But she’s also a hugely inspirational figure when it comes to motherhood. I’ve worked in health and fitness journalism for nearly a decade, and after having a baby last year, I realised just how much negativity exists about mums and fitness. Many women feel powerless to spend time working on their own goals or ambitions, and if they do manage to share the load of childcare, they face suggestions of selfishness or shallowness for wanting to get stronger, faster or more ambitious. Even I’ve faced comments about how much time I ‘invest’ in ‘looking a certain way’ (read: doing the NHS-recommended 150 minutes of exercise a week), despite the fact that I’ve spent years advocating for inclusive, headspace-safe fitness for women.
I’ve also had quite a few friends mention how surprised they’ve been to find that I’m actually a competent, happy mum. Although well-meaning, I’m sure that’s because I’m quite an assertive, extroverted person – something that we don’t, for some reason, associate with mothers. Williams has spent her whole career being accused of aggression; to my mind, she’s the antidote we desperately need to this idea of mums always having to be soft and compliant. Yes, we’re there to soothe our kids and be that buffer between them and the outside world. But if we had our careers and our passions for years before having kids, why should we suddenly give them up?