The Outspoken Mom Blog

Final Day of the Master Cleanse

Good Morning Everyone!

Well, well, well, today is the final day of the cleanse, I have made it, I am here, I am done...almost.  I am finishing today sometime, I don't know when but, I am finishing today.

I did my final weigh in this morning and I am very happy.....ok, here is where my blog died.  I had a whole huge blog all written and for some reason this is all my blog decided to keep!  AHHHHH!!!

So, here is the quick run down....I lost about 14 pounds, 4 inches from my waist, 2 from my hips, and 2 from my legs during this cleanse.

I did NOT go down a size in clothes but, my clothes fit so much better and way more comfortable!

I did the cleanse for most of the day today and ate my first bite of food tonight at dinner with my family.  We had Mexican Meatloaf, corn bread, and green beans.  I had ONE slice of meatloaf, and ONE small piece of corn bread.  I ate some sliced apples and drank 4 glasses of water at dinner. 

We then went to a graduation party and I had 4 mini carrots and that is it.  Steve and I went out for date night after wards.  We got to a restaurant at 8pm and I ordered a side salad with balsamic vinaigrette, blue cheese, and apple slices on romaine lettuce.  It was the perfect size, perfect clean taste and I am very satisfied with the way I feel.

For breakfast tomorrow, I am thinking 1 egg and 1 slice of bacon or something similar and that is it.  I will take a day off of the lemonade tomorrow as my throat really hurts from the acid and the cayenne pepper so, my goal is to eat a small salad or something, drink a ton of water and for dinner our family is having country style BBQ ribs in the slow cooker.  I will have one instead of my normal 3 or 4!  Maybe 1/2 a potato and maybe some fruit.  Again, a ton of water.

It is all about making healthy choices and retraining my mind to eat smaller portions and getting over the mindset that I am STARVING all the time.  No, I am not starving and nor will I starve.  It is all in my head.

So, all in all, I think the cleanse went great and I would highly recommend this to any of you!

Blessings to you all and thank you so much for covering me in prayer these past 10 days, it was really felt.

-Liza

Master Cleanse Day 9!!!! *UPDATE*

Good Morning Everyone!

Holy cow!  Can you believe it?  It is Day 9, I am home free now.  Plus, yesterday my girl friend lent me her electric juicer so, wow making my juice this morning took a few moments and was painless.  I am so thrilled!!  I did my detox tea last night, sort of fasted a bit yesterday as I only drank 1/2 of my normal amount of lemonade to sort of start weening myself from it. 

I was a bit worried that because of that I might have retained a bit of water so, I was worried about this mornings weigh in but, YAHOO I lost almost 2 more pounds since yesterday.  So, I am now just over 2 pounds to my cleanse goal weight.  Once I hit that goal, I am off the cleanse and back to doing it on my own.

I will also be within 15-20 pounds of my overall goal weight so, I am thrilled!  If I lose all my cleanse weight....that will mean I have lost a total of just over 15 pounds on this 10 day cleanse.  Obviously, I know I might gain a few of it back but, at least I am closer to my overall goal and I feel not so far away and hopeless about getting there anymore.

Again, I can't really tell a difference in the way my clothes fit yet.  I still can't fit into a smaller size but, I feel more comfortable overall.  Also, my face and skin is so soft and my skin glows again and isn't so dull and lifeless.  My hair is so soft and bouncy it is like a hairdresser does it every morning!  Really, it is weird how good I look and how good I feel on this cleanse.

I am hoping to become a water crazy lady like I used to be and never be without a water bottle and drink a ton of water.  I think that will be the key to keeping the weight not only off but, to keep losing the weight and to keep my skin, face, and hair looking clear, smooth, and healthy.

I strongly encourage you to try this cleanse, I have felt amazing the whole time, just a few moments here and there about the monotony of it all but, that is it.  Physically, I have always felt great on the cleanse and if you workout, I would say you won't have to pull back on your workouts, I did because I was nervous about energy but, after looking back, it wasn't necessary.

I am also thrilled to write about other subjects other than just the master cleanse!  lol.

So, tomorrow is my last day...I am planning on only doing a 1/2 day tomorrow so, really, I will have done a 9 1/2 day cleanse.  That was my goal the whole time, so don't think I am quitting!  We have a grad party tomorrow and it is date night with hubby so, I was hoping to celebrate my cleansing over a healthy, small dinner.  But, we will see...all depends on the weigh in tomorrow.

