I mostly had veggie juices and fluids today with a peanut butter and whole wheat sandwich before my workout and some brown rice, kimchee(korean cabbage) and some tofu soup (spicy).  Since yesterday i started drinking 2 full glasses of water as soon as i woke up with some squeezed lemons (no maple syrup) to begin light cleansing of my liver at the start of each day.  This is followed by a glass of veggie mixed juice (mixed) 15 minutes later.  Total food for the day probably didnt total more than 1500 calories for the entire day which is extremely low especially when doing exercise, but i’m really being careful to not take in too much foods and i’m keeping a close eye on what foods will cause any allergic reaction in the AM when i wake up.

Today was yet another day of great energy levels and an incredible 2nd workout at the gym.  I almost passed out again due to low sugar levels and my low caloric intake but its all worth it as my body is producing “drug like” highs through my natural endorphins.  I’m slowly bringing back foods into my system and dont want to rush into anything as i’m doing many “self” tests on what foods my body is allergic to.  The best part of what i’ve done so far is the purification of my throat and nose (breathing with no conjestion) which has been problematic for the last 3 years; since the cleanse there is no sign of any past symptoms.

 I’ve just ordered some books (raw foods, juicing, liver and gallbladder cleanse) that i think will help to continue the evolution of my new direction on health and wellness and will pull out all the information i think is valuable and revelant to my new path.  In approximately a week to 10 days i plan to do a liver and gallbladder cleanse to pass some stones that have been sitting inside me for 25 years; its about time.  I’ve read from different sources that it can be painful and tedious, however i would rather be proactive now and have a little pain than wait till later in life when my liver is not as healthy and i’m forced into surgery like millions of people after the age of 50.   I’ll keep telling myself this as i’m screaming blue murder on the toilet….argh!

Today was off the charts in energy levels and last night i slept the best that i have in years.  I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night for years with a lump of “something” in my throat that i could never understand or explain to doctors.  Yet after starting fresh with the MC detox and the new raw food diet, it has dissapeared.  Not only do i not wake up like a scared rabbit in the night, i dont cough up all the garbage that usually gets produced by immune system that works overtime during the night.  I am simply in awe by my new findings and i am looking forward to finding out what’s really going on with my body from the inside out. 

I’m eating a lot of fruits, vegetable drinks and some nuts for protein.  My order of super foods, vitamins and supplements should be arriving soon and i’ll post it all up once i receive the order along with my results of what each of them is doing for me during the coming weeks and months. 

I spent most of the morning wrestling, sword fighting and boxing with my son and my energy levels were incredible.  I’m still eating very little; fresh O.J., mixed nuts and liquid veggie meals are on the menu all day with 2-3 hour intervals in between. 

I weighed myself at the gym a few days ago and was shocked to find out i’m down to 172, which means i lost 18 lbs total in two weeks.  I anticipate putting some back on in water and some intestinal weight, but not much as i wont be packing my digestive system with tons of crap any longer.

I plan to work out two to three times a week and try to one cardiovascular exercise for 20-30 minutes everyday.  The weather is getting better so when its a decent temp i will ride my bike and i just bought a trailer to pull Sky around when i go on a ride; he should love cruising around with his Dad.  If it is too hot to ride, i will head to the pool at the gym and get some laps in.

For any of my family, friends or readers wanting to try out the master cleanse in the future; click on this link for a simplified video of exactly what to buy and how to make it:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE-tLJy5Qcw 

A couple of things that worked better for me than what i’ve learned after doing it:

 1. how ever many lemons you squeeze to produce the lemon juice (single or daily serving); use an equal amount of maple syrup in your mix.

2. use two tablespoons of seasalt, not 2 teaspoons as the salt may just retain in your intestines rather than pass through.

 Just returned  from the Bellagio Saturday Tournament and took 6th place out of 50 players.  I played really well in my new skin, but just couldnt put anything together on the last leg of the tourney.  I mostly had vegetable juice every 3 hours (made from yesterday), but for dinner i decided to have an apple and walnut salad with some asparagus soup.  I didnt do any exercise today, but i do planning on going for a bike ride in the AM.

