Grinnell College hired its first full-time head strength and conditioning coach in November 2024, naming Steve Lewis to the post following a nationwide search.
Lewis comes to Grinnell from Kalamazoo College, where he has been head strength and conditioning coach the last five years.
Prior to Kalamazoo, Lewis served as head strength and conditioning coach at Emory University in Atlanta from 2003-2011, overseeing the design and implementation of sport-specific training programs for 18 NCAA Division III intercollegiate varsity sports serving over 400 student-athletes. Emory won national championships in swimming and diving, tennis and volleyball during his tenure. Also while at Emory, he was the faculty advisor/coach for the Emory Weightlifting Club and also directed the Emory Speed and Strength Camp from 2005-2011.
Prior to that, Lewis was the strength and conditioning coordinator at Central College in Pella from 1999-2003, where he oversaw strength and conditioning for 21 Division III sports serving 750 student-athletes. He also coordinated Central’s Speed/Strength Summer Camp.
Lewis earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee in 1995 and master’s from Western Michigan University in 1998. He gained experience in the women’s athletic department at Tennessee as a volunteer strength and conditioning coach before becoming a graduate assistant strength and conditioning coach.
Lewis served as the fitness director at Bronson Athletic Club in Kalamazoo from 2011-2015 and also worked as a personal trainer and strength and conditioning coach at Bronson Athletic Club as well as a strength and conditioning coach at Bronson Orthopedics and Sports Medicine.
Lewis holds multiple certifications, including the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), Functional Movement Screen (FMS) and HKC Kettlebell. He is a club coach, senior coach and national coach with USA Weightlifting, and is the founding member and coach of AZO Barbell Club at CrossFit AZO.
A competitive Olympic weightlifter, Lewis won championships at the 2011 Pan-Am Master’s (94 kg class), 2007 Georgia State Games (105 kg class – master’s division) and was the 2002 Michigan state champion (94 kg class).
