Post: #1

I started doing The Master Cleanse, by Stanley Burroughs almost 15 years ago with great results, so I'll pass it along.

   

The book itself is cheap, so get it, but disregard everything he says other than the fast itself. Most of these super vegan health nuts takes shit too far. For years you couldn't find a bad review, but then it started getting popular among celebrities for weight loss, which isn't its intention. Yeah you can lose weight, but continuing on an unhealthy lifestyle will put the weight back on.

For me by day 10, I feel the fast has ran its course, at which point I come off. I guess it depends on how much toxins has been stored. It takes discipline, so prepare yourself mentally. Most people expect to feel hungry, but I don't, but do drink around a gallon per day, as I'm usually working out while on it. My best run times (sub 18 min. 3 mi) was on it. It gives me energy.

There is the argument about not getting protein, which I won't argue. For the lifters on here, use the fast when you are taking a break from the gym.

For convenience, I mix up a gallon first thing in the morning, and leave it warm on the stove. It tastes like Russian Tea, so the taste isn't bad. I add more maple syrup to counteract too much weight loss.

If you choose the sea salt flush in the morning, please stay close to the shitter. It will hit you quick. Don't be on the subway. Lol.

Personal results. I always feel good after it's over. Last time my body reeked for two days from the toxins coming out of my armpits. I didn't leave the house it was so bad. That was from partying too hard and eating the shit out of processed foods. I know it works. My mind feels clearer, skin healthier, and digestive tract, well, on track.

Feel free to ask questions, but I stand behind this 100%.

Post: #2

I've done it twice and definitely felt cleaner afterward. I've since replaced it with juice fasting which is a little milder for me and more nutritious (just finished a juice fast). The master cleanse is one step away from water fasting, shit can be intense. Especially in the first 48 hours, I would get flu like symptoms the 2nd night usually.

Post: #3

Would you elaborate?
What do you drink?
what's the process?

Post: #4

(02-12-2013 02:54 PM)Rah Wrote:  I've done it twice and definitely felt cleaner afterward. I've since replaced it with juice fasting which is a little milder for me and more nutritious (just finished a juice fast). The master cleanse is one step away from water fasting, shit can be intense. Especially in the first 48 hours, I would get flu like symptoms the 2nd night usually.

I had a doctor look at it when I started. He wasn't big on natural remedies, but couldn't argue that it had the necessary vitamins.

(02-12-2013 04:39 PM)Pete Wrote:  Would you elaborate?
What do you drink?
what's the process?

It's a mixture of dark grade organic maple syrup, cayenne pepper, H2O, and fresh squeezed lemon/lime juice. Don't skimp in the ingredients. The maple syrup keeps it a bit costly. Don't buy more than 1/2 gallon. Should be enough.

You drink it for say 10 days, then come off with O.J. for a day or a bit more, then switch to a veggie broth. After that you can resume normal eating. This website explains it more, but I've never "eased in". The "easing out" is important. I also follow the sea salt flush (hate it), and take laxative tea at night.

One thing it is supposed to do is cause your bowels to shrink, loosening up plaque buildup inside, and whatever is stuck in there. This allows for better absorption of vitamins and minerals from food later on.

http://calorielab.com/news/2008/07/17/ma...in-detail/

It got popular in Hollywood, which has given it a bad name due to people using it more as a weight loss option.

http://www.thegloss.com/2011/12/13/beaut...y-page/11/

None of my friends have made it through, and quit by day 5. Again, mental preparation is needed.

Post: #5

(02-12-2013 05:18 PM)Aliblahba Wrote:  I had a doctor look at it when I started. He wasn't big on natural remedies.

The doctor wasn't big on fruits, vegatables, etc.



I wonder how he feels about water, sleep, rest, love, laughter, freindship, sex, and stress relief?

Would these things help you to feel better?

What did he recommended ???

A pill? A drug?

Doctors are not really educated on preventing illness, they are more educated on managing symptoms of illness. Big difference.

"Wasn't big on natural remedies", what a joke. Doesn't he know that nearly all effective medicine comes from nature. The cure for cancer and aids will likely come from natural source.

Post: #6

(02-12-2013 05:31 PM)Giovonny Wrote:  

(02-12-2013 05:18 PM)Aliblahba Wrote:  I had a doctor look at it when I started. He wasn't big on natural remedies.

The doctor wasn't big on fruits, vegatables, etc.



What did he recommended ???

A pill? A drug?

Doctors are not really educated on preventing illness, they are more educated on managing symptoms of illness. Big difference.