 I just ordered a ton of nutritional supplements, vitamins and something called Chlorella and Spirulina which is supposed to be an all encompassing super food that does many things for the body…I guess i’ll soon find out.  I checked around online and found a really great vitamin store with good prices and a wide variety of products plus free shipping; http://www.swansonvitamins.com/

Day 1 of the new improved and cleansed me have commensed and I’m feeling fantastic.  My day started out with an early morning meeting where i drank my first glass of (non-lemon) freshly squeezed orange juice at Panera.  It was heaven to taste something other than lemon and maple syrup water.  After the meeting I went to the gym to have my first work out in over a year with my new fitness and diet coach.  20 minutes in to the workout i felt like i hit the wall in a marathon and almost passed out.  Everything became increasingly bright and i felt like i was at an altitude of 25,000 feet, as my ears felt like they wanted to pop out.  I’m glad my trainer was with me as he guided me to a safe place to sit and brought me a banana and apple to chew on to get my glucose levels back up.  Within a few minutes i was fine and jumping back on the elliptical machine…what a rush.  It felt exactly like the old days of intense training in my triathlon days…my high and equivalent to what others call drugs…but O’ natural!  With the endorphins racing and my blood pumping we finished up the work out in about 4o minutes and i hit my next meeting for the day.  Note to self:  the banana and apple I mushed up and ate at the gym today was the best two pieces of fruit i have tasted in years, maybe ever.

I didnt eat much during the day and actually had my first liquid meal over at my friends place around 4:30, they have a juicer and all the cool tools for going raw.  This works out great as I enjoy spending time in the kitchen as much as i like going to the dentist for a root canal.  Squeezing lemons into a jug and adding maple syrup to water is about as domestic as I get and i was getting tired of that on day 7 of the cleanse. 

We liquified some cucumbers, parsley, radishes, celery, carrots and some red beets and poured it into a jar so i could have a glass every 3 hours (recommended eating intervals).  After enjoying my liquid dinner, i headed over the Go Raw Cafe to check out what else i would be eating during the next 14 days.  This place is great as it has all the things you need to eat healthly and learn about protein replacement and other tasty foods that most of us never heard of before, or at least i havent.  I picked up a carrot and tomato soup for my meal later in the evening and headed over to the new halloween store to play monster with my son.  Halloween is my son’s favorite holiday of the year by far as he can spend two hours a day in this scary theme park for the next two months and never get tired of it…i may have a stephen king on my hands.

Today is the last day and while i’m very happy with the results; keen senses, clarity, body tune, 12 pounds lost….i’m ready to get back into food.  This time around is going to be alot different though…with what i eat, how much and how often.

 Its officially the end of day 10 and I have successfully made it through the Master Cleanse.  The beginning of days 1 through 4 were extremely difficult to not think about food, while the last 6 days my body and mind adjusted.  Not to say i didnt think about food all day, but it wasnt hunger or starving thoughts; it was more like “wondering” thoughts about how things were going to taste after not eating for 10 days.  My senses have all increased with sensitivity and clarity so I am looking forward to enjoying food in a different way.

The next 14 days will be raw food in juice and soup form while i slowly introduce solids back into my system.  I’m going to be enjoying the tastes one morsel at a time.

With only a few days to go I am ready to get on my raw food diet following the Master Cleanse.  I’ve been getting hungry during the night, and havent been sleeping well at all, which i think is directly related to my body being undernourished and my internal organs and blood cells fighting and adjusting during the night (most active). 

I’m planning on drinking mostly raw juices for the next 14 days to give my body the fuel it needs without shocking it.  This should prove to be a good transition into healthy eating and restructure of my digestive system to eat more good food but less portions.