Because tomorrow is the last day, I will be drinking a ton of water today again and drinking my full amount of lemonade and doing the detox tea tonight too.

Yeah!  I am almost done, the light is shining bright at the end of the tunnel!!!!

Oh also, today is our 6 year olds judging day ALL DAY long for Jr. Ambassador to Richfield.  Please pray for patience and calm body...not for her but, my husband who will be with her from 9am-8pm today!  Yes, her judging day is 11 hours long...anyone else think that is CRAZY for a 6 year old?  It isn't actually horrible as she does get an hour and a half lunch break and an hour dinner break and the morning is breakfast with the other candidates and the evening is dessert with them all so, hopefully it won't be too bad.

Is it sad that I am more worried about my husband than my 6 year old? lol.

Blessings to you all!

-Liza

Quick Update:  I measured myself on Day 3 of the cleanse (wasn't going to at all but, figured I should) so, not sure exactly how many inches I have lost during the whole cleanse since I had already lost 6 pounds by then but, since Day 3 of the cleanse:

I have lost 2 inches on my waist, 2 inches from my hips, and 1 inch from my thighs. (My arms stayed the same)

So....wow, I am impressed.  Just a little more incentive for you still trying to decide if this cleanse is for you.

Master Cleanse...ugh...Day 8

Good Evening Everyone!

Sorry, this is the first chance I have had today to even be on my computer so, my blog is a bit late today.  So, it is day 8 of my cleanse wow, I am still doing ok, I am not wanting food nearly as bad as I did yesterday so, things are good.

I think my deal yesterday was 2 of our children were gone for the evening at my parents house so Steve and I only had our 6 year old and the baby so it would have been a perfect opportunity to go to a nice restaurant and have fun.  See, our 6 year old eats more adult type food and she even likes sushi so, we could have gone to a good sushi restaurant with her and the baby and had a great dinner.  So, that explains my fussiness yesterday.

Today, I have almost made it through another day.  I have never wished days to go by so fast in my life.  But, praise God, they are going by really fast.  I am nervous to begin eating again and I am wondering if I have learned my lesson or not.  What if I haven't learned anything from this?  What if my cravings for sweets and crappy food just comes back?  Oh, the fears I have.  Can I do this?  Can I eat normally, can I learn to eat smaller portions, can I only put $3-5 of 'gas' in my 'tank' at a time or will I gorge myself again?

I am hoping my weight I have dropped since doing the cleanse will be incentive enough to not eat bad again.  I have dropped almost 12 pounds on this cleanse so far and I am hoping to drop 4 more.  Those 4 little pounds will put me within 15 pounds of my overall goal for weight loss so, oh man, it would be GREAT if I could lose those 4 extra pounds!

So, tonight I am for sure doing the salt water flush or the 'smooth move' tea tonight to get those last few amounts of toxins out of my body.  Ok...next paragraph is a WAY TO MUCH INFORMATION paragraph so, if you get grossed out please skip to the next paragraph!!

Ok, if you are reading this, I have warned you and you can't tell me how gross I am for writing this!  So, Steve told me that by now I should be having really black and tarry poos but, I haven't had anything like that yet.  He keeps telling me it is coming but, my theory is he smoked the whole time he was cleansing so, I think it is his smokes that are causing those.  Because he is cleansing again with me this time around and he has been 'turning inside out' and I haven't really had any poos.  So, I am thinking I really am not someone who is 'bound up' naturally.  I don't know, maybe I am jinxing myself and tonight after my salt water flush or detox tea, I will explode...we will have to see.  Sorry to write that but, it is a part of the cleanse and I thought if you were thinking about doing it you need to know what to expect....all of it!

Ok, so if you are at this paragraph, you either read the previous paragraph or you skipped it...welcome back either way! 

I am overly excited to end this cleanse.  Again, a little nervous but, excited at the same time.  I think until I reach my desired goal weight...I am going to continue to drink some of the lemonade daily as a meal replacement.  I am not much of a lunch eater as I have said before so, it would be the perfect meal for me to just drink the lemonade.  I think I would recommend so as not to be hungry or think you are missing anything, I would drink a minimum of 30 ounces of the lemonade from around 11-2 so as not to eat those hours.  Then, I can have a little afternoon snack with the children and have a healthy right sized dinner that evening.

