However, Williams admitted she still plays tennis for herself at home. “I was playing earlier when I first retired ’cause it was hard to do it cold turkey,” she said. “But lately, I haven’t played so much. And I miss it. I’m like, ‘Oh my goodness. I gotta get out there.’ But it’s hard for me to get out there.”

Indeed, volleying back and forth between these two feelings isn’t easy.

“Actually, I did play the other day, and it’s just like, ‘There’s no way I shouldn’t be playing professional tennis. Like, there’s literally no excuse,'” she explained. “But I mean, I guess there is an excuse, right? It’s hard because when I’m playing I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’m pretty good at this. I can continue to do this,’ which not a lot of people can say.”

But even if Williams has to go “inch by inch,” she’s ready to ace what comes next. As she put it, “I also wanted to walk away when I’m healthy and have a quality of life.”