Serena Williams is sharing a postpartum bikini picture and insight into her ongoing self-love journey.
On Monday, Feb. 12, the tennis superstar shared a picture of herself on Instagram wearing a white, two-piece bikini and holding her 5-month-old daughter, Adira while standing on a boat—the crystal-clear blue water of the Bahamas can be seen behind the mother-daughter duo.
What was even more special than another glimpse of the Williams-Ohanian household's latest addition was the message of self-love and body acceptance that Williams shared in the caption.
"Loving yourself is essential. I find that I have to remind myself of that self-love through all different stages in my life," she 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."
Williams went on to write that being postpartum "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," she continued. "OK, now I’m about to go to the gym."
Many fans were quick to gave Williams her flowers in the comment section for spreading such a body-positive, inspirational message to her more than 17 million followers.
"Serena-what if your body IS picture perfect??" influencer and body acceptance advocate Katie Sturino wrote. "You are smoking hot then and now!"
"I love EVERY word of this post. You are a stunning goddess," another fan commented. "Thank you for loving yourself. It helps us all do the same."
Williams' husband, Alexis Ohanian, posted a simple heart-eyes emoji in support of his wife.
Williams and Ohanian share two daughters—baby Adira and 6-year-old Olympia.
The pair announced they were expecting their second daughter ahead of the 2023 Met Gala, where Williams wore a full, dramatic, pearl-encrusted Gucci gown that showed off her baby bump.
"Mama (@serenawilliams) & Papa love this parenting-thing, so we're back at it," proud dad Ohanian posted on Instagram, along with a picture of the pair in their 2023 Met Gala ensembles. "And @olympiaohanian is gonna be the best Big Sister—she's been asking & praying for this for a minute."
In a 2019 interview with Allure, Williams opened up about how pregnancy changed her body after she gave birth to her first daughter.
“After I came out (of the hospital), I had a stomach, but I thought, This is kind of cool," she told the publication at the time. "I have a stomach because the baby was there.”
