Day 1
Today was the very first day I began the Master Cleanse, or what some like to call "The Lemonade Diet." I found out about the Master Cleanse about 2 months ago while reading an interview that a reporter had with the singer, Beyonce. Now, I am not a fan of Beyonce's, but I am looking forward to the movie Dreamgirls that she will be co-starring in, which will be released in December. While reading the interview, I noticed that the reporter asked her how she lost 20 pounds in 10 days. This really caught my attention...not because I felt I needed to lose weight, but to see what kind of diet allowed for someone to lose such a large amount of weight within a short period of time. I also wondered whether or not it was healthy. Beyonce responded saying that "they" had her on a cleansing diet, which consisted of maple syrup, lemon juice, cayenne pepper, and water. I immediately thought that this was a "recipe for disaster." It sounded so disqusting!
Since I didn't know what the "diet" was called, I went to the Yahoo Search engine and typed in "The Maple Syrup Diet." Once I did this, I found several websites detailing this diet. I also learned that it was also called "The Master Cleanse" and "The Lemonade Diet." I noticed that the "diet" was not really a diet at all, but a fast. It was a way to detoxify your body, removing all of the mucus and harmful materials which exists inside of the body. I also learned that it is these very toxins that cause one to feel tired all the time, causes one to become depressed and think negative thoughts; I learned that these toxins-especially when they have been inside of the body for years-can cause one to experience lack of energy, and weight gain. These toxins can also lead to different types of life threatening illnesses, including cancer. After days of researching the Master Cleanse, I decided that I would like to do it myself, and here's why: first of all, physically, I feel tired all the time. I barely have the enery I need in order to do everyday chores around my house. In addition, I have a hard time sleeping at night. I could go to bed and lay there for hours and not fall asleep until 1:00 a.m., only to have to wake up again by 6:30 p.m. I had also started to gain a little weight and felt bloated all the time. My diet was is wrong. I know how to eat healthily, but I am always craving the wrong foods, such as chips, ice cream, cheesecake, chocolate cake, fast food, and many other things that I knew I shouldn't have been eating. Whenever I have a craving, my brain tells me that I gotta have it. Therefore, I rush on over to the grocery store, purchase the overly processed foods that I want to eat, come home, and eat until my heart is content. Deep down, I felt as though I was being a bad example-a hypocrite-to my two little boys, ages 5 and 1. I always explain the importance of healthy eating to my kids, but I am not living the life myself. The oldest often wonder why I tell him that eating too many sweets was wrong, yet, I was doing it myself. He even flipped the script on me, saying "Mommy, you are not supposed to eat too many sweets. It is not good for you. Why are you eating all of this ice cream?" Deep down, I knew that he was right, but since I really had nothing to say, I hit him with the "because I am the Mommy and you are the kid" line.
Another reason I decided to do the Master Cleanse is for spiritual reasons. I really want to get my spirituality in check, and I need a clear mind. I need to really find out what it is that God wants me to do and stop trying to always figure out my life on my own. Many times, I know what I want to do, but my mind is so clogged, that I can't even think straight. I believe that this cleanse will help to clear my mind. With a clear mind, I can really allow for God to come in and take control of my life.
I really just want to live a healthier lifestyle. I want more energy. I want to sleep better. I want for my boys to grow up leading a healthy lifestyle as well. When you are healthy, you are rich. What do I mean by that? You can have all the money in the world, but if you are in poor health, you really have nothing. How many rich people in poor health would spend all of their riches in exchange for good health?
Nothing in life is guaranteed. Life itself isn't guaranteed. But since I do plan to live for a long time, I plan to lead a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle. It would be a shame for me to reach the age of 40 (I am 26 now) and have the doctor tell me that I have a life-threatening illness because of choices and habits that I developed when I was younger. I feel that it is our duty to lead a healthy lifestyle. It is our duty to make the right choices in everything we do in life...including the foods we eat. I feel that people who say things such as "well, you gotta die with something," and eat the wrong foods on purpose are pretty ignorant people.
Many times, we do not think about the things that we eat early on in life...it is only when we are up in age when we say "if only I lead a healthier lifestyle when I was younger...if only I didn't eat ice cream all the time, if only, if only, if only..."
OK, enough talking. Basically, my main reason for starting this blog is to keep a journal of my 7 day journey doing the Master Cleanse. Actually, it is recommended that one does it for a minimum of 10 days, but since Thanksgiving is coming up, I need time to get my body use to eating solid foods again. I am doing The Master Cleanse along with the Salt Water Flush. Yes, I know I only mentioned the Master Cleanse earlier in this blog, so at the end of this post, I will include links where you can find more information about the Salt Water Flush and its benefits, as well as more information on the Master Cleanse.
