madame cleanse

in hopes of a fresh start i have been doing the master (or madame, as i like to call it) cleanse for the past few days. i am just finishing up day 4 & feel really energetic & alive!!

for some support i have been posting daily reminders on twitter to keep me going & share my cleanse with others tweeting out there. kimberly dm'ed me asking about some deets on my cleanse, so i took that as a sign for this post (thanks kimberly!).

i have found that it's really more about willpower & your mental focus than the lemonade.

i'll admit, going to my friends' post-holiday, white elephant party on saturday was definitely tough with all of the yummy treats. however i was really proud of myself when i got home that i didn't give in, even though that baked brie with a pastry crust & apricots still looks amazing in my head....

since i eat relatively healthy, i haven't encountered headaches or some of the other side effects, but i know others who have.

although the original m.c. calls for 10 days, i do a moderate 5 day cleanse. since this is my second time doing the cleanse, perhaps next time i will consider the full 10 days next time, but right now i am only mentally prepped for 5. here's the rundown:

• the day before my m.c.: ate only veggies & fruit (no meat, dairy, or grains/carbs).
• day #1: 6 glasses of m.c. juice + 4 glasses of water + 1 herbal laxative tea (night)
• day #2: salt water flush(morning) + 6 glasses of m.c. juice + 4 glasses of water + 1 herbal laxative tea (night)
• day #3: 6 glasses of m.c. juice + 4 glasses of water + 1 chamomile tea (my treat!) + 1 herbal laxative tea (night) - i woke up too late to do the salt water flush
• day #4: 8 glasses of m.c. juice + 4 glasses of water + 1 tangerine ginger (my treat!) - no herbal laxative tea
  
• day #5 - tomorow i am stopping my cleanse: i plan to have 1 final glass of m.c. juice in the morning + 3 glasses of o.j. + veggie soup
• day #6: veggies & fruit (similar to the day before starting my cleanse)

here's my bulk m.c. recipe:
(1 cup = 4 servings)
the concentrate:

• 1 cup lemon/lime juice (8 oz)
• 1 cup maple grade b organic syrup (8 oz)
• 1 tsp of cayenne pepper

water:

• 40 oz of water (5 cups) - preferably spring or purified water

the salt water flush:

• 1 qt of luke warm water (32 oz)
• 2 tsp of uniodized sea salt
  

what to do: drink the entire quart of salt & water first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. the salt & water will not separate, but will stay intact & quickly (& i do mean QUICK) & thoroughly wash the entire digestive tract in about one hour. i literally set my alarm to wake up early to do this because the effects usually last about 2-3 hours for me, where i make several urgent trips to the bathroom. since the salt water has the same specific gravity as the blood, hence the kidneys cannot pick up the water & the blood cannot pick up the salt, so it runs right through you!

in addition to the day-by-day breakdown, here are some very important tips/recommendations to remember:

• the salt water flush goes right through you. you need to dedicate a few hours in the morning where you will be near a bathroom (preferably at home).
• instead of juicing my own lemons (which is highly recommended) i actually buy santa cruz organic lemon & lime juice at whole foods - it ultimately comes out cheaper than juicing my own organic lemons & it's so much more convenient! some say it reduces the effectiveness of the cleanse, but i haven't noticed.
  
• i make a bulk concentrate in the morning so that i can bring a bottle of the concentrate to work & then i just add water the single servings (4 oz of the concentrate) to a glass of water.
• the herbal laxative tea that i prefer is yogi tea get regular.
• other tea i sip sometimes during the day is yogi tea fasting.

do you cleanse? share your experiences with me!