Expert Profile: Leehe Lev

It’s interesting to watch kids play sports.  They don’t really think much about it; in the words of the famous slogan, they “just do it”.  They don’t question what their little bodies can do or what they look like; how many calories they’re burning or how their activity fits into the week’s schedule. When they feel like running, climbing, or jumping, that’s what they do. When they are too tired or bored to play anymore, they simply stop.  We’ve all seen the kid picking dandelions on the soccer field.  When they feel like playing again, they go.

As they begin to learn the rules of games, and develop an idea of “playing well” (as opposed to just playing for the sake of playing), many kids feel a strengthening desire for competition, and a drive to be the best player. When they’re young, most are able to maintain the sense of passion and pleasure they derive from play.

But as they become increasingly conscious of their maturing bodies, their motivation for sport participation often changes. They go from playing for the love of the game and healthy competition, to viewing sport a means of “burning calories” and meeting some air-brushed ideal.  Eventually, as adults, the passion to play is overridden by thinking of exercise as a means to an end.  Most often that ending has something to do with what their bodies look like and how many calories they can expend. They put the “work” in “working out”.

As a young athlete, Leehe Lev also found herself struggling with body image and disordered eating patterns, but fortunately, her experience ultimately led her to pursue a career in health and wellness. A certified personal trainer and nutrition and wellness coach, and founder of Whole Self Fitness, Leehe now shares her wellness approach to improved health with clients who struggle to find balance in healthful eating and regular exercise.

Leehe’s been active her whole life. In fact, she can’t think of a time when she didn’t want to be playing or participating in some type of sport.  She was a natural swimmer, a “fish in the water” from a young age. Hours spent playing in the water strengthened her passion for athletics.  By the time she entered high school, Leehe had become a gifted athlete. Being the one picked first for the team, getting the medal, or scoring the goal were perfect confidence boosters for a teenage girl.

But at 14 years old, when she suddenly found herself feeling isolated at her new school, Leehe started to have body image issues.  She was always told by others that she had a nice figure but struggled to see that in her changing body. She became obsessed with calories and constantly compared herself to the female bodies she longed to look like. And she joined the swim team as a way to burn calories, to hold on to the last sense of control she had over her body.

It wasn’t until Leehe’s first year at York University in Toronto, Canada, that she began to grasp the concept of wellbeing.  As a Physical Education student, she studied anatomy, physiology, and nutrition, and her knowledge expanded exponentially. She came to understand how regular exercise and balanced nutrition could help her maintain her ideal weight while allowing her to eat more of the foods she had labeled as forbidden, without the never-ending guilt she had associated with them in the past.

No longer needing the security of competitive swimming, Leehe began to focus on activities and workouts she could do on her own, and began to truly enjoy her alone time. At 25, just as she started training for a triathlon, Leehe was diagnosed with hypotrophic cardiomyopathy, an abnormal thickening of the heart muscle, and was told by her cardiologist to avoid any intense activities, including long-distance events or heavy weight lifting.

But for the next five years, Leehe remained in “heart disease denial” and continued to train for the triathlon, often completing two cardio workouts in one day.  Just as she was getting ready to compete, a frank discussion with a doctor clicked for Leehe.  She promised him she would give up triathlons and never compete, and decided to pursue her certifications to help others reach their fitness goals.

Although Leehe stopped the intense long-distance training, she didn’t give up on her larger goals. Instead, she worked constantly to improve her nutrition and increase her training options, while staying aware of what made her feel good.

For example, now that she’s more cautious about her heart condition (and refuses to rely on beta blockers), Leehe has cut back on the intensity of her workouts over the past couple of years, and has become quite attuned to what is best for her body.  She also has hypermobile joints and finds that intense activities really aggravate her back.  Giving up running and the other activities she enjoyed was difficult, but not as difficult as the days of pain she would suffer following a hard workout.