5:00: Woke up mixed together 32 ounces of lukewarm water with 2 teaspoons of non-iodized sea salt. I had to chug it. The taste really isn't pleasant, but I drank all of it in less than 10 minutes.
I then went back to bed.
NOTE: I read on many different websites that you should experience eliminations within the first hour. I didn't know whether they were talking about simply urinating, or bowel movements. I have urinated quite a few times this morning, but as of 10 a.m. November 13, I have not yet made a single bowel movement.
6:30 a.m.: Woke up, mixed together 2 tablespoons of organic lemon juice (1/2 of a lemon) 2 tablespoons of pure organic GRADE B Maple Syrup, 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper, and 8 ounces of water. Surprisingly, it tastes pretty good...like a spicy lemonade.
9:30 a.m.: Had another glass of the lemonade mixture. At this time, I do not feel hungry, but I am still craving the foods I usually eat. I saw coupons for Pizza Hut, and I desire a pizza with extra cheese more than ever. I also know that i have cookies in the cupboard so I desire those as well. I would also like a bowl of Fruit Loops. I guess I am just craving something solid, which is common for those who are just starting out on the cleanse. While doing this cleanse, solid foods should NOT be consumed. In fact, while on the cleanse, you are to consume nothing but the salt water, the lemonade, and water. That's it. At this time, I must admit I do feel a little irritated, but this is common. I believe wholehearthedly that in the end, it will be well worth it. It is recommended that one consumes 6-12 glasses of the lemonade for each day they are on the cleanse, so I will have a cup every 3 hours.
12:30 p.m. Just had my third cup of the lemonade. I am starting to look forward to these cups of lemonade. The lemonade tastes really really good. I don't feel hungry either. Now, that doesn't mean that I still don't have a desire for food, because each trip to the kitchen is a battle for me right now.
3:30 p.m. Just had my fourth cup of the lemonade. Geez, whomever said that this would be easy HAS to be lying. Drinking the lemonade is not hard. It is actually delicious. The hard thing for me is resisting temptation to eat food. Especially junk food. I am having a battle with myself and food right now. Lord, please help me to carry through. I still don't feel hungry, but my husband just came home from work with some sour cream and onion potato chips. I love sour cream and onion chips so much. I kept trying to smell them in order to try and taste them that way, but that only made me want them even more. They are in the cupboard now-along with the cookies, which I am also trying my hardest to resist. I can't stop now. I will not quit. I will keep going until the end, with God's help. If my refrigerator was completely empty and we had absolutely no food except for the ingredients for the salt water flush and the lemonade, I would soar right on through this. But knowing that the foods I love are in there, it is a struggle for me. I'll be fine. I will.
6:58 p.m. Just finished my 5th glass of lemonade. It was really good. This time, I used to ounces of water instead of 8. I still don't feel hungry one bit, but dinner time was difficult for me. I cooked one of my favorite dinners-breakfast for dinner! I fixed pancakes and eggs with cheese. It looked and smelled so delicious, but I couldn't even have any. It is so hard to prepare food for your family, but not be able to eat it yourself. I almost slipped up quite a few times. First, I started to taste "just a little piece" of my son's pancake, I wanted to lick the eggs off of the spatula-you know, things like that. But deep down, I know myself. A "lick" would have turned into a full serving. A "piece" of pancake would have turned into a whole pancake. I am happy that I was able to resist temptation that time, because I usually give in.
My next and final glass of lemonade is at 9:30. Then, I will retire for the evening. Wow, I can't believe almost a whole day has gone by and I haven't eaten even a morsel of solid food. This is the first time I have done this, ladies and gentlemen and I feel good.
10:26 p.m.Just drank my final glass of lemonade. Actually, I was supposed to drink it an hour ago, but started working and forgot about it. I didn't even feel hungry or anything like that and I actually had to remember to take it. I mixed all of the ingredients as I normally would, except that I accidentally added too much water. The recipe calls for 8-10 ounces of water, and I probably drank at least 16 ounces. I am quite confident that no harm was done, although I am not complete sure. But anyway, I feel great and I look forward to doing it all over again tomorrow.
