CDJ's Personal "Mistress of the Master Cleanse" strategy
Personal Stats:
2009
MC 1: 34 days
MC 2: 12 days
MC 3: 10 days
***PLEASE REFER TO How-To do the Master Cleanse sites/forums or Stanley Burrough's original book on how to do the Master Cleanse, step by step, as originally intended.
The information communicated here are my own collected notes and strategies. I am not a medical professional or nutritionist. Consult your doctor if you have concerns about whether or not you should do the Master Cleanse. By reading this you accept that you are solely responsible for your own health and safe execution of this Cleanse and I am in no way liable for your results. These are notes documenting my own experience.**
I don't recommend this as a crash diet to anyone, and since it's pretty extreme (you don't eat ANYTHING. Just lemonade, laxative tea, and herbal mint tea.) it's good to get a strategy together and mentally prepare yourself. Too many people go on it casually and then feel bad when they fail. Read up first, schedule it out so you don't have a ton of social stuff going on, etc. when you're on it.
http://www.mastercleanser.com/forum/
http://therawfoodsite.com/forum/faq.php
Master Cleanse FAQs
http://therawfoodsite.com/faq.htm
Master Cleanse Mistakes
http://therawfoodsite.com/mistakes.htm
Master Cleanse Worksheet
http://therawfoodsite.com/mc_form.htm
Best forum to ask questions and get answers
http://www.mastercleanser.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=1
Stages of detox while on MC
http://www.mastercleanser.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=7075
Notes:
ACHTUNG:::
**Empty pantry or fridge of all yummies. Especially leftover foods that might tempt you to eat them "just so it they don't go to waste." Assert Meta Self and outthink all your own self-sabotage**
Shop for/gather all ingredients.
1. Lemons - when possible, try to drink your lemonade after its freshly squeezed. The enzymes in the lemonade that really do the business only last for like 10 minutes.
2. Alternate Grade B maple with dark Agave nectar - Whole Foods has Agave - I use the Madhava brand (dark) and it's waaay cheaper and exactly the same as maple. Only use maple for taste.
3. Cayenne
4. Smooth Move tea (herbal laxative tea)
or
5. Swiss Kriss Herbal laxative tablets
6. Sea Salt
7. Straws!!!
8. Strainer (to strain lemon juice)
9. Plastic big person's "sippy cup" with straw for travel
1. Try to eat light the night before you start. Start on a weekend if possible - since the first two days will be mad cravings and detoxing - you'll want to nap when you can to avoid the grouchiness and to ride out the detox symptoms.
2. Take the herbal tea the night before you start, and the next morning make a big 32 oz jug of the lemon concotion. Drink it all day. Eat nothing else, drink nothing (but water / mint tea / yerba mate tea ).
3. Get your routine/process (juicing, etc) down. Keep all your juicing stuff close at hand. (juicer, strainer, cup, straws, cayenne, cutting board, knife, lemons, spoon, pitcher, maple syrup)
---If you're a coffee drinker or a meat eater, expect the first few days to be headachy, cranky, and low energy. You're detoxing and your body needs to acclimate.
---Don't bother with the salt water flush until Day 2. (Salt Water Flush: where you drink warm water with sea salt in it, then wait til you basically pee all that water out your butt.)
---If you absolutely need to drink coffee (bc u'r working and you're gonna die of crankiness and lethargy) take a shot of espresso.
4. Drink the smooth move tea or take the swiss kriss every night, then do the salt water flush in the morning.
5. know the detox stages so you are aware of what is happening to your body, and when you are detoxing***
6. tell your friends to be supportive and not naysaying fearprojecting twats. If they can't be supportive, don't hang out with them while you're on the Cleanse. They'll project their own fears on you under the guise of concern. VIBEKILLERS. Suddenly everyone becomes a hater.
7. Don't overtempt yourself with food network shows, restaurants, food blogs, etc. It's fun to whine but it can be self-defeating and cause unnecessary suffering. Unless you're a masochist who can totally enjoy the exquisite stinging wince of self-denial and self-control that comes from having something right in front of you that you want so bad you're salivating . . and then not . . eating . . it. Which is more fun, I think. You can really grow to enjoy this. And each time you exercise your Will, it gets stronger. I can help you with this.
8. if you're going out and everyone else will drink or eat, bring a bottle of lemonade, chug it in the car, then order water or mint tea. Bring a small bottle of maple syrup with you, too, to do shots of it on the road if you need.
9. Plan other activities/projects in the times you'd usually be thinking about, cooking or eating food. Including reading, meditation, cleaning the house, exercising, walking, yoga, etc.
10. If you feel headachy or whatever, just sleep. sleep it off. the body is detoxing. focus on that, ride it out, take a nap.
11. When you are super hungry or crave carbs - have a straight shot of the maple. Kills the cravings. And then make someone eat for you. Watch them closely as they eat, sipping on your lemonade. It can be an arousing vicarious experience, and delightfully unnerving for the person(s) with you. Wheatgrass juice shots are also allowed (some say) but I think they're gross.
12. Of course, rinse your mouth after lemonade or maple shots.
13. Remember if you hit 5 days, you can hit 7, if you can hit 7, you can hit 10.
Keep going if you can - your body will acclimate - just work in increments of "3 more days" and you'll see - your own psychology will say "well shit, when am I ever gonna make it to 12 days again? I might as well go for 15." And when you hit 15, you'll want to hit 20. Etc Etc.
14. Resist the urge to weigh yourself and instead use a tape measure to see how many inches you've dropped at your chest, waist, hips.
