Food, Hormones & Hope: A Candid Talk with The Ketogenic Nutritionist
Temple Stewart Interview
As many of you know, I’m exploring low-carbohydrate health this year—not in a trendy way, but in a let’s-actually-understand-what-this-does-to-our-bodies kind of way.
I feel perfectly entitled to make a little fun of myself: nothing makes me feel more secure than talking to a doctor or dietitian. I could be holding a perfectly logical opinion, but the moment someone with credentials says the same thing—ahh, peace descends on my soul.
In that spirit, I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Temple Stewart, a Registered Dietitian and founder of The Ketogenic Nutritionist. Temple brings both professional expertise and powerful personal experience to the table. In this conversation, you’ll learn how a whole-food-based ketogenic approach can help with issues like insulin resistance, PCOS, thyroid conditions, and more—and why blood sugar stability, muscle-building, and quality sleep might be the most underrated health tools out there.
Temple’s approach is practical, compassionate, and empowering—especially for women who’ve felt dismissed or confused by mainstream health advice. Whether you’re keto-curious or simply looking for a fresh perspective on wellness, you’ll take something meaningful from this conversation.
To start, can you tell us a little about yourself—your background, your work, and what life looks like for you today?
Sure! I’m Temple Stewart, a Registered Dietitian and founder of The Ketogenic Nutritionist. I’ve worked with thousands of women around the world to help them lose weight, reverse chronic conditions, and finally feel like themselves again—many for the first time in years.
My background is in clinical nutrition—I started out working with Veterans at the VA Hospital, and that experience shaped a lot of how I practice today. I saw firsthand how many people were trying their best but were trapped in a healthcare system that often overlooks root causes.
I now run a virtual practice and specialize in helping women heal from metabolic dysfunction, hormonal imbalances, insulin resistance, and conditions like PCOS and Hashimoto’s. I’m also a mom of two little ones, a podcaster, and I share a lot of what I teach on Instagram @the.ketogenic.nutritionist.
Your journey to becoming a Registered Dietitian (RDN) was influenced by your experience as an athlete and your personal health challenges. Could you share more about how your diagnosis of Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and PCOS influenced your approach to nutrition and overall health?
My journey has been very personal. I was an athlete growing up, but despite staying active, I struggled with weight, irregular cycles, mood swings—you name it. I was eventually diagnosed with PCOS and later Hashimoto’s. At the time, I was doing everything “right” according to the conventional nutrition playbook—and it wasn’t working.
That’s when I started to question everything I’d learned. I realized that what’s considered “healthy” in mainstream nutrition often doesn’t serve people with complex conditions like mine. It wasn’t until I shifted to a whole-food-based ketogenic diet, prioritized blood sugar control, and supported my thyroid that things finally changed. I lost over 60 pounds, reversed my PCOS, and have since helped so many women do the same. I understand firsthand what it feels like to fight for your health when the system is failing you.
Modern nutrition recommendations often fall short when addressing complex health conditions like obesity & weight management, hormonal imbalances (such as PCOS or thyroid disorders), gut health issues, and autoimmune disorders. How do you approach these challenges differently to help your clients achieve better health outcomes?
First—I don’t do cookie-cutter plans. I take a functional medicine approach and really dig into why someone is struggling. That means looking at root causes like insulin resistance, inflammation, cortisol patterns, thyroid function, nutrient deficiencies—all of it.
I use food as medicine. I’m not here to track every calorie or sell 100-calorie snack packs. Most of my clients are under-eating protein, over-consuming processed foods (even the so-called “healthy” ones), and riding the blood sugar roller coaster all day long. We focus on building meals that stabilize hormones, improve energy, and reduce cravings—without starvation or extremes.
Most women I work with have been dismissed by the system for years. Just having someone who believes them makes all the difference.
Hormones and weight loss can feel like a mystery to so many people. Can you explain the connection between hormones and metabolic health, and share any tips for how individuals can support healthy hormone balance?
