Spring Cleaning!

Last night, Renn and I went out in the Mission to celebrate Julian's birthday. Good music, good friends, good drinks...and then we invited everyone back for the after party: herb laxative tea at Renn's place. Well we came home alone, but did enjoy a nice steeping cup of Smooth Move before bed...
So we are starting The Master Cleanse today to do some spring cleaning from the inside out. 10 days of lemonade with a little maple syrup and cayenne pepper. 10 days of Smooth Move at night and a salt water flush to start each day!

DAY 1
So far we're off to a good start. Despite some doubts from family and friends, we are feeling prepared and excited for the ride. Woke up, had some tea this morning and just took my first sip of lemonade...not bad. And according to Stanley Burroughs, life can continue as usual: climbing, yoga, and reading for me (it's Spring Break); work, basketball and climbing for Renn. And when we get hungry, we just "have another glass of lemonade." This is cake!

DAY 2
And on Day 2 came the poo. This is the best part of doing the cleanse with someone. I get to have detailed conversations with Renn about the amount, frequency and quality of my poops, and he is actually interested. This part is gross, yes, but fascinating as we start to watch the toxins exit for good.

I thought today would be difficult, but I actually feel great. Lots of energy and not missing food at all. Parts of yesterday were tough. We walked into a few grocery stores looking for mint tea (surprisingly hard to find) and it was a little surreal. You are extra sensitive and aware of food when you can't have it. But after surviving moments of doubt, and the smells of neighborhood BBQs, today feels much better. I am confident I can do this for 8 more days.

DAY 3
Freedom! Today I felt completely detached from food. If you add up all the hours I've spent thinking, dreaming, planning, shopping, watching shows about, reading books about, cooking and eating food, it's probably more than the average person. I am ALWAYS thinking of my next meal. I have been a little hungry hippo since I was a child. And I am cool with the fact that I love food and a good chunk of my life revolves around food. But like you need a vacation from work or your regular routine...I needed a vacation from food.

Today I truly feel like my vacation has started. As I felt hungry, I just noticed it and moved on. When I smelled food, I just noticed how good it smelled and let it go. It's a lot like meditating, the way you let thoughts come and go without judgement or dwelling on anything for too long. Not fixating on food...It's a freedom that I never thought of or knew before. But my senses seemed heightened and I'm in a great mood.

DAY 4
Well I guess that's life, as soon as I open my big mouth about how great things are, Day 4 is the worst day yet. I have a sore throat, my stomach was upset all day and I am really hungry. Chalk it up to the universe balancing me out and hope that tomorrow is better...

DAY 5
...and it is! Today felt like Day 3; lots of energy and even went to a bookstore and got a cookbook of Greek food AND went out to lunch with Halona! Surprisingly, I didn't want to eat, but it was interesting to see what looked good to me...olives sounded really good and that's a new one. I take this as a sign that my tastes are changing to healthier foods...yeah!

I upped the cayenne pepper today since I read that it accelerates the cleansing process. And my tongue has a white film over it, which according to the book is a tell-tale sign of the toxins being released.

HALF WAY THERE!!!

DAY 6
Day 6 felt like Day 1. I think the pattern I've established so far goes something like: good day, followed by bad day, followed by good day....I was so excited to get to the half mark and now the end seems so far away. I slept till noon today and had to force myself to get up and make my drink. I am completely sick of lemonade. I know it's worth sticking it out and quitting is not really an option, but today just sucked, and I'll leave it at that. (by the way, just looked at the word "leave" and thought it looked a lot like the word "eat"...help)

DAY 7
Boredom! I'm tired of lemonade and tired of not being able to eat. I watched food shows and tagged all the recipes I want to make in my cookbooks. Oddly, being surrounded by food but unable to eat any of it made this night a tough one to get through...hmmm...strange.

I've been waking up completely wired in the middle of the night and this has finally caught up to me so I'm tired today, but besides that, I do feel great. My skin is soft and although I've only lost about 5 lbs so far, I feel smaller and lighter and healthier. Just wish I could sleep through the night.

DAY 8
Jaime, Jon and their girls came to visit today and brought me a gift, meyer lemons! Jon has done the cleanse a few times, so there was much talk of the changed awareness, the good and tough days, cravings, poops and talk of food food food! I forgot to bring my lemonade with us to the zoo, and almost died. Whoa low blood sugar. I was dragging myself around and had to sit down until Renn came to meet us and brought his lemonade. I was a total junkie and instead of saying hello went straight for "the stuff." Instant relief. They left us to go to sushi in the city, but did leave behind their kids Cheez-its...thanks guys. Staying strong and feeling positive with just 2 days left! (That's just 4 more Nalgenes of lemonade, 2 more Smooth Move teas, and 2 more Salt Water Flushes...and yes, I am counting.)

DAY 9
I'm so close I can taste it! Today I felt good, but Renn and I did plan, down to the last detail, how we are coming off this cleanse. You can't chow on whatever when you come off or else it's right back to the toilet...so we are going by the book and will have OJ and vegetable soup for the first two days, then fruits and vegetables the third day, and then...we can eat! After persuading Renn that the Cheez-its will just not cut it for our long awaited meal, the plan is a sushi dinner at one of our favorite spots, Kane, in Lafayette. They have a huge sashimi salad that I've been dreaming of. I expect it to be one of the best meals ever!

I am SO glad I did this. It has changed the way I think of my health and my relationship with food. I am proud of myself and was wonderful to do it with Renn as we supported and got each other through the tough spots. Definitely could not have done this on my own. On Day 9, I feel clear-headed, healthy, and happy, but still hungry so let's hurry it up Day 10!

DAY 10
I feel like a kid at Christmas! But now that the day is here...I feel sad squeezing the last of the lemons, sipping my last steaming cup of Smooth Move...no really. The only thing I won't miss is the quart of warm salt water every morning. Once you make it to this day, when the book and everyone else says "quit!", I genuinely feel like another 10 days would be cake! I am tempted. But let's be real... it's not over yet. To break this fast, I have a few more days of OJ and vegetable broth ahead of me. It's just that I've gotten used to preparing and drinking this delicious lemonade, and it's so much easier than eating. Well, maybe I will make this an annual spring cleanse!

The best part is that I cleaned my body and my mind cleaned up too. I am more centered and peaceful, happy and grounded. There is a saying from a yogi: on the other side of every sensation, there is an openess. I have experienced this on the yoga mat when I commit to and breathe through a tight or uncomfortable pose, and then there is more flexiblitly, more strength than I knew I had, and a more open mental space as well. Well instead of 10 breaths, I did it for 10 days, and it's pretty incredible.

So if you want to get squeaky clean, like me:), here's a few tips from my trial and errors:

• Read the book.
• Don't let yourself run out of lemonade or you will hit a wall. Sip on that stuff all day long and you'll have more energy than when you were eating!
• Get the GOOD maple syrup. My local health food store has their own and it's infinitely better, and half as expensive, as some others at Whole Foods, etc.
• Up the cayenne pepper as you go. Day 1 I was using 1/10 tsp and coughing it was so spicy...by Day 5, 1/4 tsp and loving it.
• The warmer the Salt Water Flush, the easier it goes down and the faster it flushes you out. It's disgusting, yes, the first couple times, but it gets less unpleasant the more you do it.
• Listen to your body. Sometimes when you are tired you need to rest, and sometimes you need to get moving. If you listen, your body will guide you to where you need to be.