Instead of giving up completely, Leehe seeks enjoyment in training and stays active in different ways.  She teaches low impact and muscle sculpt classes 2-4 hours per day, and continues to pursue one of her first loves: swimming. No longer swimming to compete, she hits the pool a few times a week between classes to loosen up and massage her muscles.  Outside of classes, she also continues to weight train, using light weights and body weight for resistance, and tools such as a stability ball and BOSU. When not in the gym or pool, Leehe uses her bicycle as her main mode of transportation year round, averaging about 1.5 hours a day on her bike in sun, rain, or snow alike.  All of this, plus owning a dog that gets a long walk in the morning along with a few semi-long walks in the afternoon means that Leehe is always moving.  It’s a good thing too, because she has a hard time sitting still.

The burpee – Leehe shows us how it’s done!

When she’s not working or moving, Leehe can be found in the kitchen cooking up healthy meals.  She loves fruits and vegetables and is always experimenting with new ways to enjoy and prepare them so that others can experience their goodness.  Lately her approach to eating has been “pesco vegetarian” (mostly plant based with servings of fish and eggs).  She consumes two or three egg whites a day, eats fish four times a week and includes plenty of nuts and seeds (mostly almonds and pumpkin seeds) in addition to all the vegetables and fruits she eats.  Leehe has noticed that increasing her protein intake significantly helps to lessen her muscle pain.

Leehe prioritizes healthy eating but doesn’t trade in flavour or quality to get the protein she needs in her diet.   She purchases chicken eggs from Whole Foods and duck eggs and fresh white fish from the Wychwood Green Barn Farmers Market.  Leehe tries to eat salmon once a week, but only Pacific wild caught.

Leehe loves cheese but doesn’t really eat much of it, choosing mostly to sprinkle a little on a brown rice pasta and protein dish. She also tries to keep her soy intake relatively moderate.  Though she doesn’t feel her body rejecting soy, Leehe is mindful that too much soy might someday lead to an intolerance. For this reason, Leehe limits her soy intake to a bit of unsweetened soymilk and plain yoghurt in her cereal every morning, and a tofu meal only once per week if she’s low on fresh protein sources in her fridge or freezer.

Breakfast: millet and quinoa puffs, oatmeal, almonds, pumpkin seeds and dried fruit over plain organic yogurt and unsweetened soymilk.	Snack: unsweetened banana chips with a spoonful of pumpkin seed butter
Lunch: Steamed kale, kale-pesto quinoa, and curried lentil-duck egg omelet	Dinner: Baked sweet potato (olive oil and some Cajun spices) scallops and frozen peas in a basil pesto

Leehe's treat: home made chocolate-almond puffs

Leehe’s approach to nutrition keeps her weight steady around 125. This may fluctuate a little from season to season but never by more than a few pounds.   Most days, her intake is around 2200 calories, and Leehe likes to live by the 80/20 rule.  At most, she eats out about once per week, and usually goes for something like sushi or noodles. She doesn’t deny loving cake, cookies, and chips but when she chooses to eat them, Leehe opts for homemade versions made with love from good ingredients, instead of commercial junk full of preservatives.  Most days, she treats herself to homemade chocolate almond/puff clusters.  For Leehe, it’s a snack that takes care of her cravings for the day and prevents her from feeling deprived, but also works well with her body composition and health goals.

Leehe’s love of healthy food, cooking, and living extends beyond her own kitchen.  Getting out and interacting with those in her community helps her feel connected and allows Leehe to follow her passion for a clean and peaceful planet. She enjoys hitting farmer’s markets and talking to the farmers, learning about the personality and history of the food she eats.   In partnership with Whole Foods, Leehe teaches healthy cooking classes with topics like Disease Prevention through Cooking (April 14th, 2009), to help others discover the benefits of healthy eating; participants learn some new dishes that are high in vitamins that many people often lack.

She also volunteers with local environmental organizations such as Green Enterprise Toronto, Toronto Bicycle Union, and Green Neighbours 21.

Through all her experiences, Leehe has come back to her roots, finding enjoyment once again in the simple pursuit of being active and eating well.  Focusing on what she can do, rather than what she can’t, and maintaining a balanced lifestyle forms the holistic approach that Leehe successfully uses with her clients to help them achieve their whole health goals.

Leehe is always open to new ideas for classes and welcomes people to contact her by email (leehe@wholeself.ca) with feedback.

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The creative side of Leehe |  Exercise photographer: Kanchan Maharaj