My Master Cleanse Journey

[jtfmc2014]

Coming off my 21 day Master Cleanse

As I stated in my day 21 entry, I decided to come off of my cleanse. I knew it was time to come off, as no matter how much lemonade I was drinking, I was still hungry. So, three weeks on the Master Cleanse!

Final weigh-in was 168lbs, for a total loss of 23lbs.

To break my cleanse, the 22nd morning, I drank freshly squeezed orange juice throughout the morning and afternoon. For a late "lunch/dinner" I had two smoothies consisting entirely of fruit (oranges, bananas, blueberries, strawberries, and grapes), and a quarter cup of unsalted sunflower seeds.

Today is my second day "off" of the cleanse, and I've had another smoothie, and then a tiny plate of zucchini "noodles" with fresh sauce, all from scratch.

Yes, it's absolutely delicious.

Boyfriend wanted Chinese, so I ate three pieces of general tso's chicken around 2pm, a bit of rice, and some broccoli, just to see how my body would respond to it, and put the rest in the fridge. A few hours passed, and I was fine, so I went ahead and finished it off (small "lunch" portion) and haven't been hungry since. I know, not the most healthy thing, but I'll be doing thirty minutes of cycling here in a bit before I head off to bed, and in the morning my boyfriend and I are going to be moving a friend into her new apartment. *flexes* Haha.

So, as promised, time for photos!

Face prior to the cleanse..

And what I look like, at least in the face, post-cleanse:

Soooo, cleanse over! Questions? Drop me a line!

I'll use this blog whenever I decide to do the cleanse again in the future. Right now? Considering doing it in October, but we will see.

Here's to my, and your health! If you decide to do the cleanse, I highly recommend watching success videos, planning beyond the cleanse, and allowing yourself to enter a new mindset for after the cleanse. It can be extremely rough at times, but I assure you, it can be done. If you don't have many people in your "offline life" who will be supportive of your cleanse, do what I did, and be silent about it until you're finished, and make a blog.

Cheers!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Twenty One

Weight: 170.2 when I woke up this morning. DEFINITELY feeling hunger pangs. I have generally consumed 8 servings a day throughout the cleanse thus far, and all I've thought about has been food. So! While I'm basically getting woodies over food, I've taken the time to plan some meal stuff for the future, and finding more healthy alternatives to what meals to prepare post-diet.

One thing I am EXTREMELY pumped to prepare is zuicchini noodles (sautee'd julienne strips of zuicchini) with a tomato sauce as a sort of vegetarian/gluten free alternative to spaghetti. As much as I LOVE bread, it is one of the main culprits behind my weight gain over the past several years. I'm also thoroughly looking forward to making baked sweet potato steak fries. And my favorite morning breakfast, coconut oil drizzled over steal-cut oats, with almond milk and assorted fruit/nuts, for a sort of granola cereal.

I'm not sure if I can or will make it to Sunday on the lemonade. I honestly may start weaning off later today, so that I can return to regular foods by the weekend.

All in all, this has been an exciting and eye opening experience. I've learned SO much about how to better listen to my body, as well, learning more self-discipline with food. It is my hope that I will continue the healthy habbits I've formed will continue with me as I strive to have a healthier lifestyle.

This was my longest Master Cleanse to date, and is something I highly recommend, but only for those who aren't light-hearted. You will get results if you stick to it. Don't cheat yourself the necessary nutrients the drink offers by drinking less than recommended. Some days you will drink more, some days you will drink less. I've lost 20lbs during my 21 day cleanse, and am extremely happy with everything.

Looking FORWARD to drinking something other than the familiar lemon/lime.

Again, thank you all for your support and words of encouragement through this cleanse! I'll post final photos sometime Friday. :)

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Twenty

20.4lbs down so far. Going to see how I feel on Sunday.. but right now? I'm craaaaaaving food.

The timelapse, though!

And just for clarification, no, I didn't bloat my stomach out or suck it in in any of the photos. I know it looks that way, especially on the prep day one photo, but honestly, that was just me relaxing my abdominal muscles and letting it all just hang naturally. Same technique in each of the subsequent photos.

I'm debating my course of action next week since I resume school next Wednesday, and start work next Monday. At the end of this, I'll reveal what my face looks like, versus what it looked like pre-cleanse.

Although I am thrilled with the results, it has become increasingly difficult this week especially. I think the added stress of getting ready for another year of college has begun taking its toll on me, in addition to finishing preparations for auditions, learning roles/arias, etc.

Thank you to those of you who have followed, and those of you who have sent messages of encouragement! Your kind words have helped keep me motivated throughout this cleanse.

As always, if anyone has questions, feel free to shoot me a message!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Nineteen

Woo, 19 days! Weight: 171.6lbs when I woke up. So 20.2lbs lost so far.

Going to see how I feel on Sunday (Day 25), and go from there. If I can hit early 160s.. then rad.

Typical day, though went to campus and did a lot of paperwork and walking around. It's technically day 20 (2am), but wanted to get a log in for the 19th day.

Drank four servings due to moving around so much. Oops.

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Eighteen

Whew. 18 days of drinking only lemonade, and 20 total days without any solid food.

