In this episode of the Create Your Kindspace podcast, Caroline Laurenson chats with Dr Monika Gostic, a scientist, powerlifter, and the woman encouraging others to be BAD.
With a background in microbiology and genetics and her own history of yo-yo dieting, Monika brings her lived experience and research together to explain why it's so important that we care for our bodies and our minds.
Her BAD philosophy stands for balanced, authentic, and deserving. A powerful reminder that health isn’t about punishment, and women don’t have to put themselves last. Through her work in lifestyle medicine, Monika supports people in finding their way back to what truly makes them feel good. She takes a kind, practical approach to areas like stress, nutrition, gut health and movement, helping people make changes that actually stick.
Growing up in Slovenia, Monika lived with the emotional weight of yo-yo dieting and the pressure to change her body. Those early struggles shaped the questions she would later explore in her academic and personal life.
“I was overweight my entire life and that was kind of what informed my interests later on in my life because I was the typical person who's trying to get healthier, trying to lose weight, but having really short term success. So I was a professional yoyo dieter.”
That curiosity led her into the world of science. She studied microbiology, then biotechnology, and went on to complete a PhD in genetics. When Monika moved to Scotland, she began a personal transformation, losing 25 kilos and finding a healthier relationship with food. Friends and family started turning to her for guidance, and something unexpected began to grow.
“I did pretty much lose 55 pounds. So they were like, how did you do it? And you know, people started listening to me. I started sharing some fun recipes that I've got and slowly but surely, I built a community.”
What began as a personal journey soon became a new calling. Monika’s story is a reminder that change is not always straightforward, and that it is never too late to start again with purpose and passion.
“My story is so up and down and left and right and centre and I actually love it because it just gets to show people that you’re not destined to do one thing for the rest of your life. And it’s absolutely okay to change your mind and change your directive and you’re never too old to start something new and something different.”
Monika’s BAD movement began as a response to the pressure so many women feel to do it all and be it all. Frustrated with the rigid expectations of traditional wellness spaces, she set out to create something different. Something that embraced the messiness of real life and centred women’s wellbeing without guilt.
“So Breaking Bad is a part of that, obviously referencing that show Breaking Bad. But the other part was also Bad Mom's film that I watched. I just so resonated with that because it was like, why is everything on us women, all the responsibility, all the pressure, all the societal norms, and everything that a woman is supposed to be supposed to do, at the end of the day, it's the women who are getting sicker and sicker because we are not taking care of ourselves.”
At the heart of BAD (balanced, authentic and deserving) is the belief that taking care of yourself is not a luxury. It’s the foundation for everything else. Monika encourages women to stop putting themselves last and to build a version of health that is grounded in self-respect and joy.
“You know, instead of having that same thread throughout history where we are destroying our health for the sake of getting more money, having more, I don't know, chores at home done, serving others instead of self, instead of doing all of that, let's flip the coin and let's prioritise ourselves. Let's be BAD, and let's really start feeling amazing in our body. So to the point that we are radiating the energy and happiness and it just overflows to our children, to our spouses, and everything else that we're doing.”
BAD is not about being rebellious for the sake of it. It's about choosing a kinder, more honest path to wellbeing. One that gives women permission to take up space, care for themselves and live with intention.
A key thread running through Monika’s work is the strong connection between mental and physical health. Her own journey through therapy helped her understand just how deeply these two are linked.
“I think it goes even deeper ever since I started going to therapy for myself and, you know, unpacking all the traumas from the childhood and how I was feeling and all these consequences that actually have resulted in chronic illness in my body, because mind and body are connected.”
She explains how stress is not just something we feel emotionally but something that can show up in the body in very real ways, contributing to conditions like IBS, diabetes or heart disease.
“So it goes a lot deeper than just, oh, I'm stressed, I'll just sleep it off. It actually manifests inside of our body and it can lead to serious disease.”
This understanding shapes her approach to health. Rooted in lifestyle medicine, Monika focuses not just on food and fitness, but on the full picture of daily life and how it supports or strains our wellbeing.
“I lead with nutrition first. So that's kind of where I start and say, if we have nutrition sorted, then everything else will fall into place easier. But lifestyle medicine goes beyond that. It's the six-step approach to overall human wellbeing and it is nutrition, movement, sleep quality, stress reduction, interpersonal relationships on minimising harmful substances.”
