Serena Williams Details Her Health Journey

US former tennis player Serena Williams attends the 2025 TIME100 gala at The Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, April 24, 2025. TIME’s annual TIME100 Next list recognizes 100 individuals who are defining the next generation of leadership Artists, Phenoms, Leaders, Advocates and Innovators poised to make the climb and in doing so, make history. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)

When it comes to determination, very few people can match Serena Williams.

The 23-time Grand Slam winner applied the same focus she had as a legendary tennis player to improving her health.

In an interview with TODAY, Williams spoke about changing her diet after having her youngest child

“I could never go back to where I needed to be for my health,” Serena explained. “Then, after my second kid, it just even got harder. So then I was like, OK, I have to try something different.”

“When GLP-1s came out, I was like, ‘No way, no how. That’s not for me. Don’t sign me up,’” Williams said. “But then I looked at it as a sport, like as an opponent: OK, I can’t beat this opponent no matter what I do.”

Since she’s been on the medication, Williams has lost 31 pounds and went public with her health journey.

“I wasn’t sure if I’d ever talk about this publicly,” Williams said in a video for Ro, the healthcare company she represents. “But i think it’s time we change the conversation.”

After retiring from tennis, Williams spoke candidly about the injuries she suffered.

“The sport has torn me up,” Williams told ELLE. “I’ve rolled my ankles, busted my knees, played with a taped-up Achilles heel, and quit midgame from back spasms. I’ve  suffered every injury imaginable, and I know my body.”

After giving birth to her daughter  Olympia in 2017, she dealt with blood clots.

“Lo and behold, I had a blood clot in my lungs,” she added. “And they needed to insert a filter into my veins to break up the clot before it reached my heart.”

Williams also revealed she had a hematoma in addition to her blood clots. To treat the issue, she hsad three more surgeries in the seven days after her C-section.

“In the U.S., Black women are nearly three times more likely to die during or after childbirth than their white counterparts. Many of these deaths are considered by experts to be preventable,” she continued.

Now 44, Williams knows that her health is her most important asset.

44th year, she continues to count on taking care of herself.

“I’ve learned that the end of a matter is better than its beginning,” she continued. “And even though things haven’t reached their end yet, I’m also learning to let go and live life one moment at a time.”