A Local Firefighter’s Journey Into Peptide Therapy
Laguna Beach local Gina Parlette, founder of KŌA Wellness, didn’t set out to build a peptide coaching practice. She set out to heal her own shoulder.
A former Laguna lifeguard who grew up in the surf, a Division I athlete at the University of Hawaiʻi, and now a firefighter/paramedic with Chino Valley Fire Department for the past decade, Gina has always lived in a body that needed to perform. Strength wasn’t aesthetic. It was functional. It was required.
She’s also a mom of two boys, which meant when her shoulder dislocated — again — surgery wasn’t a simple decision. She needed to be strong at work and fully present at home.
That injury is what led her into the world of peptide therapy.
The Shoulder Injury That Changed Everything
For nearly 15 years, Gina dealt with chronic shoulder instability. Dislocations. Pain. Physical therapy that helped but never fully fixed the issue.
Then came a traumatic dislocation that felt different.
She first heard about peptides at her fire station. At the time, she was skeptical. The wellness space is full of noise, and she’s not someone who jumps into trends.
Instead, she researched. She found a licensed medical provider she trusted. She committed to a structured, supervised healing protocol that included regenerative peptides such as BPC-157 and TB-500, which are often used to support tissue repair and inflammation regulation.
Within weeks, she felt more stability. Within months, she was regaining strength and power.
Four months later, imaging confirmed what she was already feeling — her labrum had healed.
That moment shifted her understanding of what the body is capable of when given the right signals.
What Peptide Therapy Actually Is
The word “peptides” can feel intimidating. Gina explains it simply:
“They’re messengers.”
Peptides are short chains of amino acids that signal specific functions in the body — healing, inflammation control, metabolic regulation, cellular repair. Over time, stress, injury, and aging can dull those signals. Peptide therapy aims to restore communication pathways under medical supervision.
But not all peptides are the same.
Some are regenerative, like BPC-157 and TB-500, often used in injury recovery. Others target metabolic health and blood sugar regulation. Some influence inflammation, hormone signaling, or cellular repair.
“It’s not about forcing the body to do something unnatural,” Gina says. “It’s about supporting what the body is already designed to do.”
Personalization matters. Baseline labs matter. Working alongside a licensed provider matters.
The Metabolic Chapter and GLP-1 Therapy
After healing her shoulder, Gina encountered something many women in their late 30s and early 40s quietly experience.
She was training consistently. Eating well. Disciplined. And her body composition wasn’t shifting. That’s when she explored microdosing tirzepatide, a dual-pathway GLP-1 medication, under medical supervision.
GLP-1 medications are often framed solely as weight-loss drugs, but Gina approaches them differently. She focuses on low, individualized dosing paired with strength training, protein intake, and sustainable habits.
“I specialize in optimizing peptide therapy — especially GLP-1s — by pairing them with simple lifestyle inputs,” she explains. “The goal isn’t rapid weight loss. It’s metabolic optimization.”
For her personally, the shift wasn’t dramatic overnight weight loss. It was clearer thinking. Reduced systemic inflammation. Steady energy. A noticeable change in body composition — losing body fat while maintaining and building muscle.
When I first connected with Gina in early November, I was curious but cautious. Like many women, I was hearing about GLP-1 medications everywhere and wasn’t interested in extremes. She walked me through the concept of microdosing and why muscle preservation and resistance training are critical.
For me, the biggest shift was reduced inflammation and mental clarity — feeling like my metabolism wasn’t fighting me anymore.
That nuance matters.
Debunking Common Myths About GLP-1s
There’s a lot of conversation around GLP-1 therapy right now, and not all of it is accurate.
One misconception is that these medications are only about weight loss.
“They reduce neuroinflammation, can support dopamine regulation, improve blood sugar control, and influence hormone signaling,” Gina explains. “Weight loss is just one piece.”
Another issue is muscle loss.
Without proper nutrition and strength training, people can lose significant muscle mass while on GLP-1 medications — sometimes up to 40 percent of total weight lost coming from muscle. That’s not the goal.
“Muscle is metabolic health,” she says. “Fat loss without muscle preservation is not success.”
She also sees problems with aggressive, one-size-fits-all prescribing.
“Being able to adjust dosing with a provider is a game changer. The peptide should work for the individual — not against them.”
Education always comes before promotion.
Why She Created KŌA Wellness
After healing her shoulder and optimizing her metabolism, Gina describes feeling strong in a way that went beyond aesthetics.
Her youngest son’s name is Koa, which means “warrior” in Hawaiian. The symbolism stuck.
KŌA Wellness was born from that season — not as a trend-based business, but as a response to her own experience.
She now offers 1:1 coaching and a structured 12-week GLP-1 support program designed to provide education, accountability, and individualized guidance.
To date, she has guided more than 50 clients through peptide therapy protocols in partnership with a licensed telehealth medical provider that ships prescriptions across the United States.
Her focus remains consistent: structured support, safety, and sustainable results.
A Laguna Perspective
Gina still trains. Still works shifts at the firehouse. Still raises two boys who love the ocean.
She’s not chasing wellness fads. She’s someone who needed answers for her own body and found them through medically supervised peptide therapy and thoughtful metabolic coaching.
For Laguna Beach locals who are curious but cautious about peptides or GLP-1 therapy, her grounded approach feels different.
Learn more about KŌA Wellness HERE.
Book a peptide coaching call HERE.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a licensed medical provider before beginning any new therapy.