For more information on the Master Cleanse, The Salt Water flush, and Stanley Burroughs, please visit http://www.falconblanco.com/health/cleansing/lemoncleanse.htm and http://www.therawfoodsite.com/the_master_cleanser.htm.
These are the sites I always use to refer to the Salt Water Flush and the Master Cleanse.
Since I didn't know what the "diet" was called, I went to the Yahoo Search engine and typed in "The Maple Syrup Diet." Once I did this, I found several websites detailing this diet. I also learned that it was also called "The Master Cleanse" and "The Lemonade Diet." I noticed that the "diet" was not really a diet at all, but a fast. It was a way to detoxify your body, removing all of the mucus and harmful materials which exists inside of the body. I also learned that it is these very toxins that cause one to feel tired all the time, causes one to become depressed and think negative thoughts; I learned that these toxins-especially when they have been inside of the body for years-can cause one to experience lack of energy, and weight gain. These toxins can also lead to different types of life threatening illnesses, including cancer. After days of researching the Master Cleanse, I decided that I would like to do it myself, and here's why: first of all, physically, I feel tired all the time. I barely have the enery I need in order to do everyday chores around my house. In addition, I have a hard time sleeping at night. I could go to bed and lay there for hours and not fall asleep until 1:00 a.m., only to have to wake up again by 6:30 p.m. I had also started to gain a little weight and felt bloated all the time. My diet was is wrong. I know how to eat healthily, but I am always craving the wrong foods, such as chips, ice cream, cheesecake, chocolate cake, fast food, and many other things that I knew I shouldn't have been eating. Whenever I have a craving, my brain tells me that I gotta have it. Therefore, I rush on over to the grocery store, purchase the overly processed foods that I want to eat, come home, and eat until my heart is content. Deep down, I felt as though I was being a bad example-a hypocrite-to my two little boys, ages 5 and 1. I always explain the importance of healthy eating to my kids, but I am not living the life myself. The oldest often wonder why I tell him that eating too many sweets was wrong, yet, I was doing it myself. He even flipped the script on me, saying "Mommy, you are not supposed to eat too many sweets. It is not good for you. Why are you eating all of this ice cream?" Deep down, I knew that he was right, but since I really had nothing to say, I hit him with the "because I am the Mommy and you are the kid" line.
Another reason I decided to do the Master Cleanse is for spiritual reasons. I really want to get my spirituality in check, and I need a clear mind. I need to really find out what it is that God wants me to do and stop trying to always figure out my life on my own. Many times, I know what I want to do, but my mind is so clogged, that I can't even think straight. I believe that this cleanse will help to clear my mind. With a clear mind, I can really allow for God to come in and take control of my life.
I really just want to live a healthier lifestyle. I want more energy. I want to sleep better. I want for my boys to grow up leading a healthy lifestyle as well. When you are healthy, you are rich. What do I mean by that? You can have all the money in the world, but if you are in poor health, you really have nothing. How many rich people in poor health would spend all of their riches in exchange for good health?
Nothing in life is guaranteed. Life itself isn't guaranteed. But since I do plan to live for a long time, I plan to lead a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle. It would be a shame for me to reach the age of 40 (I am 26 now) and have the doctor tell me that I have a life-threatening illness because of choices and habits that I developed when I was younger. I feel that it is our duty to lead a healthy lifestyle. It is our duty to make the right choices in everything we do in life...including the foods we eat. I feel that people who say things such as "well, you gotta die with something," and eat the wrong foods on purpose are pretty ignorant people.
Many times, we do not think about the things that we eat early on in life...it is only when we are up in age when we say "if only I lead a healthier lifestyle when I was younger...if only I didn't eat ice cream all the time, if only, if only, if only..."
OK, enough talking. Basically, my main reason for starting this blog is to keep a journal of my 7 day journey doing the Master Cleanse. Actually, it is recommended that one does it for a minimum of 10 days, but since Thanksgiving is coming up, I need time to get my body use to eating solid foods again. I am doing The Master Cleanse along with the Salt Water Flush. Yes, I know I only mentioned the Master Cleanse earlier in this blog, so at the end of this post, I will include links where you can find more information about the Salt Water Flush and its benefits, as well as more information on the Master Cleanse.
5:00: Woke up mixed together 32 ounces of lukewarm water with 2 teaspoons of non-iodized sea salt. I had to chug it. The taste really isn't pleasant, but I drank all of it in less than 10 minutes.
I then went back to bed.
NOTE: I read on many different websites that you should experience eliminations within the first hour. I didn't know whether they were talking about simply urinating, or bowel movements. I have urinated quite a few times this morning, but as of 10 a.m. November 13, I have not yet made a single bowel movement.