I have more to write but, the baby is on my lap and it is making writing very difficult!  Plus, she is ready for bed I think...crabby baby!

OHHHHHH guess what?!!!!  Our baby walked today on her own!  Yep!  Such a big girl!  I love when they figure out they can walk on their own.  So cool.  I am so pleased with her and think it is so neat.  I need to buy more videotapes so, I can videotape her!

Anyway, blessings to you all!

-Liza

Master Cleanse Day 7

Good Morning Everyone!

Well, I have to admit something to you all....I want to quit.  Yep, I want to quit the Master Cleanse.  Not because it is hard just because, like I said, I am a quitter by nature and frankly doing anything for 7 days is a bore to me.

I need more variety in my life, or at least in my meals.  Man o man.  Again, I have never been hungry on this cleanse, I am ok with the lemonade and the detox teas and whatever but, I am just bored with the whole deal of the cleanse and can't believe I have 3 more days of this crap!  However, I can't quit, I am already at day 7, that would just be stupid to do something this long and not finish.  But, I want to quit.  I won't quit but, I want to.

I just have to make it through the weekend and I am done!  So boring. 

Sorry, lost my train of thought, just had to yell at my son for throwing a water balloon at his little sister and she was fully dressed for the day in a nice outfit for Grandma's house later today.  I had the 'come to Jesus' talk with him about the hose and the water balloons. 

So, you all know how I am feeling about the cleanse today.  Really, it isn't that bad, I am just a baby and a quitter and am being a bit of both right now.  It truly is one of the easiest things I have ever done.  But, you know how a lot of people get a sense of pride when they finish something to the end....I am really not one of those people.  Yes, I am thrilled with myself when I actually finish something but, frankly the monotony of doing something for a long period of time is not usually worth it enough to me for the reward at the end.

Perfect example of how I am with finishing things or doing things I don't like.  When I was in high school my step-dad bought me this Ralph Lauren jacket I had been wanting FOREVER!  He took me shopping and just bought it for me.  Well, my mother was furious that he bought me something (in high school I had to buy my own clothes) so, she told me I could only keep it if I cleaned my room by the next day.  Well, instead of me cleaning my room, I just sat in my room and wondered how I was going to get that coat and being super mad at my mom that she wasn't going to let me keep the jacket.  Needless to say, the jacket got returned and my room never got cleaned.

Yes, I had this jacket actually in the house, in my possession, it was hanging in my closet as a 'incentive' to clean my room and it still wasn't enough for me to even lift a finger.  What is wrong with me?!!

Steve gave me an incentive to loose weight and all I can think of is how big of an ass he is for just not quitting on his own and making me work for him to quit.  Plus, in my head, if I got down to 140 like he has challenged me, instead of me being excited for myself being at 140, I would be pissed off at him because I know he would come up with some other excuse to not be able to quit smoking.  Lol, I really have to laugh at how utterly pathetic I am sometimes.

It is almost like I am content with a mediocre life because being anything above that would require too much work on my part.  I do just enough stuff to survive but, not enough to really live.

You should look around my house and the 100's of unfinished projects...it is wow, is all I can say.

So, now, I am not really down on myself, really I feel good about myself.  I am not craving foods, I am down 8 1/2 pounds and I feel good.

I am more just fussy and frustrated about finishing this cleanse.  I don't to finish it but, I need to, I have to.  I think that is why I am writing about it daily so that I have too many people that would know I quit if I didn't go the 10 days like I said I would :-)

So, keep praying for me, pray that I have a strength like I haven't had before and help me to FINISH!

Blessings to you all

-Liza

Oh...a quick side note here...my hubby might be guest blogging soon.  He told me he wants to and I gave him my log ins so, if you see a blog that most likely isn't categorized and written completely different from the rest...please know I have NOT gone off the deep end from a lack of food for 10 days, it is just my hubby :-)

Day 6 and random life things.

Good Afternoon Everyone!

Ok, wow, I made it to Day 6 of the Master Cleanse!  Who knew?

So, I am still on it, still doing great and still full of energy.  I played soccer last night and the only issue I had was I had to pee during the 1st half other than that, my energy level was high and normal and all good.

Wow, I am really impressed with this cleanse!  I can't believe it and I am just floored by it.  Last night instead of doing the salt water flush because I got home from soccer so late, I did a cup of Smooth Move tea instead.  Ok, the name just cracks me up...anyone else think that is really funny?