Do they even teach diet in medical school?

He took the book back to his office to tear it apart, but was none too happy when he came back with approval. Several nurses we went on made it through the diet and were pleased with the results.

After years of reading about fasts/diets, I believe a liquid fast works in detoxing the body. You are not using biochemical processes to break down whole foods all day. Losing fat takes toxins out with it, which is why flushing helps get them out of the body before they are reabsorbed. Think of deep tissue massage and drinking lots of H2O immediately after.

Western medicine don't like to talk about it, but I believe the intestines can buildup mucoid plaque. I have semi solid bowel movements around day 5, after a few days of pure liquid. That means something was in there that probably shouldn't have been.

Post: #7

Can you work while you do this? I did it before for 7 days but I was on a vacation

Post: #8

I've only done it once while not working. It gives you plenty of energy through the day. Just take a jug of pre mixed juice with you and carry what you are drinking in a travel coffee mug.

Make sure to give yourself enough time for the salt h2o flush to run its course before leaving in the morning. Trust me.

Post: #9

Starting on the cleanse tomorrow. My body feels toxic still and after 6 months of being sedentary, it needs a quick start. 12 extra lbs I gained ain't helping either. Quitting smoking cold turkey tomorrow also. It works well together as the fast will help force out the nicotine faster, thus reducing withdrawl time. It's gonna be a rough fews days coming up.

Side note- Shit, organic grade B maple syrup is up to $1 an ounce. I can buy liquor cheaper than that.

Post: #10

(12-01-2013 03:19 PM)2014 Wrote:  Can you work while you do this? I did it before for 7 days but I was on a vacation

Affirmative. I used to do it while waiting tables in a Chinese restaurant.

Talk about temptation....!

Waiting tables in a fast-paced restaurant is draining work too. I find after the first day or two of fasting or doing a cleanse I have plenty of energy though.

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #11

Just broke the fast this morning with a glass of fresh squeezed sour Cali grown orange juice. I made it 5 days, quitting due to the holidays, and want to eat Winter Festival dinner with my family. This is the first time I’ve cut out short of the 10 day mark, and has been 3 years since the last fast, and it showed. Results as follows:

Pre-fast

Dangerously high blood pressure

Trouble breathing

Overweight

Lethargic

Body odor (pits)

Oily Skin/Breakouts

~ 1 pack a day of Camels

Brain fog

5-6 hrs sleep nightly

During Fast

By the end of the 5th day, the coating on my tongue has disappeared, semi-solid bowel movements stopped, and the body odor was eliminated. I figured the fast had run its course, at least for the majority of the toxins in my system. Used a foam roller daily to try and work out funk out of the muscles.

Post-fast

Quit smoking

More energy

Clearer skin/brighter eyes

No body odor

Insane morning wood

Blood pressure regulated

Normal weight

Mental clarity

8+ hrs of sleep nightly


I saw a difference on a 3 yr hiatus vs once a year. I took longer to purge the noticeable toxins from the body. Pre fast I’d cut back on cigarettes, drinking, and white foods. The ACV/grapefruit regiment paid off, as I’d weighed in at 199.5 lbs at the hospital just before Thanksgiving, approx. 195 lbs net. Now I’m coming in at a net of 183. I’d say close to 5 lbs of that was from the fast, so over 10 lbs of loss in a month. Not bad, but a little quick though. I’ll gain a couple back after eating again, but the fast gave me the energy to start hitting the bodyweight exercises again to quick things regulated. Like 100 squats daily.


One thing I’ll say also is how hard it is to eat processed foods after this. I won’t be eating a McRib with its 70 ingredients anytime soon. I’m researching juicing fasts right now, and may do it as an in between to the Master Cleanse.

The fast is perfect if you’re working long hours, like out in the oil fields. Or taking a 2 week break from a heavy gym routine. All those supplements are processed shit. My morning regiment is as follows:

Quote:Wake up 1 hr early
Slug the quart of sea h2o

Make a jug of mix:

Pour out 8 oz of the water from the gallon into a glass for later

Put the remaining 120 oz into a large pot or container

Add 30 tablespoons of both lemon juice/maple syrup, and 1.5 teaspoons of cayenne pepper

30 tbls is just shy of 2 cups, for faster measurements

Drink a cup, while getting ready for work, then fill a to go mug for the road. Not all will fit back in the gallon jug. It will be a few cups too much due to adding so much other ingredients.