Because my classes resume next Wednesday, I'll be ending officially next Sunday (day 25), which will allow me two days to lead off of the cleanse. Back home now, and am about to take my tea. Seven more days! Seven. More. Days.

Fingers crossed I at least drop to the 160s by then. I'll weigh when I wake up in the morning.

'Night!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Seventeen

Second day at relatives, master cleanse day 17, blah blah, I just want to go to sleep. Feel fine. Adios!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Sixteen

Why hello there Tumblr!

Weight: 174.0lbs Officially 16+lbs so far in this cleanse.. on the sixteenth day. Woohoo!

I'm going to keep this short for tonight since I'm out of town visiting my sister and her husband and their daughter.

Haven't had too many temptations since being here, but tomorrow going to a birthday cookout.. blegh. We'll see how THAT goes. I'll be back home Sunday, so looking forward to whatever I weigh-in at then.

Walked to/from a park with my sister and neice, and am on my second half of servings for the day.

Signing off for now. :)

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Fifteen

Whew! Today was STRESSFUL, and due to some mix-up with the post office, I ended up having to do my sea salt water rinse MUCH later than usual. I'm back on track for the day, but I'm going to the rest room much more than I have been the past few days of the cleanse.

Had to fight a lot of cravings earlier today. Decided to try on pairs of jeans I couldn't fit the past year, despite most of them being brand new, and voila, they all fit and/or aren't "too tight to wear comfortably." Despite this revelation, I'm pushing on. I'll see where I'm at on day 21. If I by some miracle drop to 165 in the next six days, then I'll consider ending then, but I'm not holding my breath.

The weight loss is slowing down, but that's fine. I feel great, and that's at the forefront in my mind. I feel clean.

Today's lowest weigh-in was 174.6, just .2lbs lower than yesterday. Despite all the drama with the postal service, I'm not mad about it. Inflamation and bloating have gone down, my back pain is nearly all gone, likely as a result of the weight loss, and more clothes fit.

My face is slimming down! I have cheek bones again. A friend I hadn't told I was on the cleanse commented on how much more defined my facial features have become and asked if I'd lost weight. :)

Once the semester begins I'll for certain end my fast if I'm still going strong by then. After getting through today's cravings, I'm confident I can do another two weeks.

About to make my tea and wind down for the evening. Fifteen days. I've officially broken my previous cleanse record of 14. Woo!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Fourteen

Hello, hello, hello!

Once again, took the shot right after waking up and prior to the sea salt water flush.

Not much to report, just wanted to get this up before I headed out for the day. Body shots later? Possibly. I took some yesterday and I think I was just having a poofy day as my abdomen looked larger than the previous shot. Clearly still losing weight, though, so whatever! I ain't mad 'bout it.

Feel fine, just getting ready for classes to resume, waiting on a package to arrive, and then heading out. Spending the next few days out of town (taking all my cleanse stuff with me!) to spend time with family. Going to introduce her to the cleanse since she had a daughter and is considering doing the cleanse herself.

Anyway, cleanse away! Two weeks strong!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Thirteen

Greetings and salutations on this windy- but gorgeous- August afternoon!

Jumped on the scale this morning and low and behold, 176lbs. That's nearly 15 pounds so far. I feel fantastic, my clothes are fitting better, I have more pep to my step, I'm not getting as fatigued walking around anymore when I head to campus.. it is a glorious feeling, ya'll.

I see that I'm gaining followers, so hello to those of you who have followed my little journey. Beyond tags, I've not advertised this at all, so it's miraculous to see anyone finding me. If anyone has questions for me, feel free to ask! I'll do my best to answer anything thrown my way.

About to make my first batch of the lemonade, already did my sea salt water rinse earlier, and then getting to work on my game server. If anything notable arises before tomorrow, I'll holler!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Twelve

Day Twelve (Fourteen if you count the two days leading into the cleanse where I only ate finely puree'd soups) and I feel great! Weight this morning was 178.8, so I'm definitely hitting a plateau as far as weight loss is concerned, but that's totally alright. I feel energetic, am mentally alert, and haven't had any complications at all thankfully.

I do want to share a little tip for those of you who may like the variety- LIMES. In the master cleanse book, it says you can also use limes. If you like the taste of them (which I absolutely LOVE), then I highly recommend tossing them into your cleanse, as it helps tremendously to break up the monotony of the same flavor every day.

Besides my weight and lime tip, I really don't have much to report. Cravings are crazy, but I'm determined to keep going. Going to jump on the recumbent bike, make a few more servings, and prep my tea before bed.

Adios!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Eleven

Whoops, almost went to bed without writing an entry for today!

Weight when I woke up was 178.0lbs! Back up to 180 from drinking throughout the day, but continual progress is being made!

Not much to report today as all I did was laundry and clean around the apartment. Had energy throughout the day and only drank six servings total today. I've already taken my laxative tea, and am winding down to sleep.

Going to hang out tomorrow with a friend and practice with her on campus, and tell her about my cleanse. She's considering doing one at some point, but wants to know more about the process.

