Serena Williams Says She Had a ‘Difficult August’ After Weight-Loss Scrutiny

Serena Williams said she experienced "a difficult August" and took time away to focus on her mental health, writing on Instagram on Sept. 16, 2025, after revealing in August that she had lost more than 31 pounds while taking Ro, a GLP‑1 drug prescribed for weight loss.

In the post, the 23‑time Grand Slam champion described facing "challenges that tested my spirit and resilience" and said she had stepped back to "breathe, to reconnect with myself, and to remember that it’s perfectly okay to pause and reconnect." She added, "I’ve learned that the end of a matter is better than its beginning. 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." She closed the post by asking readers, "How was your summer?" and used the hashtag #LadySerenaOfStocktonStreet in reference to a new podcast with her sister Venus Williams debuting Sept. 17.

Williams did not specify the nature of the challenges she referenced. She has faced public scrutiny since disclosing on Aug. 21 that she had lost more than 31 pounds while using Ro, the telehealth company and maker of a GLP‑1 medication; Williams serves as a paid spokesperson for Ro. GLP‑1s, short for glucagon‑like peptide‑1 receptor agonists, are a class of drugs increasingly used for weight management.

Her former coach Patrick Mouratoglou told The Guardian that he and Williams had argued in the past about her weight and how it affected movement on the court. Mouratoglou said, in reflecting on her recent weight loss, that had she been in a different physical position earlier in her career "the results would have been better," though he added he did not dwell on regrets.

In a preview clip for the Williams sisters' podcast, Serena Williams discussed being candid with herself about her body, saying she had to accept that she "needed to be lighter" to move more easily and that those were conversations she had with herself as part of making changes.

Williams has said she struggled to maintain what she considered a "healthy" weight following the births of her daughters, Olympia in 2017 and Adira in 2023. The Instagram post follows months of public conversation about celebrity use of GLP‑1 medications and about the personal and professional decisions athletes make regarding health and weight.

In her message, Williams emphasized the importance of small acts of self‑care, writing that "even if it’s just a quiet night to yourself. Anything counts." She said she was learning to let go and live "one moment at a time," and gave no timeline for resuming public activities beyond promoting the upcoming podcast.