Sometimes a community starts with just one person showing up. For Olivia Santelli, a whole community movement started with a simple invitation in Chicago: bring a mat to the shore of Lake Michigan for a free Pilates class. Twelve people came. Then hundreds. Then thousands. That single invite grew into Rise Pilates Club, a thriving community rooted in connection, consistency, and care.

Now, Olivia is also building Within, a digital platform offering tools for both physical and mental wellness. In our conversation, she shares the lessons of following your spark, how she stays grounded while leading others, and why saying yes before you feel ready can change your life.

What You’ll Hear:

• The first Rise class at Lake Michigan (08:10)
• Saying yes before you’re fully ready (15:25)
• Building community by showing up consistently (22:15)
• Mental health practices that extend beyond the mat (29:30)
• The mental health tools that anchor Olivia’s work (38:50)

Olivia opens up about the courage it takes to start before you feel ready, the power of consistency, and the role mental health plays in her life and work. If you’ve ever had a whisper of an idea you couldn’t shake, Olivia’s story will inspire you to follow it.

You can watch this interview on YouTube: https://youtu.be/a8dDwN4kfe8 

For a full transcript and more, check out our blog post: https://www.lindsaycz.com/show-notes/olivia-santelli-15 

Check out more from Olivia Santelli: 

Connect with Olivia on Instagram: @Olivia.Santelli or follow the @risepilatesclub.

You can also see the upcoming events of the Rise Pilates Club HERE. Or check out the Within platform HERE

Rise Pilates feature on the Today Show: “How a Free Pilates Class in Chicago Went Viral on Social Media”

Mentioned in the Episode

Glitter Freckles and Grit with Aliett Buttelman from Episode 8

The Pressure of Live Sports with Rebecca Lowe from Episode 12

[00:01:25] It's worth going back and listening again because I could not believe some of the things that she was sharing. And here's the backstory. Olivia Santelli. Is among many things a Pilates instructor. So before I begin, I'm gonna start with a little levity. What is a Pirate's favorite Pilates pose? Planks, that's actually for my dad, who loves pirates.

[00:02:13] I was watching it at around eight o'clock. I'm getting stuff ready for the day, finishing lunches, all that jazz, and they start talking about this story that's coming on about this woman named Olivia. I found myself captivated by this story, which I started listening to in the background, and then I stopped and just paid full attention to this because it talked about this.

[00:02:50] Before she knew it. Something that started with 12 friends turned into hundreds. And the story was so well done. And what I loved so much about it is I was like, oh my gosh, this is so great. Because she had this one seed of a thought that moved her, and she tried it and look what happened. And I.

[00:03:33] and it also is sort of like never stop dreaming, right? Things that I just love learning about in people's stories, whether they're athletes, entertainers, or just, you know, average everyday folks. So I really wanted to know how her life changed from that, what she learned, and what she could share with us, with our community, just to give us some insight.

[00:04:18] So. I have a lot of questions, but first, real quick, where are you joining us from

[00:04:27] Lindsay: Okay. And I wanna mention to our listeners and viewers, so you graduated from Michigan State in 2022. How has your life changed since The Today Show?

[00:04:42] Olivia: So dramatically? I really, this summer in general was a dramatic change, and I think The Today Show kind of kept off that change of really solidifying what was built here in Chicago and what that change has turned into now in my life.

[00:05:17] Lindsay: So, can you explain in your own words what rise is?

[00:05:34] layman's terms is we do a free beach Pilates class at Sunrise on Oak Street Beach in Chicago in the summertime. So we have a 10-week series, and with that free Pilates class, we also have vendors. So protein shakes, coffees are wellness products, really brands that we feel. Align with our mission in terms of helping people feel good.

[00:06:16] Lindsay: By the way, I love a sound bath.

[00:06:48] And so tell me, like, take me through when you were in school, how this started, what you were looking at, and what you were interested in getting into.

[00:07:09] I was running cameras and doing a little bit of sideline reporting and calling color for the hockey games.

[00:07:24] Olivia: And no, I think you have to know the resources that your school provides and fully take advantage of them, and make sure that you're getting your feet wet when you can.

[00:07:54] So that being said, knowing what programs your school offers is huge, taking advantage of them. And I think in college I probably worked like three or four jobs all at the same time while being a student, just to try to see what's working, dip my toes in, you know, a little bit of everything. And all of that experience, I think, is.

