fun, Stevens is your man.  I haven’t had a back pain in the last year at all, and most of this is thanks to Stevens... oh and now I almost have a six pack ... fine it’s a four pack, but getting there.

/ TIMUR L. /

I have been going to the gym for 10+ years and was looking to change up my daily routine. This is why I started working with Stevens. My main objective was to learn some new workouts from my training sessions that I would add to my daily routine. Knowing this, Stevens could have easily just shown me some new exercises and been done with it. Instead I got an education on achieving the most from your workouts. His approach isn’t just to work you through a variety of exercises but rather build upon what you’ve learned in each session. If you’re looking for a new approach to working out and push your body to achieve movements and results you might have not thought possible, then Stevens is the trainer for you.

/ TRIP A. /

Stevens is amazing.  Not only has he improved my physical appearance and knowledge of movement, he has worked to correct my scoliosis and alleviate back pain. Though I have been working out most of my life he helped correct my form and my overall posture. He is currently helping rehab my ankle after multiple surgeries. He is definitely more thorough than the physical therapist! Stevens is much more knowledgeable than most trainers I have encountered.

/ David D. /

I consider myself someone who maintains his physical fitness; tracking diet and a regular weight training regimen.  It was absolutely eye-opening just how much I learned when I began training with Stevens. Curious & intuitive by nature, Stevens introduced the importance of functional movement and proper form - far above what I viewed as correct; transforming the simplest of exercises into muscle-burning routines. Having worked with three other trainers through the years, Stevens is a true student of physical fitness and brings clients an acumen a notch above other trainers. The journey with Stevens is worth it, I’m a better man for it!   

/ Dan L. /