15. The night before you break the fast, and every morning after for the next few days - drink either one small Bio-K probiotic (whole foods) or a probiotic Kefir yogurt drink to help prep your digestive system.
***Detoxification Stages
Here is an overview of the detoxification stages during a juice fast. The time periods are a general estimation:
Stage 1 (Day 1 To Day 2)
On the first day of fasting, the blood sugar level drops below 70 mg/dl. To restore the blood to the normal glucose level, liver glycogen is converted to glucose and released into the blood. This reserve is enough for half a day. The body then reduces the basal metabolic rate (BMR). The rate of internal chemical activity in resting tissue is lowered to conserve energy. The heart slows and blood pressure is reduced. Glycogen is pulled from the muscle causing some weakness. The first wave of cleansing is usually the worst.
Headaches, dizziness, nausea, bad breath, glazed eyes and a heavily coated tongue are signs of the first stage of cleansing. Hunger can be the most intense in this period unless the enema is used which quickly assists the body into the fasting state by ending digestion in the colon.
Stage 2 (Day 3 To Day 7)
Fats, composed of transformed fatty acids, are broken down to release glycerol from the gliceride molecules and are converted to glucose. The skin may become oily as rancid oils are purged from the body. People with problem-free skin may have a few days of pimples or even a boil. A pallid complexion is also a sign of waste in the blood. Ketones are formed by the incomplete oxidation of fats. It is suspected that the ketones in the blood suppress the appetite by affecting the food-satiety center in the hypothalamus. You may feel hungry for the first few days of the fast. This effect is temporary. The desire to eat will disappear. Lack of hunger may last 40 to 60 days, depending on whether you are on water or juice.
The body embraces the fast and the digestive system is able to take a much-needed rest, focusing all of its energies on cleansing and healing. White blood cell and immune system activity increases. You may feel pain in your lungs. The cleansing organs and the lungs are in the process of being repaired. Periodically, the lymphatic system expels mucoid matter through the nose or throat. The volume excreted of this yellow-colored mucus can be shocking. The sinuses go through periods of being clogged, then will totally clear. The breath is still foul and the tongue coated. Within the intestine, the colon is being repaired and impacted feces on the intestinal wall start to loosen.
Stage 3 (Day 8 to Day 15)
On the latter part of an extended fast, you can experience enhanced energy, clear-mindedness and feel better than you have felt since childhood. On the downside, old injuries may become irritated and painful. This is a result of the body's increased ability to heal during fasting. If you had broken your arm 10 years before, there is scar tissue around the break. At the time of the break, the body's ability to heal was directly related to lifestyle. If you lived on a junk-food diet, the body's natural healing ability was compromised.
During fasting, the body's healing process is at optimum efficiency. As the body scours for dead or damaged tissue, the lymphocytes enter the older, damaged tissue secreting substances to dissolve the damaged cells. These substances irritate the nerves in the surrounding region and cause a reoccurrence of aches from previously injured areas that may have disappeared years earlier. The pain is good as the body is completing the healing process. The muscles may become tight and sore due to toxin irritation. The legs can be the worst affected, as toxins accumulate in the legs. Cankers are common in this stage due to the excessive bacteria in the mouth. Daily gargling with salt and water will prevent or heal cankers.
Stage 4 (Day 16 to Day 30)
The body is completely adapted to the fasting process. There is more energy and clarity of mind. Cleansing periods can be short with many days of feeling good in between. There are days when the tongue is pink and the breath is fresh. The healing work of the organs is being completed. After the detoxification mechanisms have removed the causative agent or render it harmless, the body works at maximum capacity in tissue proliferation to replace damaged tissue. While a short fast will reduce the symptoms, a longer fast can completely heal. Homeostatic balance is at optimum levels. The lymphatic system is clean except for a rare discharge of mucus through the nose or throat. After day 20, the mind is affected. Heightened clarity and emotional balance are felt at this time. Memory and concentration improve.
Stage 5 (Breaking the Fast)
The sticky, toxic, mucoid coating on the intestinal wall is loose, and the first meal frees it from the intestinal wall. Toxins enter the blood through the colon. The gallbladder dumps its waste in a heavy discharge of bile. This can cause an instant bowel movement upon eating followed by intense diarrhea. If the symptoms are too uncomfortable, an enema will help.
Autolysis
After fasting for several days, the body goes into a condition known as "autolysis". This is when the body starts to feed on itself because you are giving it no solid food to feed off of. Fortunately, the body in it's brilliant design feeds on only the weak, diseased, dying, or dead cells. All of the vital organs, the heart, liver, kidneys, and the brain are spared and because of the absence of all of the sickly cells in your body, your vitals are actually rejuvinated and made healthier because of the clean bloodstream and unadulterated oxygen now circulating throughout your body.
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How I break the fast:
Last night of cleanse: Either probiotic tablets, or Bio-K probiotic drink, or probiotic kefir
Day 1 of breaking the fast: Fresh squeezed OJ or water/milk from a young coconut + sips of kefir.
Day 2: OJ + coconut flesh + kefir + avocado
Day 3: all of the above, fruits and a veggie soup
My Standard Veg Soup
kale
chard
green onions
red onions
carrots
celery
zucchini
italian parsley
garlic
tomatoes
ginger
olive oil
sea salt
Day 3: eat broth only for breakfast and lunch, then dinner have veg soup with vegetables
Day 4 on - start rebuilding diet by conscientiously adding one new food item at a time.
This is a good time to decide to try raw food diets, or gluten-free or dairy free diets. I usually do raw food diet for a few days to a week, then vegan, then vegetarian, before settling into my mostly gluten-free, lacto-ovo-pescatarian diet.