I also started one of the July books for book club last night too as I laid in bed sipping my Smooth Move tea.  Our book club is reading a book by Laura Flynn called, "Swallow the Ocean".  It is really so far a good book.  It seems to be interesting as it is a true story, which I like, about a mother who is slipping into schizophrenia in front of her 3 daughters.  It is listed as a memoir, which I don't normally like, so we will see if it turns out good or not.

As I read books from our book club, I do list them on the blog site and rate them so, if ever you are looking for something to read, please check out that list.  I am not sure I will read the other book for July book club.  I can't remember who wrote it but, it is called "Austenland".  I had no clue what it was about but, after reading the back cover, YUCK, no thanks.  It is some dumb book about a woman obsessed with Jane Austen and her books and wondering if she will ever meet her own Mr. Darby from Pride and Prejudice.  What?!  She is hoping her fantasy Austenland will bring her a man or something like that.  Ick, gag.  SO not my type of book.  My husband laughed when I read the back cover to him.  To me it sounds like a romance book that some high school girl would read....love you girls in my book club but, icky on the book :-)

Ok back to the cleanse for a little bit.  I am really still wanting to eat.  However, not the humongous amounts I used to eat or the crap either.  I have not craved sugar or candy or anything since the cleanse started.  I really just miss eating with my children.  Steve and I were talking this morning and I told him I would probably continue drinking this lemonade deal as a meal replacement.  He said he read that a lot of people do that after their cleanse.  So, my thought is after Monday when we end the cleanse, I will probably go back to eating breakfast and dinner which are two of the main meals in our family and we eat them together.  Then, for lunch I will just have my 'lemonade' instead of a meal.  I don't really like lunch all that much anyway as it is mostly a sandwich meal and since I don't eat wheat...who cares if you don't eat at that meal?!

We also got another good piece of advice on eating which made a lot of sense to me, might not to you but, here goes anyway.  A business contact of Steve's was telling him that when he lost all of his weight, he started thinking of food very differently especially his meals.  He said to think of your stomach like your gas tank on your car.  Instead of every time it gets a little low and then filling it up all the way full, let it get empty and then only put $3-5 worth of 'gas' in it at a time. (I told Steve there is a BIG difference between $3-5 worth of gas in our convertible vs our Yukon...I told him I didn't think I could live on $3-5 worth of 'gas' in the Yukon but, definitely that much in the convertible.  See...$25 fills our convertible, it takes $75 to fill the truck)

So, you let yourself get hungry before you actually eat something but, then you only put enough food into your stomach to get it off of empty.  You never want your stomach to be 'full'.  I like that analogy.  Steve and I were giggling when he told me about it because we both are the type of people that like to feel like Thanksgiving everyday.  We like that over stuffed feeling people normally get just once a year at Thanksgiving....that is why it is one of our favorite holidays!

So, I will now start thinking of my stomach as a gas tank and only put $3-5 worth of 'gas' into it when it is empty.  That to me means ordering the 1/2 salad instead of the full, eating off the appetizer menu instead of the full dinner menu and sharing dishes with my hubby.  It is going to take a lot of retraining as me just typing this I am protesting sharing anything when it comes to food!  Isn't that pathetic?!

After the cleanse I am also going to live by the rule I used to have for years and for some reason gave up on.  But, the rule is to always drink, at least, one full glass of water before eating anything.  Did you know that most of the time when you think you are hungry your body is really just thirsty?  So, if you drink a glass of plain old water first, your hunger might just go away.

This is the hardest part of any life change....actually changing your life.  It is easy to diet, it is easy to cleanse, those are only temporary!  But, to actually make a change in your life, that is difficult and requires a lot of changing the way you think about things.  I am a gorger, it will be difficult to believe I can live on small portions and be happy but, I can and I will.

Blessings to you all and please continue to cover me in prayer!  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!

-Liza

The Master Cleanse Day 5

Good Morning Everyone!

Well wow, I am heading into Day 5 of my cleanse and I have to say, it has been much easier than I thought it would be.  Plus, my hair is much, much softer, my skin looks better, clearer and less dull.  It is very noticeable that I am doing something different.  I am having to wear a lot less make-up and I look much better.  Steve says it is like I have a 'glow'.  I do have to say, looking in the mirror, my face looks better than it has in a long time.

I am getting sort of annoyed with it a bit as I hate making the 'lemonade' every day and squeezing all of those lemons but, the actual cleanse part doesn't bother me at all.