[00:08:20] Lindsay: It's really interesting because obviously many years different, but yeah, that was similar to my situation. It was like I was working at a local station while I was in Harrisonburg, Virginia, James Madison, and I was also working at this hotdog place, where trying to make some money, and so, yeah.

[00:08:50] Olivia: My dream was always to be a sideline reporter for hockey.

[00:08:54] Olivia: Amazing. I was born and raised in a hockey family. I played hockey all throughout high school. And so it was really like deep in the family blood, and that's what I. Wanted to do, and then post-grad came, and there are a lot of options. Yeah. And a lot of the on-camera options come with starting being paid $15 an hour and moving halfway across the country, and starting to build your way up to the place that you actually wanna be.

[00:09:43] I could move in with my family. I could explore behind the scenes a little bit with a part-time seasonal job with a video production department, which was the route that I ended up taking.

[00:10:06] I did not expect it, I did not seek it. And I actually met at a race. In Victory Lane, waiting to interview a driver for my news station, and these guys from Miami were like, Come down, work with us here in Miami. We'd love for you to apply. The job is that you're covering the Dolphins. We have a show called Fins TV.

[00:10:49] To operate a team and you, you know, it's like a different lens. And I think in this day and age, for those types of jobs, sideline even hosting, reporting, what have you, those are really still amazing jobs. Amazing access.

[00:11:11] Within my first two weeks, they asked me if I wanted more hours and then more hours. And so there was definitely an opportunity to continue growing in that position. And, my job from where I started to where I am now is vastly different. I started. Working in the control room at a, you know, click-clack laptop during the live production, making sure that video's played at the right time and doing some edits and running the mar keyboard, the iconic mar keyboard outside of Wrigley with messages and stuff.

[00:11:49] Lindsay: Fan-facing because your job right now with the Cubs, how do you describe it?

[00:12:05] Video board game, or like a fun feature, has to do with me helping coordinate that shot with the cameraman. So I'll find the fan from their seat, explain the game to them, make sure they feel comfortable and confident, and then we'll make sure that shot goes live with them.

[00:12:25] Basically, the story that they did was beautifully shot. They did a great job, and it was great. They interviewed you, your family? It was basically your idea to show up on the banks of Lake Michigan and offer this free Pilates class, and how that turned into this groundswell of support and became this incredible community.

[00:12:54] Olivia: Oh, the thing no one tells you about a small idea that turns into a very massive idea and project is that there's no.

[00:13:31] There, there's no guidance, really. It's just trusting what you have and what you can offer. So where did that idea come from? I was living downtown in the Gold Coast area by myself for the first time ever. And I had gone through my teacher training for a Pilates instructor, being an instructor.

[00:14:10] Would enjoy this too. You know, getting a little time outside. I love being connected to nature. It's my happy place. Getting to move their bodies, connect to their breath. All tools that have helped me in the entirety of my life as I've struggled with anxiety and depression, and, you know, the stresses of life in general.

[00:14:49] Lindsay: So that first day that you showed up there, you had put it on Instagram. What social media did you use?

[00:15:15] Lindsay: Wow.

[00:15:36] And so, were you a trained instructor at that point at all? Yes. Okay. Yes, Had been trained for about two years at that point. Or a year of training and then a year in the studio. And so was a train instructor, but this was a whole new realm, like jumping into something on my own. And so just started teaching my 12 friends, and it was, that's all I ever expected it to be all summer, was me getting better at teaching me finding this piece of community in the city.

[00:16:27] And it's 5:45, and I'm walking. To the beach with my little cart, my speaker, and my umbrella that I set up. And my mom calls me, and she goes, Where are you? I go, what do you mean? I'm doing the routine that I always do. I'm walking to the beach, and she goes, There's a hundred people already waiting for you here.

[00:17:08] Absolutely. Nobody's gonna be able to hear me with this small speaker that I have. Oh my gosh. And it was just the craziest, most wild experience of my life. I was running around in circles trying to show everybody the moves because I was not prepared at all for the dramatic jump from 50 to 500, and then continuing from 500 to a thousand, continuing from a thousand.

[00:17:32] Lindsay: Yes. Oh my God. Yeah. So did you, so you used the speaker as best you could, but you were just, did people enjoy that?

[00:17:55] It was at that point now my dad was fully invested. He saw what was happening, he saw the growth, and he said, We're gonna do anything that we can to make sure everybody can hear you. And so we reached out to local contacts and friends, and used connections to get more speaker systems and things of that sort.

