A woman left devastated by the sudden death of her brother is now in the best shape of her life after taking up body building - when she inherited his weights. April Compaan, 34, thought she'd never be able to lift the 20kg plate dumbbells her sibling, Joe, 31, had left her after he suffered a brain haemorrhage, in July 2021.
Finding herself consumed with grief, the mum-of-two turned to alcohol to numb the pain. But after months of drinking she knew ''something had to change'' and in October 2022, she took on a personal trainer.
Soon she was in the gym every day and quickly found her ''raw grief easing''. April is now easily able to lift her brother's weights and has turned her hand to bodybuilding competitions - while transforming her physique.
April, who owns a jewellery business, from Norwich, Norfolk, said: “My brother loved working out, but he had problems with alcohol. When we cleaned his flat after his death, I somehow ended up with his equipment.
''Thankfully it inspired me, and I am now training for my first ever competition. My mental and physical health have improved so much since I started, I can’t imagine my life without it.
''I feel much stronger now.'' Joe's death came after he was found with a head injury by his mum, Sally, 62.
Medics rushed Joe, an online investor and author, to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, where he was diagnosed with a brain haemorrhage. April said: ''Despite the best efforts of staff there, he never recovered and received palliative care until he died.
''It was devastating for my mum - she had to move away from the area as the memories were too much. I struggled to come to terms with life without him in my life.
“Drinking provided a temporary relief, and I became very unhappy and unhealthy. I knew inside of me I needed to find a healthy coping mechanism as soon as possible before it got worse.
''I kept looking at the two dumbbells I inherited from my brother lying in my dining room and I went to meet Charlie Davies, a personal trainer. The next day and told him I wanted to start bodybuilding with a view to raise money for charity in my brother's honour, to draw a positive from a negative.
“I've loved it from day one, it's been massive in helping me channel the grief into something and making me feel like he’s here with me. I always hated physical exercise before this, I was really not into it, I just liked eating nice food if I'm honest.
“My mental health has improved a lot and I’ve got much stronger generally. If it wasn’t for Joe, I would have given up long time ago.
“This is for him, I want to make my little brother proud.” Since starting at the gym six months ago, in October 2022, April who weighed 11st 8lbs, has dropped two stone.
She is now a slim 9st 8lbs and has dropped from a size 14 to a size 8. The mum-of-two now trains twice a day, seven days a week at Velocity Strength and Fitness in Marsham, Aylsham, Norwich.
April now follows a strict diet plan which consists of five small, macro-calculated meals a day, such as chicken and rice, oats and protein shakes. After daily training she is now preparing for her first body building show on 2 July 2023.
She said: “My mum is so proud of me, she calls me her little Gladiator Girl. My kids - Cara, 14 and Dylan, 11 - have adapted well to my new lifestyle, and they understand and support me with my diet and routine.
''I’ve met other people who’ve lost their siblings in the gym and are now like me challenging their grief into bodybuilding. It'll never bring him back, but I know how proud he'd be, I'm doing it all for him.''
April documents her progress on her Instagram - @april_compaan - as well as fundraising money for the Mental Health Foundation in memory of her brother.
