Former Keto Influencer Explains: "I Quit the Keto Diet—Here's Why"

“I wish I had learned what I know now 20 years ago.”

Reviewed by Dietitian Emily Lachtrupp, M.S., RD

The ketogenic diet—aka the keto diet—is one of the most popular eating patterns around. But that doesn't mean it's the best option for everyone. The diet's restrictions can make it difficult to follow, which has caused some of its most influential followers to move away from it.

Once a leader in the online keto community, Janelle Rohner has since transitioned to an unlimited eating pattern. While popularizing keto-friendly food trends like cream-cheese-stuffed bell peppers across TikTok and to her 5 million followers, Rohner now preaches balance and eating all foods in moderation as a certified macros coach.

So what caused this shift? Rohner tells EatingWell everything she learned while she followed the keto diet, including the pros and cons of the diet as well as the things she wished she knew before starting it. Here's what she had to say about her journey.

Related: Eat Well to Feel Well: Your Relationship with Food Is Just as Important as What You Eat

EatingWell: What initially attracted you to the keto diet, and why did you stick with it?

Rohner: Even thinking back, I was trying to think of why I ever started keto or what attracted me to it, and I think it just was so everywhere and so popular that I think I was also influenced by diet culture to try it. It was such a big movement. I stuck with it because it was working at the time, anything works in a calorie deficit, so as long as you're in a calorie deficit, it's going to work. The food can be fun. I mean, who doesn't want to eat cheese? Who's not satisfied eating cheese? So I think I stuck with it for those reasons

EatingWell: Were there any pros and cons while eating keto that you think others should know about?

Rohner: For me, a pro is the accessibility of it. You can be out, and you can easily get a keto-friendly meal. You can say, "I want a hamburger with no bun." That's a pro for a lot of people: it's quick and easy on the go. You can eat out at a restaurant and do it easily. The con, first of all, is that it's not sustainable. And it's just not necessary. I thought I couldn't process carbs. Diet culture had taught me to eat less, less, less, and it's just not necessary. I've been doing it for so long when I could've been enjoying all types of foods in moderation. The biggest con is, you just don't need to be living that way. You don't need to be ordering a hamburger with no bun; you can have the bun, it's totally fine. You can have the fries, it's fine. I think that's something I wish I learned so much longer ago.

Related: What Happens to Your Body When You're on the Keto Diet

EatingWell: Ultimately, what led you to decide to quit the keto diet?

Rohner: In my personal life, at the moment I decided to stop keto, there were a lot of issues online. My mental health really took a toll. You're just trying to better yourself, you're someone trying to manage your kids, manage your house, manage your job, trying to look better, feel better, lose weight on your postpartum journey, and [being] online was rough, to be honest. I was getting slammed by nutritionists, by dietitians, by most of the platform. It was just a hard time, and I really needed a mental break from even thinking of weight loss. I needed a break from all of it, so it had gotten to the breaking point of where I couldn't eat any less. I was drastically undereating—thanks again diet culture for that—I was eating less than 1,200 calories and I wasn't losing weight. When you're trying to lose weight and do your best, and [someone] is slamming you for being a "keto dummy" or saying "Oh, this girl's an idiot," it's like, sorry for just trying to do my best here. It was just a really hard time, I just needed a real mental break, and that's when I really decided to just focus on balance and health, and I hired a macro coach. I wish I had learned what I know now 20 years ago.

EatingWell: How would you describe your eating pattern now? What are the meals you typically eat in a day?

Rohner: I focus on foods I love. Macros have taught me that you can have any foods you love in moderation, so I like to follow an 80/20 lifestyle. I eat lots of chicken, rice, vegetables, fruits, all of those things, and foods I love like candy, french fries, a little bit of ice cream. I plan in my "must-haves" every day, and my must-have is a dessert, so I have what I'm craving. My lifestyle now is completely unlimited, and macros have really taught me that. Actually, being unrestricted has made me crave fewer foods. I remember being someone who had heard that, where someone would say, "Stop restricting and you won't crave things" and I was like, that works for them, but that's not me. That's not my body, that's not my hunger levels, but it really is true. The second I started incorporating all of the foods I've been restricting for so many years, I really stopped craving buckets of candy. When you really don't restrict yourself, you really don't crave those things as much as you used to.

Related: Should You Be Counting Macros? Here's What a Dietitian Has to Say

EatingWell: What does eating well mean to you?

Rohner: Eating well for me is balance. It's a combination of all of your favorite foods that diet culture deems "bad." It's balance and everything and anything in moderation. That's something that's important to teach my kids, to teach women, to teach other young women. I want young girls or women or men to know that you can live a balanced life. I went to the fair and I had a bite of my kids' deep-fried Oreos, and I am still the same weight today. It's OK! I finished the day with a salad, but I started it with a doughnut, but that's fine. To me, eating well is living your life in balance, in happiness and not restricting yourself by still having all of those foods you love.