Pour the rest back into the h2o jug, and take to work

This gives you the max recommended daily amount of 12 glasses. Each glass contains ~110 calories, or 1650 for the daily total

Now for 10 days you don’t have to worry about what your meals with be

Post: #12

http://www.ariseandshine.com

Sell herbal products for removing mucoid plaque and detoxification.

Richard Anderson's book is very well worth a read too.

http://www.ariseandshine.com/books/clean...ook-1.html

Post: #13

Can I get away with using tap water instead of purified water? Approx how many lemons will I need (quick and dirty estimate suggests nearly 100)? Do you start with a laxative tea the night before Day 1?

Post: #14

(12-21-2013 06:36 AM)Peregrine Wrote:  Can I get away with using tap water instead of purified water? Approx how many lemons will I need (quick and dirty estimate suggests nearly 100)? Do you start with a laxative tea the night before Day 1?

Use distilled tap h2o and plan for 7-8 lemons daily if using a good hand/electric juicer. My cost on supplies was:

12.5 oz bottle maple syrup: $7.38 (Spring Hill brand)
2 lb bag of lemons: $2.99
1 gallon distilled h2o: $1.08
1 bottle cayenne pepper. $5.38

Estimated cost of 1 gal mixture= $11 daily. That, unfortunately, is more expensive than my average food bill for 3 meals. Still, the benefits outweigh the costs.

Do the laxative tea the night before the 1st day, but DO NOT do the salt h2o flush the 1st morning. You don't want a quart of sea water hitting a blockade. Could spell disaster.

Post: #15

Day 1: Took a wicked dump.

Post: #16

(01-01-2014 03:17 PM)Peregrine Wrote:  Day 1: Took a wicked dump.

On a windshield? I was driving that day.

Post: #17

I'm on Day 2 of the Master Cleanse. So far, not bad. Feelings of hunger come and go; when I get a hunger spike I drink a 24 oz glass of the lemonade which kills the hunger for a few hours.

Did the first Salt Water Flush this morning. Oh lawd. Make sure you have quick access to a toilet for a couple of hours after you drink the saline. I'm also taking a fiber laxative each night as recommended.

I didn't do the 3 day "ease-in" period they advise, but I've been on a low carb ketogenic diet for three weeks already so I was used to low carbs and calorie restriction.

A nurse I'm banging recommended the Master Cleanse to me, she said she and her ex-boyfriend had used it with good results.

I'm using this as a reboot of my health and fitness; I've let myself slack off in that area over the last year. I've gained 20 lbs and stopped exercising regularly. When the cleanse is done, I'm going to start the Primal/Paleo eating plan which I've followed before with good success and get back into the gym.

Post: #18

Nothing triggers my bullshit alarm as much as the words "cleanse" and "toxins"

NY Times had a good article on it a couple years back.

Quote:“There is absolutely no scientific basis for the assertion that the regimens popularly defined as ‘detox’ will augment the body’s own capacity for identifying and eliminating your own metabolic wastes or doing the same for environmental toxins,” Dr. Pressman said. “I advise patients that these detox programs amount to a large quantity of excrement, both literally and figuratively.”

Post: #19

Here's a thing that ALWAYS happens with any kind of "cleanse" or "detoxification" thing: they always talk about getting rid of toxins, but never have I actually seen any kind of "toxin" specifically mentioned by name. A chemical name, some food byproduct, some compound in the blood..... what are these toxins? Does anybody have an idea or is this some general vague idea of "something bad in the body" that most people have but can't actually pinpoint and so they just blindly pour in some herbal stuff into them, pass some loose diarrhea and then think they've got rid of "something bad"?

Post: #20

I agree there are a lot of bs fad diets out there but I've never heard anyone who has completed the Master Cleanse complain about it. Everyone has talked about positive results be it weight loss, higher energy levels, clearer skin, etc. Call it a cleanse or a flush or a cult but something good is happening to the body. Maybe it is just backed up/caked in waste or maybe it is pathogens and chemicals that could lead to disease or illness. Either way it sounds like some shit that you don't want or need in your body.

I tried this cleanse a few years with my gf and we made it through about 36 hours before saying fuck it and going out for a steak.

Post: #21

(03-04-2015 07:04 AM)Chauncey Wrote:  I agree there are a lot of bs fad diets out there but I've never heard anyone who has completed the Master Cleanse complain about it. Everyone has talked about positive results be it weight loss, higher energy levels, clearer skin, etc. Call it a cleanse or a flush or a cult but something good is happening to the body. Maybe it is just backed up/caked in waste or maybe it is pathogens and chemicals that could lead to disease or illness. Either way it sounds like some shit that you don't want or need in your body.

