Arthur H. Steinhaus was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1897. He received his SB, MS and PhD from the University in Chicago (1919-1928) in Zoology and Physiology and his BPE and MPE from George Williams College, Chicago (1915-1926) in Physical Education.

For fifty years, 1915-1965, Steinhaus was associated with George Williams College as a student, teacher, Dean, and finally Dean Emeritus. After his retirement as Dean Emeritus, he was appointed Distinguished Service Professor by the Chicago College of Osteopathy on limited assignment to the Department of Physiology, and then served as a visiting professor at Michigan State University from 1966-1969. He taught in summer and evening sessions at the Universities of California, Colorado, Wisconsin, Saskatchewan, Southern California, and Northwestern. He served appointments as Fulbright Professor to Germany and Japan, did research in Germany and Denmark, and lectured in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Malaysia. In 1944 he was on leave to serve as Chief of the Division of Physical Education and Health Activities in the U. S. Office of Education. During World War II, he was a Civilian Advisor to the U. S. Navy on matters of physical fitness and physical rehabilitation. He conducted research on the physiology of exercise and spent a year in Europe as a Fellow on the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. He was President of the American Academy of Physical Education from 1943-1945. His writings appeared in journals such as the American Journal of Physiology and the American Journal of Public Health, and in popular magazines such as Coronet and Look.

After 1923 he became interested in research to disclose the effects of habits of living on health and well-being. Habits of living include eating, drinking, exercising, fatigue, rest, relaxation, smoking, and various emotional states. In later years his interest centered on the interrelationship of mind and body with emphasis on mental health and total fitness. A good deal of his scholarly work was directed toward interpreting the findings of scientific and scholarly research for the average practitioner in physical education. Steinhaus died in 1970 in Lansing, Michigan.