Editor’s Note: Mark Sisson is the New York Times bestselling author of The Keto Reset Diet, the groundbreaking ketogenic diet plan that helps to reset your metabolism in 21 days. His newest book, The Keto Reset Diet Cookbook, contains 150 keto-aligned recipes to help you slim down, get healthy and go keto the right way. We had the opportunity to catch up with Mark recently. Read on to discover his thoughts on the Keto craze and what led him to write The Keto Reset Diet Cookbook! Plus, get a sneak peek into some delicious Keto recipes!
Confession: Even though I consider myself to be plugged into what’s happening on the cutting edge of nutrition, health and fitness, I was caught off guard by the “keto explosion”— the surge of interest in the ketogenic diet these past few years. The general public and scientific circles can’t stop talking about keto. On the plus side, this has shined a light on the many benefits of a low-carb, real-food way of eating like the one I’ve been writing about for years. On the other hand, it seems like keto came out of nowhere to become the hottest thing around, so it’s being labeled (unfairly) as a fad.
Briefly, on a ketogenic diet, carbohydrate intake is kept quite low. This prompts your liver to make ketones to fuel organs like the brain and heart that normally run off glucose from carbs. As someone who’s been in the Primal/paleo/ancestral health space for more years than I care to admit, keto has long been on my radar. Frankly, I saw it as something that could be useful in specific situations but never considered it to be effective as a mainstream way of eating. I was right that it can be incredible method for weight loss, health and athletic performance, but boy was I wrong about it never claiming a space in the popular diet culture.
A couple of years ago when popular interest in keto started to increase and more scientific research started to emerge, I dug more into the nuts and bolts and realized that I was essentially eating a ketogenic diet already. Meat, vegetables, eggs, nuts, seeds, berries, aged cheeses, and dark chocolate comprise my everyday diet, but I always thought of it as Primal/paleo, not ketogenic per se. Somehow I must have internalized the highly inaccurate message that keto is mostly a high-fat diet in which bacon, butter and cream reign supreme. (I do enjoy those things, but as accompaniments to my famous giant omelets and salads.)
When I saw how keto eating is so often depicted as repetitive, nutrient-poor and monochromatic—and when I recognized that people wanted to better understand why keto works—I decided to write The Keto Reset Diet. My goal was to promote a healthy, not extreme, approach. I would never personally pursue an overly restrictive style of eating that doesn’t allow me to enjoy colorful, mouthwatering plates of food, nor would I encourage others to do so.
With the forthcoming The Keto Reset Diet Cookbook, I relish the opportunity to continue spreading the message that preparing and eating “real food” is one of life’s greatest pleasures. My co-author Lindsay Taylor, Ph.D., and I set out to present recipes that epitomize what we consider to be the best version of keto: nutrient-dense, with a wide variety of ingredients and flavors. From frittatas to crepes, ribs and even chocolate pudding, these recipes are designed to please keto and non-keto folks alike. We hope they inspire readers to see keto as we do: diverse, nourishing and delicious!
Here’s a sneak peek of some delicious Keto recipes!
Click on the title or the image to view the recipe for:
Cheesy Eggplant Spinach Casserole
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Mark Sisson presides over a wide-ranging Primal enterprise featuring the wildly popular Primal Kitchen line of healthy condiments, The Primal Health Coach Institute, a line of premium performance and nutritional supplements and numerous books and online educational courses. A former world-class athlete in the marathon and ironman triathlon, he is considered a founding father of the Primal/paleo/keto health movement. He publishes daily tips and inspiration at MarksDailyApple.com, the top-ranked blog in its category for over a decade. You can find Mark on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Pick up his latest release, The Keto Reset Diet Cookbook, on sale November 6th at your local Half Price Books or online at HPB.com.