Serena Williams, the tennis legend who retired in 2022 after a record-breaking 27-year career, says a year after starting a weight-loss medication, she is in the best health of her life.
Williams, 44, revealed that despite her intense training and athletic success, she struggled for years to lose weight through diet and exercise alone. She also said she had long feared the risk of diabetes—a condition that runs in her family and disproportionately affects Black Americans.
“Sometimes, no matter what you do… you just can’t get over that hump,” Williams told NBC News. “As a woman, as I age, I definitely couldn’t get over that hump.”
In August, Williams announced she was taking a GLP-1 receptor agonist—a class of drugs that suppress appetite by mimicking a hormone in the gut. These medications, including Ozempic, Mounjaro, Wegovy, and Zepbound, have surged in popularity for weight loss and diabetes management. Williams also disclosed a partnership with Ro, a telehealth company that prescribes GLP-1 drugs. Her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, is an investor in Ro and sits on its board.
Williams said the medication has helped her reduce cholesterol, stabilize blood sugar, and shed about 34 pounds over the past year.
She shared the health update as part of a campaign with Ro, though representatives declined to disclose her exact weight. Clinical trials for GLP-1 medications have shown average weight loss of about 15%, or roughly 35 pounds, in participants who began treatment at an average weight of 232 pounds.
However, experts warn that stopping GLP-1 drugs can result in weight regain. Studies show many people regain around 10 pounds within the first year after stopping the medication.
Williams said she views GLP-1 treatment as “a lifetime thing.”
She also shared that her total cholesterol has dropped dramatically—from 185 mg/dL in 2021 to 129 mg/dL today. Doctors generally consider around 150 mg/dL to be ideal. Williams noted that some of her highest cholesterol readings were recorded during her peak playing years.
Her cholesterol drop is unusually large. Research suggests GLP-1 medications typically reduce total cholesterol by only about 5%, making Williams’ results notably stronger than average.
Lower cholesterol can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease—the leading cause of death in the U.S. Heart disease is driven by obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure, and Black adults are 54% more likely to die of cardiovascular disease than white adults, according to a 2023 study.
Williams said she was surprised to learn she was at risk for heart disease. “That’s kind of scary,” she said. “So I could have been a statistic.”
She also said losing weight has reduced pressure on her knee joints—an ongoing issue throughout her career. Williams has said knee injuries may have cost her additional wins.
When asked on “TODAY” whether she might return to tennis, Williams replied that it was “not a yes or a no” and that she would “see what happens.”