6:30 a.m.: Woke up, mixed together 2 tablespoons of organic lemon juice (1/2 of a lemon) 2 tablespoons of pure organic GRADE B Maple Syrup, 1/8 teaspoon of cayenne pepper, and 8 ounces of water. Surprisingly, it tastes pretty good...like a spicy lemonade.
9:30 a.m.: Had another glass of the lemonade mixture. At this time, I do not feel hungry, but I am still craving the foods I usually eat. I saw coupons for Pizza Hut, and I desire a pizza with extra cheese more than ever. I also know that i have cookies in the cupboard so I desire those as well. I would also like a bowl of Fruit Loops. I guess I am just craving something solid, which is common for those who are just starting out on the cleanse. While doing this cleanse, solid foods should NOT be consumed. In fact, while on the cleanse, you are to consume nothing but the salt water, the lemonade, and water. That's it. At this time, I must admit I do feel a little irritated, but this is common. I believe wholehearthedly that in the end, it will be well worth it. It is recommended that one consumes 6-12 glasses of the lemonade for each day they are on the cleanse, so I will have a cup every 3 hours.
12:30 p.m. Just had my third cup of the lemonade. I am starting to look forward to these cups of lemonade. The lemonade tastes really really good. I don't feel hungry either. Now, that doesn't mean that I still don't have a desire for food, because each trip to the kitchen is a battle for me right now.
3:30 p.m. Just had my fourth cup of the lemonade. Geez, whomever said that this would be easy HAS to be lying. Drinking the lemonade is not hard. It is actually delicious. The hard thing for me is resisting temptation to eat food. Especially junk food. I am having a battle with myself and food right now. Lord, please help me to carry through. I still don't feel hungry, but my husband just came home from work with some sour cream and onion potato chips. I love sour cream and onion chips so much. I kept trying to smell them in order to try and taste them that way, but that only made me want them even more. They are in the cupboard now-along with the cookies, which I am also trying my hardest to resist. I can't stop now. I will not quit. I will keep going until the end, with God's help. If my refrigerator was completely empty and we had absolutely no food except for the ingredients for the salt water flush and the lemonade, I would soar right on through this. But knowing that the foods I love are in there, it is a struggle for me. I'll be fine. I will.
6:58 p.m. Just finished my 5th glass of lemonade. It was really good. This time, I used to ounces of water instead of 8. I still don't feel hungry one bit, but dinner time was difficult for me. I cooked one of my favorite dinners-breakfast for dinner! I fixed pancakes and eggs with cheese. It looked and smelled so delicious, but I couldn't even have any. It is so hard to prepare food for your family, but not be able to eat it yourself. I almost slipped up quite a few times. First, I started to taste "just a little piece" of my son's pancake, I wanted to lick the eggs off of the spatula-you know, things like that. But deep down, I know myself. A "lick" would have turned into a full serving. A "piece" of pancake would have turned into a whole pancake. I am happy that I was able to resist temptation that time, because I usually give in.
My next and final glass of lemonade is at 9:30. Then, I will retire for the evening. Wow, I can't believe almost a whole day has gone by and I haven't eaten even a morsel of solid food. This is the first time I have done this, ladies and gentlemen and I feel good.
10:26 p.m.Just drank my final glass of lemonade. Actually, I was supposed to drink it an hour ago, but started working and forgot about it. I didn't even feel hungry or anything like that and I actually had to remember to take it. I mixed all of the ingredients as I normally would, except that I accidentally added too much water. The recipe calls for 8-10 ounces of water, and I probably drank at least 16 ounces. I am quite confident that no harm was done, although I am not complete sure. But anyway, I feel great and I look forward to doing it all over again tomorrow.
For more information on the Master Cleanse, The Salt Water flush, and Stanley Burroughs, please visit http://www.falconblanco.com/health/cleansing/lemoncleanse.htm and http://www.therawfoodsite.com/the_master_cleanser.htm.
These are the sites I always use to refer to the Salt Water Flush and the Master Cleanse.
posted by Miranda Jett | 6:18 AM
1 Comments:
So pleased to find your blog. I too read about Beyonce losing all that weight and I did some research about the diet and bought the Burroughs pamphlet from Amazon. I haven't actually got around to trying the fast yet. Will be fascinated to see how you get on! Good luck.
Gail
http://chat1960vintage.blogspot.com
Post a Comment
<< Home