But she didn’t anticipate that when she had her picture snapped on a beach on Costa Rica and posted it to Facebook on New Year’s Day that the Internet world would crackle with surprise at the accompanying words she posted.

Galbraith, 31, is bemused by the worldwide attention she has received for the post.

Her proclamation of being happy in her own skin has drawn attention from, among others, ABC News, People magazine, Huffington Post and Bustle.com, and the gossip-heavy Daily Mail, which used its typically flowery language in the headline about Galbraith: “Former bodybuilder proudly shows off her physique in a bikini snap to hit back at cruel comments about her ‘weak, fat’ body — while promoting a message of self-acceptance.”

She’s grateful for the publicity accruing to her online training and nutrition business, Girls Gone Strong but thinks the publicity is like something off the satirical news website The Onion: A woman is OK with her body, and that’s news? she asks.

“What kind of world are we living in when a woman saying, ‘I don’t want to change my body,’ becomes national news?” Galbraith wondered.

She knows there are bigger issues. She is the well-educated daughter of serious parents — her father was the late Gatewood Galbraith, a Kentucky political figure who was one of the state’s leading political provocateurs for decades; her mother, Susan Sears, is an attorney and advocate for women’s causes.

But she thinks there is also room for a debate on a society that too often evaluates women on thinness and food deprivation. “No one wants to spend the rest of their life carrying around a food scale.”

“It’s just amazing how much joy we deprive ourselves of because we think it’s not OK to eat a certain food,” Molly Galbraith said.

She doesn’t necessarily want women to be complacent about their bodies. She is quite strong, and likes the feelings that good, strength-building exercise brings. She wants women to accept their bodies, to know that rather than viewing being a size 6 as the key to personal bliss, it’s “falling in love with themselves and their body.”

The support Galbraith has received online and from comments based on her original Facebook note gives Galbraith hope for other women: “If they’re giving that to me, they’re probably giving it to themselves tenfold.”

So many women fail to appreciate themselves as they are, Galbraith said, instead clinging to dreams of a new body after a diet or losing a final 10 pounds. They never appreciate their beauty, she said, because they only see the obstacles rather than the body that serves them every day.

“The trouble isn’t in valuing beauty but in defining beauty in a context so we can make it possible,” Galbraith said.

That means acknowledging and moving on from imperfections. Galbraith acknowledges she has cellulite, the cottage-cheese dimpling of skin in some areas of the body. To this she says: Big deal. “It doesn’t mean anything about my body or me,” Galbraith said.

Even supermodel Chrissy Teigen in 2015 posted photos of the stretch marks on her upper legs, noting that “we forgot what real people look like.”

Galbraith has weighed 185 pounds. She has weighed 152 pounds. She had thyroid problems and polycystic ovarian syndrome, both of which can affect weight. She has done heavy lifting and intense body sculpting.

Now, at 5-foot-11, Galbraith weighs 165 to 170 pounds. Face framed in beachy waves and dressed in fashionable workout gear, she looks healthy and vigorous. She eats well and emphasizes the importance of adequate sleep.

Galbraith grew up in Lexington and attended Community Montessori School, Southern Elementary and Middle schools, and Tates Creek High School. She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Kentucky in finance and marketing, and has an MBA.

Her business — Girlsgonestrong.com — offers products including various levels of strength training packages and an online coaching program. The website also offers some free content.

Galbraith has recruited exercise experts for her company to challenge the multibillion-dollar diet and fitness companies, she said.

“We’re all about body autonomy for women,” Galbraith said. “We want them to look and feel exactly how they want to look and feel.”