Lynn:

Are your aching legs and feet a new thing, or is this something that's been around before and is more obvious now that your health is better in general?  Is it a joint ache or a muscle ache?  Those are very different issues, and I really can't give any advice until I know more.

As far as weight, I'm not concerned about losing weight, I'm concerned about losing fat.  4 inches off your waist is great progress: congratulations!  Frankly, muscle mass is a good thing to have as we get older, because it's so easy to lose.  Women who think they're in danger of getting "too musclular" don't realize how difficult it is to get muscular, and how quickly it goes away if you stop training hard for it.

JS

Lynn:

Sorry this has taken a while, but I've been traveling all week and couldn't even do a full nutrition post, let alone respond to all my commenters.

My guess is that you might be going completely ketogenic and are dealing with glycogen depletion in your workouts: this article may be of interest.  Anything further is far outside my purview based on the limited information I have and the fact that I'm an author, not a doctor.

Have you changed shoes lately?  A lot of people who go to minimal shoes, like VFFs or water shoes, go through a period of adjustment as all the atrophied muscles are forced to do work.

JS

Paul:

The support is much appreciated! Please let us know what you think of TGC once you've read it.

Your journey into paleo sounds much like mine: I gradually backed into something much like it over the course of years of dietary research (primarily focused on inflammation), and am only recently going back and reading some of the "paleo diet" books.  And like you, I'm not a big proponent of the cold turkey "Whole 30" style...it works well for a few people who have major intolerance issues (usually gluten or dairy), but for many people the combination of absolute food restrictions and withdrawal pangs sets them up for failure. I have an article in the works about this.

I'm glad this article has been useful to you, and I appreciate your comments.  Do stick around!

Hamahl:

"To say that humans developed large brains because they started eating meat is an interesting mismatch of historic facts."

Really?  What is your alternative theory?  How do you explain away the fact that the increase in brain size just happened to begin after our ancestors' invention of stone tools ~2.6 MYA, and the fossil evidence of cutmarked bones that accompanies them?  You're swimming against a very powerful tide of archaeological evidence.

Moving on: the idea that the Hunza are either vegetarian, excessively long-lived, or even exceptionally healthy is baloney.  The book "Hunza - Lost Kingdom of the Himalayas" (PDF here, illustrations here), by a geologist who actually lived with them year round as a field doctor and teacher, illustrates this perfectly:

"Each family owns so few animals that they can butcher but one or two a year, which they do at Tumushuling time in December. As one sheep lasts a family about a week, this means that the average Hunza gets meat for one or two weeks per year. Since visitors always come in the summertime, this also explains the ridiculous tale that Hunzas are vegetarians by preference.

One of the stories is true—they certainly eat the whole sheep! Brains, lungs, heart, tripe, everything but hide, windpipe, and genitalia! They clean a bone to a polish that would put a western dog to shame, and in conclusion they always crack the bones and suck the marrow. As their diet is deficient in oils and vitamin D, all Hunzas have soft teeth, and fully half of them have the barrel chests and rheumatic knees of sub-clinical rickets."

As far as the ridiculous claims for Hunza lifespan, that's a simple combination of lack of written records and a very, very poor (but smart) people eager to capitalize on the delusions of rich Western tourists.

Continuing: the idea that the historical Okinawan diet is nearly vegetarian and low-fat is, as far as I can tell, a scam concocted to sell diet books:

"The main meat of the diet is pork, and not the lean cuts only. Okinawan cuisine, according to gerontologist Kazuhiko Taira, "is very healthy-and very, very greasy," in a 1996 article that appeared in Health Magazine. [...] Okinawans eat about 100 grams of meat per day-compared to 70 in Japan and just over 20 in China-and at least an equal amount of fish, for a total of about 200 grams per day, compared to 280 grams per person per day of meat and fish in America. Lard-not vegetable oil-is used in cooking." (link)

And their lifespan has decreased remarkably in recent years as they've adopted a more grain-based diet.

JS

Paul:

Absolutely.  But think what a delicious foie gras could be made from their fatty livers!

In related news, the vampires are in trouble now too.

JS