No. CICO is great for short term weight loss. So, if you have 15 - 20 pounds to lose, you can certainly lose them using CICO. But, fat and weight are too different things. Fat is fat. Weight is water, fat and muscle. Water and muscle are lost in the short term. Fat is only lost in the long term. This means you cannot use short term methods to lose body fat.
2. Are carbohydrates "addictive"?
There are studies that show the role of sugar, as an addictive substance because of its effects on dopamine. Other than that, no. The person might be "addicted" to the convenience and taste of carbohydrate based foods, which are usually cheap, highly palatable "junk food". But no, carbohydrates are not inherently addictive and so we do not recognize "carb addiction", as a real thing on this blog.
Nothing proves this more than watching so-called "carb addicts" try to follow "keto". Ketogenic protocols are very low in carbs, but yet you see these same "carb addicts" consume fat, coffee, bone broth, etc, in the exact same, unrestrained, way they did carbs. So, it's not the carbs that are addictive, it's they themselves who are the addicts. When carbs are removed, they simply jump to something else.
All of this falls under a "behavioral issues" category, which we do not advise on, on this blog, as it goes well beyond the scope of diet and lifestyle interventions.
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3. If carnivore is making your blood glucose high, continue on it. Your doctor will not help you anyway.
If you have been following a zero carb diet, and it hasn't lowered your blood glucose, the only other alternative is prescription medication that will, as running high blood glucose, for a prolonged period of time, is extremely damaging and will further exacerbate insulin dysfunction. So, it's not that your doctor "won't help you", it's that you want him to wave a magic wand to do so, but it doesn't work that way.
Your doctor's priority is to get your blood glucose down and your priority is to fix your metabolism. Your metabolism is not going to be fixed if you are chronically running high blood glucose because this will only cause more disparities in blood glucose during fasting. You need to take control of this and many times, that can only be achieved through combining proper diet alongside medications. The goal is to eventually no longer need medications.
The reason that carnivore is not helping your blood glucose is because this glucose is coming from the inside, not the outside. Regardless of what you eat, you will continue running high blood glucose because high blood glucose is not solely the result of eating carbs. You are releasing enormous amounts of glucose, from every part of your body, and you're also converting everything you eat into glucose, as well. Protein is stimulating insulin release, but you are simply not producing enough of it to halt the catabolic process that coverts protein into glucose. For this reason, you will see higher than normal blood glucose postprandial. You have very poor insulin function and a whole lot of glucose to spare.
I recommend you stop the carnivore nonsense.
Carnivore is a fantastic diet when it works. When it doesn't, then you have to scrap it and go back to the drawing board. I suggest you follow a regular low carb diet instead. The intake of whole carbs, at restricted levels, might help reduce this hyperglucagonemia, through the release of a bit more insulin to try and halt the stress response. This will not be a pathological release of insulin, as your low carb diet should not include sugars or grains, in any form, which would cause blood glucose to go too high.
A low carb diet might also stimulate leptin. Leptin helps to regulate glucagon. What you want to do is acquire homeostasis through the careful balancing of hormones. Low carb diets are extremely effective at doing this.
Aside from that, you need to cooperate with your doctor in order to get your blood glucose under control. Your metabolism will not correct itself, until you treat the problem properly. I am not telling you to permanently live off prescribed insulin and donuts. I am telling you to temporarily live off a glucose lowering medication, while including a proper diet and lifestyle intervention. It's not one or the other, as most people believe.
Stop following charlatans that insist your blood glucose "should lower on carnivore" and to "just give it more time". It doesn't work that way and you don't have much more time left to continue waiting. Take control of your own health.
4. If you have an injury, you should never exercise.
You should consult with your doctor about any condition you may have. Your doctor will advise you on which exercises you can do and their proper duration.
A lot of people just assume that because they have a certain condition or injury, it automatically means they cannot do any exercise. That's incorrect. In fact, you will be hard pressed to find any doctor that will discourage you from physical activity, regardless of physical limitations. Limitations should not equate to vegetation. You just have to make sure that the activity you choose is appropriate and will not further aggravate your condition. For this reason, always consult your doctor before you start any exercise regimen, especially if you have a preexisting condition or injury.
5. There is nothing you can do if your doctor refuses to order blood work for you.
You can't beat your healthcare provider into ordering blood work, so you have to seek alternatives. If you can't change doctors, or you believe that you will confront the same situation with a new one, order the test yourself through an online lab like 'Request A Test' or go to an independent lab like 'Labcorp'. You will have to pay for these tests, out of pocket, since insurance will not cover tests that aren't ordered by a doctor.
6. You need to know how many grams of carbohydrates are in the foods you eat, even if it's from vegetables.
You do not count the carbohydrates of whole, above ground vegetables. That's utterly silly and ridiculous.
The reason that carbs in vegetables are not counted is because they come in a form that is mostly unusable by the body - fiber. The only carbohydrate you should be avoiding is in the form of glucose, which is sugar or starch. That's the carbohydrate that affects blood glucose homeostasis.
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