I’ll Start on Monday!

What if the reason you keep saying “I’ll start on Monday” has less to do with motivation… and more to do with perfectionism?
In this episode of I’ll Start on Monday, I sit down with Catherine Veronica — spiritual advisor, manifesting coach, and founder of the Podcast Babes community — for a powerful conversation about healing, identity, and the small actions that create real transformation.
Catherine shares her personal journey from restaurant manager to yoga teacher, holistic health coach, and spiritual guide, and opens up about a time in her life when she felt overwhelmed, disconnected, and stuck in the same cycle so many of us know well: I’ll start Monday, next Monday, maybe Monday after that.
Together, we explore:
why perfectionism keeps us stuck in procrastination
how tiny, doable actions create real momentum
the difference between massive action and overwhelming yourself
why tracking your habits can build awareness instead of shame
how to “crowd out” less supportive habits with healthier ones
the role of yoga, meditation, and holistic healing in reconnecting to yourself
why progress matters more than perfection
how small wins help you build a new identity and stronger self-trust
Catherine also shares practical examples from her own health journey from cutting out sugary drinks and tracking her food, to using challenges, walking routines, and what she calls “keeping the portal open” so new support, ideas, and opportunities can meet you once you start moving.
If you’ve been waiting for the perfect Monday, the perfect mood, or the perfect plan before taking action, this episode is your reminder:
You do not need a total life overhaul to begin.
You need one honest step you can take today.
Because change doesn’t begin on Monday.
It begins the moment you stop waiting for perfect and start choosing progress.

I GAINED IT BACK
What happens when you’ve already lost the weight,  and then some of it comes back?
In this episode of I’ll Start on Monday, I sit down with Josh Pettit — Tony Robbins trainer, CPA, and lifelong Star Wars fan — for a real conversation about weight loss, weight regain, identity, habits, and the courage to begin again.
Josh shares his decades-long health journey, including losing over 80 pounds, gradually regaining some of the weight, and then making the decision to restart on March 1; not with punishment or perfection, but with movement, community, coaching, and sustainable routines.
In this conversation, we talk about:
✨ how old habits and identities can quietly return✨ why weight regain doesn’t erase your progress✨ walking, rebounding, and making movement fun again✨ how community and accountability can change everything✨ letting go of all-or-nothing thinking✨ giving up alcohol and creating habits that actually support your goals✨ why sustainable change is built through consistency, not perfection
Josh also shares the simple habits that are helping him this time around: walking, rebounding while watching shows, celebrating wins with a WhatsApp support group, and choosing routines he actually enjoys instead of forcing himself into a plan he can’t maintain.
If you’ve ever felt discouraged because you “fell off track,” this episode is your reminder:
👉 A setback doesn’t erase your progress.👉 It just gives you another chance to begin again.
Because change doesn’t begin on Monday.
It begins the moment you decide to take the next step.
🎙 Subscribe for more conversations about procrastination, self-trust, identity, food, habits, healing, and what it really takes to stop waiting and start becoming.
#IllStartOnMonday #WeightLossJourney #SelfTrust #Habits #IdentityShift #PersonalGrowth #JoshPettit #SustainableWeightLoss #StartAgain

What happens when you've already lost the weight, and then some of it comes back?
In this inspiring episode of I'll Start on Monday, host Yayoi Komiyama sits down with Tony Robbins Trainer, CPA, and longtime Star Wars fan Josh Pettit to discuss the realities of weight loss, weight regain, identity, and starting over.
Josh shares his remarkable journey of losing more than 80 pounds after reaching his highest weight during 2020, only to find old habits slowly creeping back as life returned to normal. Travel, social events, office life, stress, and identity shifts all played a role in regaining some of the weight he had worked so hard to lose.
Rather than giving up, Josh made a different choice.
On March 1st, he decided to begin again.
In this conversation, we explore:
Why sustainable weight loss requires more than motivation• The difference between temporary success and lasting transformation• How old identities and habits can quietly return if they're not nurtured• The role of community, accountability, and coaching in creating change• Why movement became the foundation of Josh's restart• Walking, rebounding, and making exercise enjoyable and sustainable• Letting go of alcohol and other habits that no longer serve your goals• Clearing old emotional patterns to make room for a new identity
Josh also shares practical strategies that helped him regain momentum, including habit stacking, celebrating small wins, joining a supportive accountability group, and making healthy choices enjoyable instead of restrictive.
His message is simple and powerful:
You don't have to wait for a perfect Monday.
You don't have to be perfect.
You just have to begin again.
Whether you're struggling with weight, health, habits, or any area of life where you've fallen off track, this episode is a reminder that setbacks are not failures.
They're simply opportunities to restart.
Because change doesn't begin on Monday.
It begins the moment you decide to take the next step.

