Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindsey Mathews Cantu.
Hi Lindsey Mathews, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My personal health history and healing journey. Has a lot of influence on me starting my businesses and where I’m at today. I grew up very standard American. I was born a month early and immediately placed in NICU and fed soy formula. I threw up almost daily for a month. There was no reason to place me in NICU other than I was born early. I eventually went home with my parents and was shortly diagnosed with asthma. This began my journey of repeated antibiotics, steroid inhalers, and trips to the hospital all throughout my childhood. I lived a relatively standard American, middle class childhood. I played sports, participated in school, and worked a part-time job as soon as I was old enough. In my junior year of high school, I blew out my ACL. This crushed me.
However, this, coupled with the asthma diagnosis, encouraged me to start looking at fitness and health in ways I was not aware. My knee surgeon at the time told me to get in the best shape possible for surgery. He encouraged me to see a chiropractor acupuncturist and to start PT immediately. I was able to walk out of my knee surgery with little assistance. After high school, I was accepted to Texas A&M University where I studied biology and was on the pre med track. My life took another turn when I took off a semester and traveled to Tanzania, Africa for a medical mission trip. There was a group of us working under a medical doctor. I became aware that we were not actually helping these communities by prescribing them pills. The best thing we could have done would have been to establish a clean water in many of these remote villages we traveled. So, I pivoted. I decided medical school was not for me and chose chiropractic school. I resonated at the deepest part of my soul with the philosophy of chiropractic- the power that made the body heals the body. I met amazing leaders and healers and mentors throughout chiropractic school. I graduated with a doctorate in chiropractic and immediately through myself in the sports and rehab world working with professional athletes and on set of different movies and tv shows.
Again, I gained awareness to a world that was not so bright. Due to working in an all male office, I began seeing the female patients and clients. They began to prep for pregnancy, get pregnant, and/or come in for postpartum healing. I realized I had never been exposed to a natural birth, breastfeeding, and we all got a very institutionalized, sterile explanation of it in school and university. This is where I began to train as a birth doula and childbirth educator and postpartum healer. I found the trainings and teachers that I could drive to on the weekends. I soaked up everything I could. Paralleling my underground birth education, I was one of three individuals that opened DEUCE Gym in Venice, CA. By 2013, I had started the BIRTHFIT blog. This included all of my roles- Chiropractor, Birth Doula, Strength and Conditioning Coach, and Childbirth Educator. I began to host BIRTHFIT Postpartum Series and BIRTHFIT Prenatal Series all at this tiny gym in Venice, CA. The BIRTHFIT Movement took off. We now have coaches all over the United States and various parts of the globe. It is, without a doubt, the best, most holistic preconception, prenatal, and postpartum general strength and conditioning programs. BIRTHFIT is 98% virtual now and we have a directory to help people find coaches in their area. I moved back to Texas in 2018 (after being in Los Angeles for 13 years). And I recently opened the practice of my dreams (with some awesome partners) in New Braunfels, TX called Willow Haus. I see patients for chiropractic care and Mercier Therapy at Willow Haus. If people are virtual then they can set up consultations via BIRTHFIT or my personal website, LINDSEYKMATHEWS.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Hell no. Ha! The first BIRTHFIT Summit I hosted was at my house and I had $75 in the bank. That was 2016, and I was unsure how I was going to make my next dollar. When I hosted the last live BIRTHFIT Summit. We sold out at 150 people. Every BIRTHFIT Coach Seminar in 2017, 2018, and 2019 sold out. BIRTHFIT went all online in 2020 with two seminars a year now.
In 2017-2018, I went through a massive breakup from an almost decade long relationship. This is when I decided to move out of a community that I helped to build up and return to Texas. I knew in my heart that’s what I needed. I left everything to drive back to Texas with only the belongings in my car. This is when I wrote Coffee Talk: A Year in Transition that you can buy on Amazon.
Women and business are hard. One of my best girlfriends, owner of 3 restaurants in Los Angeles, had told me this when I was starting my first business. It was true. It is very hard for women to separate their emotions from actions and behavior and business.
I strongly believe the more work I did and continue to do on myself unlocks layers and propels me in business. I had to learn boundaries like I’ve never learned and used boundaries before. Last thing I’ll add no one is going to pay your bills but you 😉
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I have three businesses.
BIRTHFIT: general strength and conditioning for women in all seasons and cycles of life. We cultivate connection and enhance awareness in our programs throughout Preconception, Pregnancy, and Postpartum.
Willow Haus: nervous system based chiropractic care for preconception, pregnancy and postpartum, pediatrics, and everyday people. This is where I do Mercier Therapy.
Lindsey K Mathews: supporting women in nourishing and optimizing their cycles and lifestyle. I offer a la carte consultations at the moment to help women prepare for conception, birth, and healing postpartum.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
For me success looks like doing what I enjoy and coming home to the love of my life and our family. I don’t need flashy things, all the shoes, or the next best handbag. We are building our family and homestead. And if I can lay in the arms of my beloved every night, I’m a happy woman.
I’d ask, “What brings your joy?”
Pricing:
- BIRTHFIT prices vary depending on program. Our B! Community first week is free. BIRTHFIT Basics programs are $99 each. Goes up from there.
- Willow Haus New Practice Member Evaluation is $149
- Mercier Therapy Shared Fertility Journey is $3000
- A la carte consultation is $150 initially and then $79 for follow ups
Contact Info:
- Website: https://birthfit.com/ and https://willowhaustx.com/
- Facebook: @BIRTHFIT
- Twitter: @Willow_Haus
- Youtube: @Lindsey_M_Cantu
Image Credits
Kat Bevel Photography We Film Stuff Behemoth Photography
