Osaka admitted to fighting the “overwhelming urge to ‘snap back’”—referring to the expectation that new moms should be able to quickly bounce back to being their pre-pregnancy self, from reshaping their bodies to settling right back into work or hobbies.
“Seeing other moms seemingly shrink immediately after having their baby was an expectation I began to put on myself,” she continued. “That self-comparison always hurt because I felt as an athlete I should be losing weight quicker than most, I was in the gym every day so that thought didn’t feel too unrealistic.
“Most weeks would feel similar to the previous week, and the weight didn’t disappear overnight so it was a bit disheartening.”
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Osaka shared a carousel of photos showing off the evolution of her postpartum figure at various points in her journey. While she initially wanted to caption the post “body changes throughout the year,” she said she ultimately decided to instead say “thank you body for the journey over the past year.”
“To get to the point I’m at now was definitely a journey, an adventure I know that I’m still embracing,” Osaka added. “All bodies are different and I appreciate mine for how it is. My body has done so much for me and adapted so well to the tasks that I’m asking from it, I’m extremely grateful and thankful.”