In this episode, host, Yayoi Komiyama and guest Stella Tokar explore the roots of procrastination, explaining how fear and the amygdala can override the prefrontal cortex and how neuroplasticity lets you reprogram habits.
They share practical strategies—tiny rituals, pattern interrupts like "killing the ants," the WHOOP (Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan) model, and celebrating small wins—to build lasting routines and reduce decision fatigue.
Stella offers real-life tips for morning and evening rituals, setting boundaries, and staying consistent so listeners can stop waiting for Monday and start making progress today.

Sometimes the weight we carry isn’t food. It’s grief.
What if the weight you’re carrying has nothing to do with food?
In this deeply emotional episode of I’ll Start on Monday, I sit down with fellow coach Cindy Gould to talk about grief, emotional eating, healing, and the hidden emotional patterns that keep so many people stuck.
Cindy shares her powerful story of releasing over 135 pounds, and how the real transformation didn’t begin with another diet.
It began with healing.
In this conversation, Cindy opens up about:
childhood body image struggles
feeling different and wanting to fit in
pregnancy loss and unprocessed grief
emotional eating and “sad fat”
divorce, loss, and navigating unimaginable heartbreak
retraining the nervous system for joy instead of survival
gratitude, heart coherence, and the STOP technique
learning to see life through the lens of the heart instead of wounds
One of the most powerful moments comes when Cindy shares this realization:
“The weight wasn’t just physical. It was emotional.”
Together, we explore how unresolved pain can silently shape behaviors, habits, and even our relationship with food and our bodies.
But this episode is also about hope.
About healing.About resilience.About learning that two things can be true at the same time:Pain can exist, and joy can still be available.
If you’ve ever struggled with emotional eating, self-worth, grief, or feeling stuck in old patterns, this episode will remind you that lasting change doesn’t begin with punishment.
It begins with healing.
Because real transformation starts when we stop fighting ourselves, and start listening to what our pain has been trying to say.

Host Yayoi Komiyama welcomes returning guest Cindy Gould to share her powerful story of releasing 135 pounds through emotional healing after trauma, miscarriage, and multiple losses. They discuss how grief, self‑love, and rewiring the nervous system shaped Cindy’s transformation.The episode explains practical tools—neuroencoding, the "stop" technique, gratitude practice, and mirror/I‑am exercises—to interrupt old patterns, retrain responses, and begin living with purpose. A concise, encouraging conversation about choosing joy and starting now.

What if the reason nothing has worked is that you’ve been taught to fight yourself instead of love yourself?
In this episode of I’ll Start on Monday, I sit down with Chris Rosa, who shares his powerful journey of losing over 150 pounds; not through punishment or restriction, but through a complete shift in mindset and identity.
Chris opens up about years of yo-yo dieting, people-pleasing, and using food as a form of self-soothing, and the moment everything changed.
It wasn’t another diet.
👉 It was a question:“How do I treat myself today if I love myself?”
In this deeply honest conversation, we explore:
• Breaking the cycle of yo-yo dieting and “starting over”• Why deprivation and diet culture keep people stuck• How self-love, not discipline, created lasting change• Ending “food noise” through proper nourishment• The role of identity and intrinsic motivation in transformation• How habits become effortless when they align with who you are• Why you don’t need to rush the process to create real results
Chris also shares how his relationship with food completely shifted, from using food for comfort to using it as nourishment, and how that change brought him something even more valuable than weight loss:
Peace.
This episode is a powerful reminder that transformation doesn’t come from forcing yourself to change.
It comes from finally learning how to care for yourself.
Because real change doesn’t begin on Monday.
It begins the moment you start treating yourself with love.

