By JULIE CARLE
BG Independent News
As a student at Bowling Green State University, Mykel Lindsay was a cheerleader, a journalism major and a service award winner for a nonprofit she launched to help high school graduates transition to college.
Today, the 2013 BGSU alumna is Mykel B. Davis, founder and chief executive officer for Muscle Up Mommy®, a brand at the intersection of motherhood, innovation and empowerment. She exudes the same energy, dedication and enthusiasm for her current brand as she gave to her student commitments.
Muscle Up Mommy originated as her personal mantra to help her through the challenges of being a first-time mother to twins. The struggle started early when she was put on bed rest halfway through her pregnancy.
“That was completely different from what I was used to,” said the A-type, on-the-go personality. “This was new for me. There was no blueprint.”
She started coaching herself throughout the day, “Come on. Muscle up mommy. You got this.”
Davis went online to find a community of other moms who were experiencing the same feelings and emotions, looking for guidance. When she couldn’t find exactly what she was seeking, she decided to create that community on her own.
“That turned into us starting to work out together,” she said. A support group was born. From there, resources were gathered, and she started a fitness-based business that has grown into “a full ecosystem, offering support for moms in all stages—maternity, postpartum, nursing and beyond.”
The business didn’t happen overnight. It’s been a 10-year journey to create the flourishing success of Muscle Up Mommy.
Life lessons started in childhood through college
The success she is manifesting now in her personal life and entrepreneurship is deeply rooted in her past. Starting with her discovery of a passion for cheer in third grade, Davis continued the sport through her college years.
As a member of the BGSU all-girl cheer team coached by Anne Marie King, Davis learned the importance of punctuality and the value of community, networking and building relationships.
She gained significant experience in her journalism major and as a journalist for the student media team. In fact, she chose BGSU because of the experienced journalism faculty. “I wanted to sit under their leadership as journalists who came back to share their hands-on knowledge as instructors,” she said.
She started the nonprofit, EASY (Encouraging Academic Success to our Youth) Incorporated, “to make sure that students who were coming behind me had access to the FAFSA and knew about funding opportunities beyond just getting student loans,” she explained.
For her efforts in helping to motivate Detroit-area students between grades 8-12 and further their education through mentorship and presentations, Davis received the Hofmeister Service and Civic Engagement Award.
After graduating, she worked as an admissions representative for other colleges, helping students find resources to transition into higher education. “I might not have gone directly into journalism after BG, but the work still weaved in my BGSU experiences,” she said.
She also earned a master’s degree from the Eli Broad School of Business at Michigan State University.
From fitness to all stages of motherhood
She launched Muscle Up Mommy, named for her positive affirmation into motherhood, after her twin daughters were born. “It was that mantra that kind of put a battery pack on your back as a reminder that ‘You got this.’”
What started exclusively as a fitness organization has expanded to include a variety of resources, including lactation consultants and a maternal health therapist.
“I had done the fitness training for seven years, and right before my 30th birthday, I had a self-discovery moment,” she said. She couldn’t see herself continuing “coaching and jumping around” for the rest of her life. That decision was confirmed when she got pregnant with her third daughter, Kinsley. “I knew it was time to switch gears,” she said.
That is when she pivoted and expanded the firm beyond a fitness brand. “We were getting more into the maternity and nursing side of the industry now, in part because of my own lived experience,” Davis said.
Davis’s younger sister innocently asked her after Kinsley was born if it was weird breastfeeding only one baby after nursing the twins. As she nursed the baby on one breast, the other breast would leak milk. “I knew I needed a pump or something to collect the milk, but when I looked at the market, there was nothing available that would work for my busy lifestyle,” she recalled.
The only double-suction pumps required the mother to be “tethered to the wall,” she said. “How can I move around when I’m trying to breastfeed and pump?“
The existing systems prevented her from performing daily activities such as washing the dishes, taking care of her family, or navigating her career.
Her solution ended up being the biggest development in Muscle Up Mommy—the J35 wearable breast pump. It operates as a single-suction pump, so it can be used on one side while the baby is latched on the other side. But there are two pumps in each box, which can be worn and used discreetly for working and active mothers.
Davis had worked with manufacturers to put together the active wear and waist trainer products in her fitness brand, but she admitted her expertise was not in tech or engineering. Through her work with the manufacturing team for the early products in her brand, she was partnered with a team of engineers who assisted with designing and creating prototypes for the wearable breast pump concept.
“We created our pump to have the motors inside the pump, so there are no cords, no clunky parts to carry, and it’s easy to clean,” she said. “This is what moms need. This will change their lives.”
They went to market in November 2023, and the product sold “like wildfire.” To date, the company has sold over 20,000 units.
Mumfest expands community
Her latest venture is Mumfest, an inaugural wellness festival that she hosted in Houston in August. The event brought together women from across the county, representing various industries. They enjoyed panels, workshops, entertainment and a marketplace to celebrate and empower mothers.
“We had built our community for a decade, and people were wanting more than just fun,” she said. “I wanted to bring the community together.”
Her idea from 2021 was delayed due to COVID, but it turned into a wellness festival that included mothers, women in business, and people who were in the wellness space.
There were lactation consultants and pelvic floor therapists to help mothers in postpartum. There were doulas and mental wellness therapists, and a woman who works with children to provide autism services.
Its success was such that she plans to continue and expand the concept for the 2nd Annual Mumfest on Aug. 8, 2026.
“This all has been a great ride,” she said. “Community is so necessary; without it, I would not be able to be who I am today.”
For more information about Davis’s ecosystem of products, services and events, visit her website at muscleupmommy.com. She is also a content creator on Instagram, Facebook, X, Pinterest, TikTok and YouTube.
