“I feel like a woman again, instead of a broken child”

WRITTEN BY VICTORINE KULIER

Most of us take the absence of pain for granted. It’s like the say: you don’t realize how good things are until they’re gone. Too many of us have had to deal with pain and death or have somebody close to us die. Our new Women’s Best Ambassador Linn Lowes came face to face with death herself when she was diagnosed with an extremely aggressive kind of cancer. Her whole life changed within seconds, and fear, pain and shock became daily companions. In difficult times, sometimes we find in ourselves an inner strength we didn’t know we had to begin with.

When Linn was at her lowest point, she picked herself up and decided to fight. She went through a lot of changes, physically and mentally, and with every little bit of activity added to her daily routine, she grew just a little bit stronger. She focused on treating her body with love and care and managed to come out of it a whole new person. If you’re inspired to find out how to face and more importantly, how to overcome life-changing situations, keep reading this interview with Linn.

P R O F I L E

Name: Linn Lowes

Profession: International Personal Trainer/Social Media Influencer

Residence: Sweden

Age: 29

Actual Weight: 56kg

Height: 168cm

• Hey Linn, thank you so much for this interview! Your story is very special and inspires thousands of people, tell us about yourself! 

Yes it is, at least for someone my age! My journey with fitness started way back, before I knew what cancer was. I’ve always loved being active. I’ve been horseback riding, playing football and snowboarding since I was a teenager. I quit with all of that when I was busy chasing boys in school, haha. I started going to the gym in my 20’ies. At first I only went once a week maybe – I didn’t really like it. I mostly walked on the treadmill or something like that. My real love for fitness developed after my battle with cancer – with the knowledge about how truly important health is.

• Congratulations on fighting and beating the cancer. When you first found out you were sick, how quickly and in what way did your life change?

It changed in just seconds. My cancer was aggressive and I had to start with my chemo treatment the next day. The day I got my diagnosis I stayed in the hospital for several tests. One test was the bone marrow sample, which means they drill in your back straight down to the bone and pick a piece of bone marrow. You can get anesthesia in your skin, but not in your bone – therefore, the procedure was extremely painful.

• What was your life like going through chemo?

Lonely. I decided to mostly keep to myself. I moved back into my parents’ house for support but I never really got out from the house during treatment. It really knocked me down physically. I slept so much!

• Did and do you still have a good support system?

Yes I do! I’ve met amazing friends down the road and my family has always been there for me.

• What role did your partner and family play for you during difficult times like sickness?

They were (and still are) my everything. They drove me to treatments when I couldn’t keep my eyes open, they sat with me through my 8 hours of chemo and helped me with my syringes I had to give myself at home. And ofc, they were my shoulders to cry on.

• How did your mindset change throughout your recovery?

During treatment I was pretty broken, both mind and body. But once I was done with the chemo and radiation, I had to pick myself up, so my mindset changed big time. I didn’t feel sorry for myself, I pretty much just went on with life. I remember putting on my itchy terrible wig, going to the gym by myself. That, I am proud of today.

• What have you struggled with the most in the last couple of years?

Not thinking about death every single day. I lost a friend of mine last Christmas which opened my wounds again. It was, and still is a hard thing to deal with.

• You went through a lot and your body changed just as much in a little under a year. What exactly did you do to get back in shape? 

First off, coming out of chemo, I was super scared of everything. I went maniac with throwing out ”dangerous” things, anything from food to shampoo! I went vegan and everything had to be organic, I mean EVERYTHING. During this time I continued to lose weight. I could not gain anything on this diet/with this mindset. I started eating fish, and chicken mainly – and with that I got the power to lift some weights. By time I gained a few kilos which inspired me to keep going.

• You gained around 20 pounds since you got sick and recovered successfully. How did the weight gain affect you positively?

I completely LOVE my new kilos. I’ve always thought of myself as skinny = looking sick. Now, I got a glow on my skin and even some curves on my body. I feel like a woman again, instead of a broken child.

• What does your workout regime and general diet look like now?

I love the variation of heavy lifting and more HIIT-inspired sessions. I’m pretty kind to myself when it comes to my diet. I’m so active, I can ”afford” some extra calories and treats. I’ve never done a bulk or cut because I want to stick to a healthy diet year around. I want to treat my body with love and care, it’s been through more than enough.

• Why did you choose to become a Women’s Best Ambassador? In what way does the company represent your values and beliefs?

I love Women’s Best range of supplements. I can get all my supps in one place, that’s awesome! They have great tasting vegan supplements that I use on a daily basis, trying to cut out some dairy products from my diet. Being followed by 600k means I have followers from all over the world and Women’s Best can deliver my followers, as well as myself, the best supps wherever in the world we are.

• What are some of your passions besides fitness?

My dogs for sure. I have 3 Italian Greyhounds that completely owns my heart. I also love being creative – and that might be my next step in my career! 🙂

• What are your plans for next year?

I have a lot in store for 2017! Travelling, taking my career to the next step, and ofc keep on motivating people from all over the world to fall in love with themselves using fitness as a tool of health.

• What’s your favorite inspirational quote? 

Oh wow, there’s so many! How can I choose one? I do however really like one that fits so well with me and many others life journey.

”Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react to it”.

I chose to interpret it like we sometimes get handed things in life we can’t do anything about – and we need to accept that. And it’s HOW we accept that, and all other things that makes us be alive, instead of just existing.