[00:18:20] Lindsay: You know what's so crazy about that is I have a friend who just used that phrase with me for the, I, this is first time, I heard it literally two weeks ago. They're building the plane as they're flying it.

[00:18:52] Like when everyone was dispersing? You did?

[00:19:27] But I think while the people were dispersing and while I was still on the beach, I was so in shock. I was so in this moment of adrenaline of like. Is this happening? Did that just happen that I don't even know what my next step is? I think it, I was just trying to like, sit in the joy of this working, of this many people wanting to come together.

[00:19:58] Lindsay: I think yeah, there's something really, unique about the fact that it's not what you expected to happen, and it was so dramatic. that reminds me of a conversation that we had on this podcast with Elliott Butman who created the brand fait the, they're the, the glitter freckles and the, acne patches that have star, you know, different shapes.

[00:20:48] And I was like, that's a, it's so much pressure, but it's so. Just commendable when you're able to make it work and really do that the right way. So how did you guys do that?

[00:21:08] Let's just like let it happen. You know, let me soak in it. Or like you said, I could have met it head-on and been like, That was the best day of my life. How can I make it better? So I jumped full force into the work. Reached out to friends and family immediately who had speaker systems. Got to testing them, seeing if that would work for us.

[00:21:47] The city had also reached out to us. The city of Chicago had found my number and said, Hey, if you don't get a permit, we're gonna shut you down. Which is a roadblock. Yep. Which is a roadblock. I never, that no one tells you. No. That is the thing that nobody tells you. And I had assumed that when we had gotten to a certain point.

[00:22:25] And then continuing to grow and then have it again for a second year this year.

[00:22:42] Olivia: I think in terms of Rise Pilates Club as a brand and as an experience, what it's, what it, the intention always was to make it a safe place where people could move their bodies, connect to breath, and find community.

[00:23:26] And the most shocking thing to me has been the line of people who line up to meet me after. Never in my life would I think that there would be a line for people to meet me. And I stand there for about an hour to an hour and a half, and I get to hug these people who are a part of the community, and I get to hear their stories about how.

[00:24:06] And so that was something that I. Never expected was the true change and true impact that this community could have on that many people.

[00:24:26] Olivia: You'll be forced to be vulnerable in ways that you have never been vulnerable before, and your capacity will be pushed to limits that you.

[00:24:54] Lindsay: So the impact then for the people that you're reaching is what?

[00:25:01] Olivia: It's been a lot of. Needing community. It's been a lot of needing to come back to themselves. It's been a lot of them going through something really challenging and not knowing where to start taking care of themselves again. It's been a lot of, you know, people who don't have access to taking care of themselves cheaply.

[00:25:50] You know? Or people who are struggling with. Physical illnesses, mental illnesses, who don't know what to do. You're given a diagnosis and you feel lost, and you feel scared, and you don't know who's out there with you. And when you have the chance to go and be a part of something that makes you feel as if there's community, as if you're part of something bigger, as if there's hope.

[00:26:19] Lindsay: Wow. Why, like, I don't know if you're a spiritual person, but why do you think that this sort of thing has happened to you? Because is that surprising? Is it that you have this type of opportunity to help people in such a direct way?

[00:26:44] I'm not mean, I'm still, I'm only 25.

[00:27:20] It was always to come back to the root cause of it and try to really understand with myself why it was happening. And my goal had always been once I had feel better. To help others feel that way as well, because I know it's possible, because I have experienced the shift in the change. And I think that was originally why I went to get my instructor's certification for Pilates was because it was a practice that I knew I could help others with.

[00:27:53] Lindsay: What was your story with anxiety?

[00:28:09] I would like to go in and out of these phases of like cutting everybody out of my life, not answering my friends for weeks, sitting in my room. My parents are like, What do you feel? And me being like, I don't know, and like screaming and crying. And then it slowly shifted into social anxiety. So as I shifted out of high school and into college, it became me not being able to walk into a room without thinking everybody hated me.

[00:29:08] To reanalyze everything that I had experienced been through, and this journey was really up and down. I always like to say that healing is not linear. So in high school, my mom started teaching me some tools to help me feel better with those panic attacks, and for a while, thathelpeds and I feel better. And then you get into new environments that trigger you again, and then you jump back down, right?