From Yo-Yo Dieting to Surfing at 44 | Ruth Pettit on Courage, Identity & Starting Now
How many times have you told yourself,
“I’ll start on Monday”?
In this episode of I’ll Start on Monday, I sit down with Ruth Pettit, Navy veteran, Neuroencoding Specialist, weightlifter, and surfer to talk about breaking the cycle of procrastination and finally taking action.
Ruth shares her very real journey from years of yo-yo dieting to building strength, confidence, and a completely new identity.
And here’s the part that might surprise you:
*Even now she still catches herself saying, “I’ll start after this holiday.”
Because change isn’t about perfection.It’s about awareness and choosing differently.
In this conversation, we explore:
Breaking the cycle of yo-yo dieting and “starting over” • How physical strength builds mental confidence• The role of mindset and identity in lasting change• Learning to surf at 44 years old (yes, really!)• Overcoming fear of public speaking through repetition and practice• Using the STOP technique to interrupt negative thoughts• Why confidence comes after action, not before
Ruth also shares a powerful truth:
* Nobody starts out good at anything.* You get better by doing it.
This episode is a reminder that the life you want isn’t waiting for Monday.
It’s waiting for you to begin.

What if the reason nothing changes is because you keep waiting?
In this powerful episode of I’ll Start on Monday, I sit down with Maria Caso, PCC-certified coach, leadership expert, and recovery specialist, for a deeply honest conversation about procrastination, resilience, and what it really means to take action.
Maria challenges a common belief:
👉 “I’ll start on Monday” isn’t a plan, it’s a delay.
Instead, she reframes change through a different lens:
You either start when you say you will or you don’t start at all.
In this episode, we explore:
• Why procrastination is often a lack of true commitment• The difference between control vs commitment, and why commitment wins• What real resilience looks like when life doesn’t go your way• How integrity of your word impacts your results and performance• Why action must come before clarity and mindset• The power of getting out of your head and into real experience
Maria also shares powerful metaphors from walking through waves to escaping the “crab bucket” that reveal how people stay stuck and how they break free.
Her message is clear:
👉 You’re not stuck.👉 You’re standing still.
And the way out isn’t more thinking.
It’s action.
If you’ve ever delayed, overthought, or waited for the “right time,” this episode will challenge you in the best way.
Because real change doesn’t begin on Monday.
It begins the moment you decide to move.

Stuck at Mile Five? | Steve Wright on Identity, Procrastination & Sustainable Change
Why do so many capable people keep postponing the changes they want to make?
In this episode of I’ll Start on Monday, I speak with Steve Wright, coach and host of the One to One Thing Podcast, about why high-achieving professionals often feel successful on the outside but stuck on the inside.
Steve introduces the powerful metaphor of being “stuck at mile five”, that early stage of any journey where motivation fades, and the real work begins.
Drawing from his experience as a marathon runner, IT leader, and coach, Steve shares how sustainable transformation happens when we move beyond motivation and focus on identity, belief, and consistent action.
In this episode, we explore:
Why do people procrastinate and delay change?• The powerful metaphor of getting past “mile five.”• Steve’s VIBE framework: Vision, Identity, Belief, Execution• Why identity shifts are essential for lasting change• How to create sustainable lifestyle changes instead of temporary fixes• Why compelling goals pull us forward more than pressure pushes us
Steve also shares his innovative idea of “My Year in Months”, a powerful way to rethink time, goal-setting, and personal progress.
If you’ve ever told yourself, “I’ll start on Monday,” this episode will help you understand why that cycle happens and how to break it.
Real change doesn’t happen when the calendar changes.
It happens the moment you choose differently.