I'll touch back in tomorrow!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Ten

Good morning! I didn't weigh myself first thing when I got up, because I wanted to get the sea salt water rinse over and done with for the day. I'm counting the net loss from yesterday's lowest weight (178.8) from the weight I started at in prep day one (190.8). Sure, some of that is what little waste was still inside my intestines (maybe two pounds total), and some of it is water weight, but the results so far have me completely happy.

I know I said I was going to do body shots on Sunday (tomorrow), but I figured it'd make more sense to do it on the tenth day instead.

I've decided not to show or tell anyone from "real life" about my cleanse besides my boyfriend (who has been extremely supportive throughout the entire process), because I already know what they'll say, "But you're not fat!" because I have very thin arms. The majority of my excess weight that I carry is visceral fat (abdominal fat), which, is unhealthy, regardless of how "thin" you look in other parts of your body. The photos in my body shots aren't exagerrations or me pushing my stomach out. They are my natural, fully-relaxed, "at rest" positions. One of my friends was in disbelief when I showed him what my stomach looked like when I wasn't holding everything in (a skill I've developed over the past several years since putting on more and more visceral weight). "But you're so skinny everywhere else!" Yup, I know. Granted, I've got plenty of excess fat in my thighs and buttocks, but that's going away along with the visceral fat.

Perhaps I'll do more shots on days 14, 16, and 20. My goal is for my love handles (which you can't see above, but you can in my previous posts) to diminish, and my stomach to at least reduce to a small bump, if not flat from the side.

I will accomplish my goals.

[jtfmc2014]

Oops

While preparing my boyfriend's dinner (chicken alfredo), I accidentally ate a noodle when I tested to see if they were done. Whoops.

It felt foreign, like, I could literally feel it slide down my throat and settle in my stomach. VERY odd feeling indeed.

Safe to say I will not be preparing meals for a few days. The subconcious mind will GET YOU. Be weary.

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Nine

Howdy! As you can see, 178.8lbs after waking up and urinating. Of course, per usual, fluctuating throughout the day as I drink water, but that’s nothing new.

Feel fine today. Decided to once again take it easy and not head off to campus to practice. Halfway through my first bottle of the lemonade for today (2 servings so far today). Was able to get the salt water down quickly in one go.

Had some solids come out again last night and this morning after the sea salt water rinse. Whatever is deep deep inside my intestines, it’s definitely coming out slowly but surely. I know it’s not polite conversation to talk about poo, but if you’re going to do the Master Cleanse, get used to it. You go a lot more often while your body continues to detox and push out old waste.

Going to cycle again later for a while to help expedite this whole process along faster. 20-30mins tops!

I’ll once again post body shots on Sunday! :)

Stretch Goals

August 15th (Day 14) - 172lbs

August 22nd (Day 21) - 166lbs

August 29th (Day 28) - 159 lbs

September 5th (Day 35) - 155lbs

Although I’m planning this out four weeks in advance, if at any time after day 26 my body tells me to go back to solids, I’m going to listen. 

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Eight

When I woke up, I was at 180.0lbs! Of course, fluctuating throughout the day, and am "back up to 181.6lbs", but it's still a loss of several pounds (started at 190lbs).

Today was TOUGH as far as cravings were concerned, but I never once actually felt tempted to break my cleanse. Thursdays are like a ritual for my boyfriend and I- we always get wings from Buffalo Wild Wings, lol. I smelled them on him when he gave me a hug and had to immediately drink some lemonade. It made me RAVENOUS.

Cycled for 20mins, and surprisingly, despite being mentally tired, I cranked it up to a 5/8 settings and sped for a good five minutes, something I absolutely couldn't do a week ago before starting this.

Already have had my laxative tea for the night, and am winding down for bed. Didn't head to campus today, but did some light programming instead and practiced a bit of piano sight-reading at home. May go to campus tomorrow..? Still debating. I definitely have the energy to go out and about, and I honestly probably should, but I'm resting my voice a bit after three days of singing Verdi repertoire. I'm a classical musician, by the way! ;)

Besides the cravings, today was fine. I feel lighter, I feel good! 32 days to go...? :)

On to day nine!

[jtfmc2014]

Master Cleanse Day Seven

Stepped on the scale this morning before I did my rinse and was at 181.2. Did the rinse, went to campus, practiced for a bit, came home, took a nap, and then stepped back on the scale. 180.8lbs! Moved the scale around a bit and re-weighed three more times just to be certain it was correct. Even though I've fluctuated back up to 182.4lbs throughout the day from drinking eight servings and four 20oz bottles of water, it was still NICE to see. And..

About this time last year, I bought several pairs of pants, all size 32/32. I was clearly in denial about my waist size, as I literally could not button them at all when I first bought them. I decided instead to give them to my boyfriend, but he didn't like them and they've sat in their bag with their receipt all year. So, on a whim, I decided to try a pair on. Albeit, it's a super tight fit, I got them on, and damn are they comfy. Success!

I'm doing damn good, and was pretty active today. Going to make my tea now and head off to bed shortly, but wanted to post the good news. Can't wait for the day that I'm no longer muffin topping those jeans. ;)