• Serena Wiliams celebrated her “not picture-perfect” body with a postpartum bikini photo.
  • She and her husband Alexis Ohanian welcomed their second daughter in August 2023.
  • “I love getting to know a new version of my body,” she wrote.

Some people say change is life’s only constant, and Serena Williams is embracing that as truth. A little over six months ago, she and her husband Alexis Ohanian experienced a huge change in welcoming their second daughter, Adira, and under a recent bikini photo, Williams got honest about the changes her “not picture perfect” body also underwent—and will continue to undergo.

In the Instagram, the 42-year-old posed in a bikini on the bow of a yacht, holding little Adira to her shoulder. She wore her hair tied up, oversized sunglasses, and a soft smile. “Loving yourself is essential. I find that I have to remind myself of that self-love through all different stages in my life,” Williams wrote. “Right now I love that my body is not picture perfect. I love that I smell like milk - that milk sustains @adiraohanian I love getting to know a new version of my body.”

She continued: “It is a change, but it’s a change that has been well worth it. So start this week, knowing that you are loved, and that starts with you. Ok, now I’m about to go to the gym 🤪.”

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Fans and followers were inspired by the athlete’s message. “Gorgeous in all stages ✨✨,” one person commented. “You look FABULOUS, momma. Congrats on your beautiful family. 😍,” another added. “Embracing your whole self. What an icon. And you look fantastic,” someone else wrote.

She may have been joking in her caption, but Williams has shared plenty of workout videos since having Adira, including one that adorably featured both Adira and Williams’ first daughter, Olympia.

In a January 26 gym video, Williams documented some weighted squats. “Back into the swing of things #Thisishowyoudoit,” she wrote. In the clip, she picked up a dumbbell and said, “This is not my usual weight but, it’ll do.”

In a January 12 clip, she wore a baby carrier vest while doing legs on a Pilates reformer (no baby included). “LISTEN—I stay on ‘ready set’ in case I have to RUN 🏃🏿‍♀️ and grab baby @adiraohanian …. But until then—burn inner thighs, BURN 🔥,” she wrote.

As always, whether she‘s on a yacht, in the gym, or on the tennis court, Williams remains an inspiration.

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Kayla Blanton

Kayla Blanton is a freelance writer-editor who covers health, nutrition, and lifestyle topics for various publications including Prevention, Everyday Health, SELF, People, and more. She’s always open to conversations about fueling up with flavorful dishes, busting beauty standards, and finding new, gentle ways to care for our bodies. She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Ohio University with specializations in women, gender, and sexuality studies and public health, and is a born-and-raised midwesterner living in Cincinnati, Ohio with her husband and two spoiled kitties.