Last nights salt water cleanse almost put me under though!  Man o man!  For some reason last nights salt water flush tasted so much worse and hit my stomach like a ton of bricks.  Yes, I know salt water is gross to drink anyway but, it hadn't been that bad for the first 3 nights but, last night...oh yuck.  I just sat there at the dinner table and was trying to decide if I was going to throw up or not. 

Too Much Information section!  Warning! Skip to next paragraph if you don't want to know!!!

It finally 'cleansed' me out a little bit...TMI here but, last night was first time since I started cleanse that something other than number one came out.

Good news is I didn't end up throwing up.  Although, as I laid in bed and had just fallen asleep, I hear my 8 year old son crying and saying his head hurt again and he was just weeping.  I knew he was going to throw up and sure enough...he did.  I was so angry at him because I knew he only gets super bad headaches like that and throws up when he eats something he is allergic too.  Sure enough, at the pool he had eaten a bagel with cream cheese.  Um, he is allergic to wheat AND dairy.

So, I was up in the middle of the night for the 4th time since starting my cleanse.  Yep, for some reason since starting my cleanse and really just wanting to sleep as much as possible through it, one of my children has had some issue every single night since I started it.  I could cry.

I did my own weigh in yesterday and I have lost over 7 pounds since starting the cleanse.  So, I guess that is a positive. 

The not eating part, I am still in shock of how easy that has been for me, very freeing in fact for me.  I for the first time in a really, really long time don't feel stressed out about meal time or date nights.  I have made my children better meals than they have had in a long time and I am actually taking the time to make them fun and exciting meals.  It is really weird how this cleanse is affecting me.

I think before I was always so worried about what I was going to eat and when I was going to eat that I couldn't focus on feeding the children what they wanted to eat.  Pathetic isn't it?  I am praying, praying hard that this cleanse helps to release me from my issues with food.

So today, as I head into Day 5 and really it is all downhill from here, I am wondering what the rest of the cleanse brings to me and takes away from me....lol literally and figuratively.

Tonight will be a test, I haven't worked out at all on this cleanse because I just didn't know how the cleanse would affect me but, tonight I have soccer.  So, it will be interesting to see how my energy level is and how I do drinking my lemonade and water instead of Vitamin water and water.

Again today, I ask for your prayers, I ask for you to give me strength beyond my own understanding.  I ask for you to pray that my weakness with food continues to go away and after this cleanse I will be changed in some way.

Blessings to you all!

-Liza

PS:  Anyone else doing the cleanse???? 

It's gettin hot n herre! and Master Cleanse Day 3

Good Afternoon Everyone!

Well, summer is here this week!  Yes, it looks like we are going to have an entire week of summer finally!  It is only June 22nd so, it is about time!

It is supposed to be 92 today and 94 tomorrow and sticky, phew.  I love it though.  As Nelly says in his song aptly titled, "It's getting hot n herre"....'I am getting so hot, I wanna take my clothes off'...for the pool!  It is perfect pool weather but, I don't think we are going today as the older 2 children are at the park program today, our 5 year old is on a playdate and our baby is sleeping.  Add to it that tonight is date night with my hubby! 

I am very excited for date night tonight we are going to see the movie the Proposal.  Again, a bit nervous about the popcorn deal but, I think I will be ok if I just sip on my lemonade during the movie instead.

So day 3 of the Master Cleanse....it is going remarkably well.  I have yet to be hungry at all!  I feel great, my mood is the best it has been in weeks and I have a lot of energy.  It is crazy!  I am still struggling with food however.  I have discovered I am very mad that I can't just grab a grape or french fry or finish the children's lunches when they leave 1/2 a sandwich or something.

Again, that is the whole reason I am on the cleanse is to bring to light how much snacking I do through out the day.  It is crazy how much I 'taste', 'snack', and 'munch' all day long.  It really bothers me that I can't eat at night.  That is my favorite time to eat when the children are all in bed and I can eat something without having to make some for someone else, no one is going to take it from me or take a bite of my food.  But, it is also the time of day that I usually eat the crappiest food and eat the most of it.

I am not craving anything, I am not hungry yet, I still want to eat things that are on the table or in the fridge.  UGH!  I am wanting to eat only because, I want to eat not because I need to eat, not because I am hungry but, I am used to eating a lot through out the day.