Hormones run the show. Your metabolism, hunger, cravings, energy, sleep, mood—all of it is influenced by hormonal signals. If your insulin, cortisol, thyroid, or sex hormones are out of balance, your body is going to fight weight loss, not support it.
One of the biggest tips I give is to stop chasing calorie burn and start chasing blood sugar stability. Eat meals with 30+ grams of protein, cut back on snacking, and prioritize sleep and stress management. Walking after meals, lifting heavy things, and getting sunlight in the morning—these “boring basics” make a huge difference for hormone health.
Insulin resistance is becoming increasingly common, yet it’s often misunderstood. How do you explain insulin resistance to your clients, and what steps do you recommend to address it through nutrition and lifestyle?
I tell clients: Insulin is like the key that unlocks your cells to let sugar in for energy. When you’re insulin resistant, your body keeps producing more and more keys, but the locks aren’t working. So sugar stays in the bloodstream, fat storage ramps up, and energy tanks.
To reverse it, we focus on what I call the metabolic trifecta:
Lowering sugar and refined carb intake
Prioritizing muscle-building movement
Improving sleep and stress response
We also use labs—like fasting insulin, C-peptide, and HOMA-IR—to track progress. You don’t have to guess whether it’s working. Your labs will tell the story.
Many people today are juggling modern food habits with the desire to eat in a way that supports their health. What do you think are the biggest challenges with modern eating patterns, and how can people make small, meaningful changes to improve their nutrition while maintaining a sense of balance and enjoyment?
The biggest challenge is food convenience culture—everything is processed, marketed as healthy, and loaded with seed oils and added sugar. People are tired, busy, and overwhelmed. And unfortunately, most of the quick options are the very foods making them feel worse.
Start small. Cook one more meal at home each week. Swap sugary coffee for one with collagen and a protein-rich breakfast. Replace your afternoon snack with a walk. You don’t need a 20-step routine—you need a few keystone habits that you can actually stick to.
And don’t forget enjoyment. A sustainable diet isn’t perfect—it’s livable.
Your work combines nutrition, personal training, and behavior change. How do you approach helping someone who feels overwhelmed by the idea of changing their diet or lifestyle?
I always start with this: You don’t have to change everything at once. You just have to start.
We break it down into simple, doable steps. That might be switching breakfast to something blood-sugar-friendly. Or walking 10 minutes after dinner. Or just drinking more water and getting in bed earlier. Change doesn’t happen through motivation—it happens through momentum.
I also coach through the mental side of it. A lot of clients come in carrying years of diet trauma, shame, and self-doubt. My job is to help them rebuild trust in their bodies and their ability to change.
For those looking to deepen their understanding of nutrition and take steps to improve their health, which three books would you recommend as a starting point, and why?
Yes! Here are my top three (in no particular order):
“The Obesity Code” by Dr. Jason Fung – A game-changer for understanding insulin resistance and weight loss. It helped me reframe everything I thought I knew about metabolism.
“Why We Get Sick” by Dr. Ben Bikman – An incredible book on the role of insulin resistance in chronic disease. Clear, research-backed, and empowering. This book was absolutely instrumental in my health and also in my professional life.
“Metabolical” by Dr. Robert Lustig – Goes deep into food systems, processed foods, and how modern nutrition guidelines got us off track. It’s a bit more in-depth, but so worth it.
Finally, for those who want to learn more from you or work with you directly, what’s the best way for people to get in touch?
The best place to connect is on Instagram @the.ketogenic.nutritionist, where I share tips, client wins, and real education on metabolic and hormonal health.
I hope you enjoyed this interview with Temple and walked away with something new to think about when it comes to nutrition, hormones, and whole-body health. If something resonated with you, share this conversation with a friend or family member—because learning and healing are always better when we do them together.
To our health and inspiration,
Kenden
Thank you! I learned a lot too. I wish I had known all this in my teens and nutrition science changes all the time. Thanks for reading
I really appreciate this interview! I learned a lot.