Fitness Savvy

Some people work out for fun, some to get in shape, others it’s their livelihood and for the girls who run Savvy League Fitness, it’s all three. 

Ivy*, a Kinesiology and Health Science graduate from York, is the CEO of Savvy League Fitness which is a personal training program. She started the program after she graduated in October of last year.

“I started it because obviously fitness is extremely important to me and growing up I got a lot of questions just in terms of fitness goals and health. I decided you know what, why not use the knowledge that i’ve learned in university to help people and serve a purpose. It’s been an amazing journey ever since.”

Savvy League wasn’t created over night, it took a lot of hard work and it was something Ivy had been thinking about for a long time.

“I’ve always been active as a child, I’ve always played sports and I’ve always been active just in terms of researching about health and how I can eat better. The idea kind of went on it’s own but the interest was always there,” Ivy said.

Her partner Deborah* joined the Savvy League team in May of this year. She joined Ivy to help other people learn how to lose weight and gain muscle after her own weight loss journey, one that Ivy was actually apart of prior to their partnership.

“Originally Ivy was actually my trainer, a long time ago, when we first first started. Than I started training on my own and we kept in touch. She saw how much I lost and we started connected so here I am today.”

And the most impressive thing about them? It’s only run by Ivy and Deb who take a very hands on approach with their program to offer their clients a unique experience.

“We have a WhatsApp group with our clients and in the group we share meals, we share how our progress is going and how our week is going. Even sometimes how our day is going, what challenges we have, what are somethings you find difficult and how you overcome them and if you have any questions just in general we also do that as well,” Deb said.

They run their program on a month-to-month basis which offers two different options. The first option is two sessions a week with Ivy and Deb, 8 for the entire month, a meal plan and free entry to their boot camp, Group-X, on Friday nights. This package is priced at $250.

Their second option is three sessions a week with the girls, 12 for the month, a meal plan and free entry to their boot camp on Friday nights. This package is priced at $350.

Deb said with both packages you get 24/7 access to herself or Ivy through the group they create.

They also only take on about six to eight girls a month. This helps them to engage with each and every single one of their clients

This is something Deb thinks is better compared to having a bigger client group.

Ivy thinks their uniqueness comes from their focus on individual client training.

“It’s all personal to the individual and I think that’s what makes us very different. It’s very easy for personal trainers to just generalize right, which is obviously not going to get the person to where it is they need to be. You have to factor in their lifestyle and once you’re able to get to know the individual you’ll be able to set them up for success for themselves,” Ivy said.

All their workouts are done either in Vaughan on Langstaff or in Malton on Goreway. The location is based on the clients preference and if they’re training with another client.

“My friend also did the program with me so on Tuesday’s we would work out together in Malton because we both lived there and it was the closest gym to us but on Thursday’s I would work out in Vaughan around five because I would be in the area and my friend would work out in Vaughan around 8 because she works really close by. They’re flexible and fair,” DJ said.

Their boot camp is held at The Fitness Centre in North York.

Savvy League is entirely advertised on social media, especially their Instagram, which is how a lot of their clients find them.

“Through social media, word of mouth as well and of course we are our own advertisements you know. Seeing how I had a major transformation I get a lot of questions about that and I always say yeah, I put myself on my own plan,” Deborah said.

Vanessa* who has been training with them since October joined the program to get healthy, lose weight and love herself more she said but ultimately, it was what they had on their social media.

“One of my friends told me about them and showed me their Instagram,” Vanessa said. “Their client progress pictures are why I decided to train with them.”

Not only is Savvy League run by two strong woman but also two woman of colour which is something that helped one of their former clients, DJ*, pick their program.

“I joined Savvy League because of all their good reviews and them being young black females really pushed me to try them out,” DJ said.

DJ trained with them for three months because she wanted to start a different lifestyle and knew she needed help on where to start and what to do. It helps that the workouts are fun and very challenging she said.

Ivy and Deb are the main reason clients stick to their program and train with them.

“I love their energy and how much they push you to keep going even when you want to give up on the exercise,” Vanessa said.

Although this is something they do on their free time between living their lives and working a job, you can tell doing this is something more than just a way to make extra money. They actually enjoy doing it and they love their clients.

“It feels amazing, it makes you feel like you served a purpose in the world and a lot of people don’t even know or understand the importance of fitness and health. To see their bodies change and their confidence grow and ultimately it’s just not even just working out it’s in absolutely every aspect of their life, mental health it goes so far. I’m so glad that i can be apart of that journey for anybody, any of our clients,” Ivy said.

* Everyone wished to keep their last names anonymous