Vegan fitness coach Karina Inkster (aka Coach K) joins Michele to talk about strength training for healthy aging, vegan protein needs, and how to build a fitness routine that stays consistent in real life—especially in midlife and beyond.

Karina shares her practical Health Hierarchy Pyramid for health and body composition, why so many of us get stuck in overwhelm, what “effective” strength training actually looks like, and how to stop relying on motivation or willpower to stay on track.

Key Topics (Vegan Fitness + Healthy Aging)

• Strength training for older adults: why it becomes more important with age (muscle, bone density, long-term function)
• Vegan protein without hype: realistic targets, common misconceptions, and why one-size-fits-all advice fails
• Protein density vs calorie density: why “spinach has protein” can be technically true but not useful in practice
• How to build a workable strength training routine (including short sessions, full-body training, compound movements)
• Consistency when life gets busy: travel, caregiving, work demands, and keeping momentum without perfection
• Karina’s background in gerontology (health and aging) and how it shaped her approach to coaching
• Personal obstacles: food allergies, exercise scheduling, and training safely over time
• Communication vegan messages to non-vegan audiences: lessons from writing and refining a TEDx talk

Karina’s website gets you to all her info, resources and podcast:karinainkster.com