Monika’s message is simple but powerful. Real wellbeing is not just about what you eat or how much you move. It is about understanding your whole self and making choices that honour every part of your health.
Monika’s approach to nutrition is refreshingly practical. Instead of handing over rigid meal plans, she focuses on meeting people where they're at. Her goal is to support change that feels achievable, not overwhelming. At the core of her work is gut health and reducing chronic inflammation. By encouraging simple shifts toward a more whole-food, plant-rich diet, she helps clients build habits that support a healthy microbiome and long-term wellbeing.
“But it's really changing where you are now, tiny step by tiny step.”
For Monika, food is not about rules or restriction. It is about confidence, ease and creating a way of eating that supports how you want to feel every day.
Monika doesn’t shy away from challenging the quick-fix culture that surrounds weight loss. From fad diets to non-medical use of weight loss drugs, she’s concerned about the pressure people feel to achieve fast results without addressing the bigger picture.
“What I'm trying to fight against is this mentality of quick pill-like fixes or I call it microwave society where we want immediate solutions.”
Her focus is on sustainable change. She believes that long-term health requires understanding your body, developing consistent habits, and letting go of the belief that there is a shortcut to feeling better.
“I feel sometimes I'm like that because I'm trying to be loud and disruptive in the way of showing people that exactly what you said, there is no shortcuts in. It will catch up with you. It will 100%. And it's just taking it step by step and going in the right direction. That's what's going to bring long-lasting results.”
In a world full of noise around weight and wellness, Monika’s message is one of patience, honesty and trust in the process. Health is not a race, and real change takes time.
Powerlifting marked a major shift in Monika’s journey. For the first time, she began to feel powerful in her body. Not for how it looked, but for what it could do.
“And when I deadlifted 90 kilo, like it was nothing for the first time, I was like, oh, I'm actually strong. And that was me hooked. Honestly. It's just the whole journey. And it wasn't the physical journey as much as it was the mental journey that followed went from this frustrated, insecure person who is spending hours on a cardio machine feeding carbs. I had an eating disorder because of that as well. And then powerlifting took me from trying to make myself smaller to learning how to take up space.”
Monika now encourages other women to explore strength training, not just for physical fitness but for its wider health benefits and the confidence it can bring.
“But the science behind that is showing that actually it is beneficial for our hormone regulation. Strength training is amazing for osteoporosis prevention. Obviously in all men and women, it leads to stronger body, stronger bones, which in old age is prevention of frailty.”
Lifting weights became more than just exercise. For Monika, it was a way to rewrite the story she had been telling herself for years. One of shrinking was replaced with one of strength, presence and possibility.
For Monika, health is not a privilege for the few, but something everyone should be able to access. That belief guides the way she works, offering free consultations, building inclusive online communities, and collaborating with personal trainers to create affordable 21-day programmes.
“And I feel so strongly and so passionately about educating people. Yeah, it's not okay, you can't give me money, that's fine. Doesn't mean that I don't want to help you.”
Her approach is rooted in care, not judgment. It’s about meeting people where they are, offering practical tools, and building trust through compassion and real-life understanding. Monika’s work is a reminder that when we make health more accessible, we do more than improve individual lives. We build stronger, more connected communities where everyone has a chance to thrive.
“But I feel like if we collectively as a community move forward to help people be healthier, then our society is going to be healthier, then we're going to feel better, there's going to be less hatred, less insecurity, less crime and people are just going to be living in more like symbiotic relationships.”
For Monika, wellbeing is not just about structured routines or strict goals. It is about finding joy in the everyday. Whether that’s salsa dancing, hiking in nature, or roller skating with her daughter.
“It's just that movement of the body that is genuinely bringing me happiness.”
She also makes space for rest and fun, believing that downtime is just as important as movement. Her kind space includes Netflix nights, board games, and teaching her daughter practical life skills. It's all part of living in a way that feels balanced and true. It's a great reminder that rest should be prioritised and it's okay to say no to things in order to make space for some downtime.
“I am deserving of a rest. I am deserving of a break. I am balanced in things that I'm doing all the time. And whatever I do, that authentic part, that part started shining through and I started saying no to things that. That don't feel right, and I started saying no to people that don't feel right as well. And that was such a massive shift.”
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