BLOG | Dietitian Lesley

Healing is the art of embracing our own wholeness, nourishing our body, calming our mind and connecting with our soul.

From Clinical to Functional Nutrition: My Journey

Unlike many, I may not have a had to deal with a personal health crisis but my story begins in a quieter way- with a deep curiosity.

I love nutrition- plain and simple!

From the time I could read, my book collection was full of nutrition books. And to this day I get to witness the power of healing foods and it continues to amaze me.

My career begins with over 25 years of specialized experience in Critical Care and Oncology Nutrition, as a Certified Nutrition Support Clinician. Throughout my years in clinical practice, I have witnessed the profound role that nutrition plays in acute care and disease management.

Then one day I came across a short presentation on Functional Foods. I remember thinking, what is that?

That moment sparked something in me. Within months I began training and earned board certification in Integrative Functional Nutrition—a distinction held by only a few Registered Dietitians in Canada. Each and every lesson I kept saying to myself "this can really help people." I learned about nutrition in a whole new and healing way- like the early books in my collection.

Beyond my professional training, I am also a Certified Meditation and Mindfulness Teacher and a qualified Mindfulness-Based Eating Instructor (MB-EAT). These practices have deepened my work, allowing me to support clients with not only food and supplements but also nervous system regulation that I believe is the foundation of true healing.

So I took the leap, followed my dreams and opened a virtual private practice dedicated to Functional Nutrition.

Since then, I have supported hundreds of men and women through my Vitality Nutrition Method- starting with a Personalized Plan that addresses deeper root cause issues, and providing the right tools and support to help them stay the course.

And here is what I am learning: Personalized nutrition has the ability to transform lives in ways that continue to amaze me. I have seen energy return to clients who thought fatigue was their “new normal.” I have witnessed life-long digestive issues restored and healed. Clients share with me daily that they experience improved sleep, lab values normalize, aches and pains disappear and best of all they 'learn' a whole new way of eating that works. Every day I am reminded that when we address the root cause and give the body what it truly needs, nutrition becomes so much more than food on a plate — it becomes medicine, vitality and a pathway back to feeling like yourself again.

Right now I am working on expanding my passions into full programs that blend Functional Nutrition with Meditation- my two passions. But until then- I am here, supporting each and every client with care, a proven method & strategy and a belief in the power of nutrition to transform lives.