I tried this cleanse a few years with my gf and we made it through about 36 hours before saying fuck it and going out for a steak.

"I felt something good" isn't even a little step above being a placebo. Hell you can say that "you felt something" after taking just about any other substance, hard drugs included. At least for other stuff where "people felt good afterwards" like saunas, cold showers, taking zinc or D3 or fish oil etc etc. there are studies stating what actually chemically and physically happens different in your body as a result to make you "feel good".

Not saying one shouldn't do it, hell go ahead if you want, but accept the fact that it's some magical juju thinking and nothing might even happen except for you wasting some time and money on a dubious quest

Post: #22

(03-04-2015 01:08 AM)atlant Wrote:  Nothing triggers my bullshit alarm as much as the words "cleanse" and "toxins"

NY Times had a good article on it a couple years back.

Quote:“There is absolutely no scientific basis for the assertion that the regimens popularly defined as ‘detox’ will augment the body’s own capacity for identifying and eliminating your own metabolic wastes or doing the same for environmental toxins,” Dr. Pressman said. “I advise patients that these detox programs amount to a large quantity of excrement, both literally and figuratively.”

Nothing triggers my bullshit alarm worse than popular media articles published by the NYT.

Post: #23

(03-04-2015 01:08 AM)atlant Wrote:  Nothing triggers my bullshit alarm as much as the words "cleanse" and "toxins"

NY Times had a good article on it a couple years back.

Quote:“There is absolutely no scientific basis for the assertion that the regimens popularly defined as ‘detox’ will augment the body’s own capacity for identifying and eliminating your own metabolic wastes or doing the same for environmental toxins,” Dr. Pressman said. “I advise patients that these detox programs amount to a large quantity of excrement, both literally and figuratively.”

For 50 years the medical establishment has told the public that saturated fats are terrible and should be avoided, that the ideal is a high carb, low fat diet, and that there is a strong link between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol. Those claims have had a devastating effect on public health in the form of the obesity epidemic and have now been definitively refuted.

They drug millions of boys with powerful pharmeceuticals because they act like boys and don't fit into a female dominated educational system, and tell us that homosexuality is normal.

The AMA supports Obamacare and doctors asking patients whether they have firearms in the home.

In the 50's and 60's , doctors ridiculed the claims of bodybuilders that supplemental testosterone caused muscle growth and today obstacles are put up to men wanting hormone replacement while women's hormone replacement is handed out like candy.

For decades doctors advised their patients that the best form of exercise was hours of slow cardio per week, a form of exercise that raises cortisol and lowers testosterone and is now known to be far inferior to weightlifting and shorter more intense runs.

For decades the medical establishment told Americans to severely limit their intake of salt and sodium; recent studies have concluded that the normal amount of salt in our diet is healthy and in fact sodium deficiency causes heart problems.

Most doctors have little training or interest in nutrition or therapy outside of pharmaceuticals and cutting, and the medical establishment is highly politicized and has economic interests, so while they certainly aren't always wrong, their positions on nutrition and general health and fitness need to be viewed with serious skepticism.

Post: #24

Great post, MrXY, and correct on all counts. The medical establishment has a truly terrible record when it comes to giving advice on nutrition and exercise. They have made many confident claims on the basis of little to no evidence -- often just **one** shoddily designed "study" that gets cited again and again, or sometimes even less than that, just extrapolation and guesswork. While they are (very slowly) getting better, their positions should be viewed with great skepticism indeed.

I would add, however, that various "folk remedies" should also be viewed with healthy skepticism. Some are in fact very helpful -- sometimes, spectacularly so -- and this is eventually established by well-designed studies, though that can take a long time and one can't always wait for that. But some amount to no more than placebo, and quite a few are outright harmful, depending on the dosage. There is no substitute to either doing your own research, or since that is neither practical nor efficient for most guys, finding a few authorities that are sane, well-informed, and reliable, and placing your trust in them, however provisionally. When in doubt, it's always best to err on the side of caution and do less rather than more.

As far as these cleanses go, I've never tried one and have no strong opinion but I think it's likely that in most cases they do no harm and may well do some good. Would be interested in hearing more about your experience with this.

Post: #25

I think I'm going to try this soon. I've always been a little skeptical of cleanses, but I'm interested in getting rid of toxins. I need a restart after a few months of eating quite a bit of processed food.