It’s almost midnight and I had cravings all day for food.  I guess its time to finish it up the master cleanse, tommorow being the last day.  I’ve been thinking about food all day today and cant wait to taste it again….for the very first time.  This sounds weird, but I’m actually more interested in smelling, looking and embracing food than ever before and will be concious of several things.  For example, i noticed the last 10 days i’ve had no sinus or throat congestion which is usually a contant for me.  It’s my guess at this point that there are some foods that my body is allergic to and i will be figuring them out one by one as i add them to my diet. 

This cleanse has given me the opportunity to really learn about my body and how great an instrument it really is.  I am going to make a juggeraut effort to not abuse it any longer.

I had a restless night of sleep and i’m not sure why.  It could of been that i strained my back yesterday putting up blinds in my office…or something going on with my body that i’m unaware of.  I slept late because of it….and felt groggy when i woke up this morning.

Many of my friends have been asking me about where to find info on the mastercleanse diet and the best two links i found are http://mastercleansesecrets.com/.  You dont need to buy the book if you sign up for the free newsletter, and it will provide you a free booklet with all the info you need to do the MC diet.  The other good reference is on YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE-tLJy5Qcw, this a simple video that describes the diet well.

 This mornings salt water flush was easier than usual this morning, as i was actually able to chug the litre of saltwater.  I know i was supposed to do this from the beginning, but i just couldnt get around to chugging it, as i kept gagging the first 4 or 5 days and was forced to sip it.  The difference in chugging vs. sipping other than the fact that its very difficult to chug the first 5 days is that your b=movements are further apart and unpredictable, as compared to this morning where they were strung together every 30 seconds.  So depending on where you are, ie., work or home(i dont suggest going anywhere else during the morning flush for at least one hour) sipping or chugging can be done depending if you want to run back and forth to a restroom or just sit there and read a good book for 30 minutes.

Happy labor day to all the 9 to 5 workers bees of the world…you deserve a day off for dealing with the early mornings, fixed lunches and daily traffic. 

Today was an interesting day as i went to my friends BBQ at their house and watched a dozen people scharf down ribs, chicken, mushrooms, salad and beer….and I didnt blink twice.  Several people at the bbq kept asking if i wanted a plate, knowing i was on the cleanse, to see what I would do…and then laughed hard when i said…no, its ok, i’ll just sit here and smell it all in…so that’s what i did.  I actually surprized myself as it wasnt as hard as i thought it would be, to see and smell good food, but not eat it.  I did however have some inquisitive people ask me what the MC was all about and so i described the diet along with the experience of the first 7 days.  It was fun to discuss it with others, as i feel i’ve almost completed my mission and i’m even thinking about doing it for a few extra days; i might even go 14 days total…but i havent decided yet.  According to http://mastercleansesecrets.com/10daysmax.php its actually not a good idea to go longer than 10 days, yet i’ve been watching videos on YouTube of others who have videoblogged their experience, like itsTastyBacon(http://youtube.com/results?search_query=itstastybacon&search=Search) who actually did the MC diet for over 40 days.  I dont think i would go 40 days, but i’m seriously considering a few extra days just to make sure i’m cleansed, as i wont be doing this for at least another year. 

I’ve started looking at the raw diet which follows the MC, and there seems to be alot of info on it, even on Youtube.  I’m not really interested in becoming a vegetarian, which seems to be the direction and religion of the raw diet, but i will certainly try it out for a few weeks to allow my system to adjust and see what its all about.  I heard this other info about an olive oil and grapefruit flush that apparantly cleans out you’re gall bladder. The scary part about this detox is that you could upset some stones laying around in your system and force some to come out…having to pass some miniture golf ball stones through my system…not my idea of fun.  I’ll keep researching this olive oil cleanse to see the dangers.

This morning i woke up at 6AM and literally bounced out of bed.  I feel lighter and more alert than i have in years and had good energy levels most of the day…with the exception of the church sermon in the afternoon today.   With only 4 more days to go, there is no chance of me not finishing this cleansing and making the commitment i set out to achieve.  I’m about to have my evening laxative tea and watch a bit of tube before hitting the sack; i’ve actually adjusted my time schedule to one that i wanted for sometime by being on this program.