[00:29:49] and I didn't want to. And so I dove really deep into all of these tools, into taking that time to be with myself. And everything really changed after that.

[00:30:12] Olivia: I think it was one, not thinking that anybody would understand. What I was going through or why I was going through it, because on the outside, I have a very privileged, beautiful life. I have a family who loves me. I have a safe house that I get to live in. I have, you know, food that nourishes me, and from the outside looking in, you're like, what?

[00:30:54] Lindsay: You're not worthy of these feelings. Come on. Yeah.

[00:31:02] Like, I don't want to have to talk about it. And I think that's, as it continued to go on and on, that continued to become that feeling of isolation. And why I would continue to pull myself away from others was because I didn't know how to express myself comfortably, confidently in the way that I always wanted to see myself.

[00:31:35] Lindsay: So that's, so isn't it ironic that like you went from that to you and hundreds of almost thousands of your best friends, like doing what you're doing?

[00:32:11] What are the opportunities? And you touched on it with, you know, like at your school, making sure that the resources are, that you're tapping into that, et cetera. But also, I just think you are in the cell phone business. Right. And I'm talking to a lot more people who are very young who are doing that, and like, what don't people know about that?

[00:32:40] Olivia: Yeah. I think it's a lot easier to start a business than you think. And thankfully, I have had the support of two business owners in my family to help me, you know? Yeah. Kind of guide me in that way. But what nobody tells you is that it's really simple.

[00:33:26] And so you have to have the confidence, the knowledge, the trust in yourself to know that you can make it work, or else it won't.

[00:33:55] Watch me get ready. But how is that? How have you worked with that to help build?

[00:34:19] Not even just like coming to the beach and being a part of the community, but when they feel as if they're a part of my life, it makes them feel a little bit more connected to the truth, the story, the mission behind it all. Like, I don't ever wanna stand up on this picnic bench or the stage or whatever it is that I'm teaching from and feel isolated or disconnected from the community because this is always meant to be you and me together and not me speaking to you.

[00:35:05] Really? Yes. Starting to bring my dad into, like some little pieces of content now. I think it really makes people understand that I'm a human too. And I am just trying to do my very best in every situation and with every decision that I have that I need to make, to offer the best to the community. And so I think it provides a little bit more of a human-to-human connection when we can be vulnerable on social media.

[00:36:01] I think it's those skills came into, come into play as well when you're, you know, have your own business also, but I think, Maybe being more of the entrepreneurial, Person is, you know, it's more common that people are like, oh, you're going from this to that, and you're, just more of a, I don't wanna say an ideas person 'cause I'm not insinuating that like he's not.

[00:36:46] Olivia: Yeah. It's a constant journey, self-recognition, and growing from who you are and being able to try to hold more or do more, but in a more intentional way. And so I think right now that is the biggest one because this entire summer it felt like. A chicken race, running around and running around from task to feature, and just, you know, doing the best that I could to manage the next thing that I had to do.

[00:37:37] And I'm reminding myself more and more that I'm not gonna know what to do next unless I slow down. Unless I listen again to all of those things that brought this idea to me in the first place. And so slowing down is one really big one. Finding time for rest, finding time to actually go back to all of those tools in my own practice, because they have changed my life and continue to over and over again when I come back to them.

[00:38:24] And so now when big ideas or big dreams come to me, they don't seem scary. I just have to find the capacity to make sure that I can make it happen, right? So that I can make sure that I can answer all the emails that I need to answer, that I can reach out to all of the people that I need to reach out to, that I can manage tasks and manage employees, and that I can still be a good friend and girlfriend, and sister, on top of all of that.

[00:39:19] Lindsay: I was going to ask you about what would be maybe the best piece of advice right now that you really have about how to find and carve that time to be still. But I think what you just touched on, how have you found most effective, I know you're working on it, but to do that, 'cause they're kind of the same thing.

[00:39:45] Olivia: Yeah, I think it's come a little bit from being able to double up my tasks. Like Okay. Family time also comes with rest time, right? So when I am with my family, my phone is away. My phone is on do not disturb.

[00:40:23] So say, you know, my. Partner, my boyfriend is around, and I'm working, and he's trying to talk with me, making sure that I communicate very clearly. Hey, I'm, I really wanna get this done right now. Can I have another 30 minutes before we jump in? You know, a conversation or something different, because when I am in work mode, I need to be fully present and with my work, instead of kind of being flighty and all over the place.

