How Serena Williams' Boldness Taught Me To Embrace My Body
In the September 2022 issue of Vogue magazine, Serena Williams announced that she would be retiring—well, evolving—from tennis. After 23 grand slams, countless endorsements, and more magazine covers than I can count, the greatest tennis player of our generation is ready to call it quits... Sort of.
Serena’s announcement comes just a few weeks before the U.S Open, where she will likely play the tournament for the last time. This will hopefully be my second opportunity to watch her play live. I first had the honor of watching her play in the finals in 2019, and it was then that I realized she had given me so much more than good tennis to be grateful for.
Beyond the trophies, the endorsement, and Serena Ventures (her venture capital fund), Serena has inspired me by simply being. She wore her hair in braids and beads at a time when it was seen as utterly unacceptable by mainstream society. She expressed anger and competition on the court when people would rather see her be meek and humble. And to top it all off, she embraced her style and femininity while flaunty her strong, curvy body.
When I look back at her coming of age in the limelight, I realize that Serena took so many insults and naive statements to the chin so that I wouldn’t have to. It seemed that with every blow the media sent her way, she would only come back bigger, better, and wearing an even flyer outfit. Her display of unapologetic Black beauty before the world sacrificially made space for my own.
Serena Williams, US Open, 1999
I grew up as an athlete myself, and I even had a brief stint in tennis before volleyball became my passion. I’ve always been tall, athletic, and curvy, and even when I so desperately wanted to shrink, Serena seemed to be proud of her mass. Once, in junior high, I was compared to the tennis GOAT, and embarrassment flushed my face. I knew what negative things people said about her behind her back. Did this mean that I looked manly or too strong? Was my tall, thick frame not feminine enough? I rejected the statement, and it would be years before I realized this comparison was a compliment.
I may have been publicly offended, but deep inside, Serena gave me hope that one day, I too would be able to embrace every inch of myself. In a world of America’s Next Top Model where women who wore a size 4 were considered too fat for magazines, I remember actively trying to be anorexic for a week. It didn’t work; I got hungry. I even thought, well, maybe I can be bulimic? But I despised vomiting too much. This is not to make light of serious eating disorders, but this was my truth growing up in the early 2000s.
As an athlete, I chased the BMI scale that I now understand was made for thin European women. As a division 1 volleyball player at the top of my fitness, I was 5’10 and 170 pounds. I had a cinched waistline with visible abdominal muscles and strong hamstrings that gave me one of the highest verticals in my conference, but according to the BMI scale: I was one point away from being overweight. My coach told me to do more cardio and watch my diet.
For as long as I could remember, I chased a body type that wasn’t feasible for me. Until one day, I walked out of my college weight room, and an elderly white woman saw me and stopped me in my tracks. “My heavens! Serena Williams! Congratulations!” she shouted from across the parking lot. It was the summer of 2012 and Serena had just won Wimbledon. I laughed at her mistake (and her obviously poor vision) and simply waved and said thank you.
That evening, I looked in the mirror and saw the curves of my strong, muscular body and viewed them in a new light. If this body type was good enough for one of the greatest athletes of all time, it would be good enough for me.
It’s been a long time since I’ve chased the peak fitness of my collegiate days, but I have finally learned that my best doesn't have to be compared to anyone else. Watching Serena dominate the court, red carpets, and magazine covers with femininity and grace, all while sporting a defined physique inspired me to embrace all of the space that I take up and to finally stop striving for a body type that I could never reach in good health.
Serena Williams, thank you for never backing down. For continuing to show up with your head held high, no matter how much they wanted to see your eyes to the ground. Continue to evolve, we’ll be watching.
