Fresh photos have surfaced of disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, giving a rare peek into her daily life in prison.
On Saturday, Aug. 2, the 41-year-old was seen exercising in the yard of the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan, Texas. Wearing a gray T-shirt and matching shorts, Holmes walked through the outdoor area holding free weights. She completed the look with glasses, gloves, a sports watch, and a baseball cap that partially covered her signature blonde hair. Her once-famous bold red lipstick appeared swapped for a softer fuchsia shade.
The former tech CEO smiled during her workout — something she previously told PEOPLE is part of her daily routine behind bars.
Holmes, who became one of the most notorious figures in Silicon Valley after The Wall Street Journal exposed that her company’s blood-testing technology didn’t work, gave her first prison interview to PEOPLE in February. “I’m not the same person I was back then,” she said.
Holmes founded Theranos in 2003 at just 19 years old and, by 2014, had become the youngest self-made female billionaire in the US. But in 2022, she was convicted on three counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. She began serving her 11-year sentence on May 30, 2023, and is scheduled for release on April 3, 2032.
“It’s surreal,” Holmes told PEOPLE from prison. “People who have never met me believe so strongly about me. They don’t understand who I am. It forces you to spend a lot of time questioning belief and hoping the truth will prevail. I am walking by faith and, ultimately, the truth. But it’s been hell and torture to be here.”
She also described her day-to-day life in the Texas facility, where she lives in a dormitory-style setup. Every morning, Holmes said she wakes up just after 5 a.m., has fruit for breakfast, and does a 40-minute workout. Her fitness routine includes lifting weights, rowing, and running on the track — the same workout she was spotted doing in the newly released photos.
For Holmes, the hardest part of prison life is being away from her children. She shares two young kids — William, 4, and Invicta, 2 — with her partner, Billy Evans. Twice a week, she gets to see them during visitation.
Watching them leave afterward, Holmes said, is devastating. “It shatters my world every single time,” she told PEOPLE. “The people I love the most have to walk away as I stand here, a prisoner, and my reality sinks in.”
Despite her conviction, Holmes has continued to maintain her innocence, insisting she never set out to deceive investors or patients. But with nearly nine years left on her sentence, her life now is far from the power and privilege she once enjoyed — replaced instead by the strict schedule and emotional toll of federal prison.