[00:41:04] Lindsay: I don't care what anyone says. I have recently discovered that my sleep really matters, and I know people have said it for years, and it's one of those things that, for so long, when I, you know, have, whether I've been working or you're just doing, like you're less busy but you're doing different types of projects.

[00:41:39] Olivia: Yeah.

[00:41:48] Inviting and that you're looking forward to that. I know you weren't talking about sleep, but I just felt like No,

[00:41:54] Lindsay: True. Yeah. I love what you just said about doubling up the tasks and taking the time to just be fully present in the moment, especially in the moment, especially when you're with family. One of my friends had talked about non-negotiables and how, and that reminds me ot how the non-negotiable in your situation is. This time will not be interrupted by something that is my phone. And you control that, and there's the way that you do that. I think that's really awesome and valuable advice.

[00:42:40] Olivia: I think that goal will always be like there's a part of me that will forever hold on to everything that I've ever dreamed of, right? I will still always hold on to these dreams and goals that I had as a child. And I slowly see myself fulfilling them as I get older. And so I think that there will always be that goal to be a host in some capacity in my heart and on my mind.

[00:43:25] Being Olivia and being a host. And being a reporter. Like I had once dreamed of. And so I think right now the focus and the goal is to grow within my online platform for mental and physical wellness tools, and to grow Rise Pilates Club to a more national scale is really my focus and my goal.

[00:43:54] Lindsay: Amazing. And the platform is called Within?

[00:43:58] Lindsay: Correct. And is it something that people can access now, or is it still in the building stage?

[00:44:06] You can find it on my social media at Olivia Santelli or at W-I-T-H-I-N. But it's, yeah, just an online platform, and it's a subscription-based one where you can get access to Pilates classes with me, sound baths, meditations, journaling, and self-care, all of these tools that I've consistently talked about, but in one place.

[00:44:32] Olivia: That's actually so funny that you bring it up because every time I would walk into work, I would walk in being like, Hi, everyone. Just like the kind of thinking that nobody knew anything that was like that. Everybody was kind of oblivious to what was happening in my outside life.

[00:45:07] and it became this really beautiful moment of, now actually getting to collaborate a little bit with some Cubs affiliates. And we have a Rise Pilates Club event with the Chicago Red Stars, or not red stars. Wow. With the Chicago Stars, they've rebranded their name, and so it's really interesting now to be able to integrate those two pieces of my life, and kind of bring them into one.

[00:45:46] Lindsay: This is an incredible story. Before we wrap, I would ve to ask people, okay. What are three things that no one knows about you?

[00:46:16] I love to get my hands and my feet dirty and go to our family's cottage and catch frogs and kiss turtles, and I love it. And yes, be with nature. Another thing nobody knows about me is that my brothers have really shaped my life. Yeah, so I have two older brothers. And growing up, I always wanted to be just like them.

[00:47:02] I'm still making mistakes, and I am enjoying making mistakes even though I might like to cry myself to sleep sometimes over the mistakes that I've made. Right. I am still. Just understanding that this is a part of the process and the process is never gonna be easy. And the joy of being human is that we get to experience it all, the highs and the lows and the in-betweens.

[00:47:34] Lindsay: Wow. Olivia, I can't wait till you write your book. You can tell me about that. I, this has been so awesome. I think that's just all, it's all beautiful and all, just such a special.

[00:48:00] Olivia: I hope that as well. Yes, the hope is to make it to New York, and yes, a bunch of other places across the country.

[00:48:12] Olivia: Thank you so much, Lindsay.

[00:48:20] Olivia: Yeah, absolutely. There are three probable places that you guys could look, so you can find me personally on social at olivia.santelli

[00:48:52] Lindsay: All right, keep on doing what you're doing and and thank you. Thank you. I was so glad to hear that Rise Pilates Club is continuing. By the way, Olivia mentioned it, but if you wanna connect with Olivia or pay attention to more of what she has going on, please go to our show notes because we will have all the links in there.

[00:49:36] The thought that you wanna go into the sports media industry, because I just think us sharing those thoughts, as well as the different ways that we've had success, pushing that ball forward, is really helpful in the community. So thank you so much for joining this episode of Things No One Tells You. I can't wait to hear your feedback.

[00:50:13] Listeners, we would love to grow this community. We are so grateful that you're a part of it. See you next time.