It is only Day 3 and I am also bored with making the lemonade every morning or night for the day.  I am sick of squeezing lemons, measuring syrup, water, and cayenne pepper.  I don't mind drinking the stuff but, I am bothered that I am making the stuff everyday.

But, you need to make it fresh daily and since Steve is helping me by doing the cleanse with me I am making double batches every day.  Yuck.    It's ok, only 7 more days of this. 

Wow, can't believe I have to do this for another week.  But, it isn't because I don't think I can, I just like I said before, I am a quitter.  I very rarely see things through to the end so, I need to push myself, I need to challenge myself and I need to not quit.

I know this will be such a good thing in the end, I just have to do it.

I love hearing from others that you are planning on doing this cleanse too!  It is great, it really is.  I challenge you to try it, push yourself and see how your feelings of food control your life so much, it is amazing. 

Let me know how it goes for all of you and I will pray for you, and we can push each other and make it through this.

Please continue to pray for me and for strength, wisdom, and guidance.  Please pray for my break from the bondage of food.

Blessings to you all,

-Liza

Father's Day, 1st Day of Summer and Master Cleanse Day 2

Good Afternoon Everyone!

So many things to write about today!  It is Father's Day, the 1st day of summer and Day 2 of the Master Cleanse.

Father's Day:  Please honor your Father's today whether they are good, bad, or indifferent you should honor them.  I am saying this as someone who has 2 fathers.  One is my 'real' father and the other is my step-father.  I love them both very much.  Both are average fathers and both have dropped the ball a few times but, they are still my dad's and they deserve to be honored at least once a year!  Whether you have the perfect father or one that isn't the greatest still call them or send them a card wishing them a Happy Father's Day.

So first day of summer, it is steamy not hot, just steamy and overcast.  Again, just feeling our summer in Minnesota this year is going to be sort of a dud.    Yuck, I want sun, heat, and more sun!

Ok, lastly Day 2 of the Master Cleanse.  Amazingly I am not hungry and haven't been yet on this cleanse.  The lemonade really does keep you full and drinking about 100 ounces of water on top of the 100 ounces of lemonade I am drinking wow...I am peeing a lot!

I even survived my first salt water flush last night.  That was gross but, all I was doing was giggling the whole time because of the fear of pooping in my pants or not knowing when it was all going to 'hit'.  TMI here but, nothing happened :-)

Tonight I will do another salt water flush, blech.  But, all is good.  I am completely amazed at how much of my life is focused around food and it is really frustrating to me.  Last night Steve rented us a movie and I was so angry I couldn't have popcorn and candy that I refused to watch the movie.  Isn't that pathetic?!

We are giving the movie deal another try tomorrow night as it is our date night and we are going to see the movie "The Proposal".  It is a movie I have been looking forward to seeing and have heard good things about so, I am hoping I can focus on that more than the fact I can eat.  I will just be sitting there sipping on my lemonade and trying not to get up 5 times during the movie to pee.

Steve decided to do the cleanse with me so, he and I are in the same boat and I am so grateful he decided to support me by doing it with me.  THAT is a sign of a good man.  Not only is he supporting me but, he has offered to make the meals for the first few days for me so, I don't freak out about having to cook for the children.

Tonight is another big test, I need to go grocery shopping tonight.  MAN!  That is going to be tough but, this is the whole reason I am doing this cleanse, to get over the power food has over my life.

Steve said I have already lost weight.  I am not paying attention to my weight, he is making me weigh in everyday to just see.  I close my eyes and make him mute the TV when I weigh myself so I don't know what I weigh.  It helps me to not know what is going on.  Like I said, I am really good at quitting and talking myself out of things so, if I knew I lost 5-10 pounds, I would just quit the cleanse having really not learned how to manage my feelings about food.

I am trying to go the distance with this cleanse.  I ask that you all continue to pray for me and pray for me often!  I feel great, it is really weird, I have to believe that is a God thing.  Please continue to pray for strength for me and that this cleanse will help me get over food and bring me closer to God and my true self.

Blessings to you all and Happy Father's Day to all you fathers out there!

-Liza

Master Cleanse Day 1!

Good Afternoon Everyone!

So, I did it, I started the Master Cleanse today!  I am very impressed with myself for even starting it! 

I will tell you the first thing is, I am NOT hungry, not in the least.  The 'lemonade' you make and drink is actually very filling and refreshing so, I am not hungry or feel like I am starving as I thought I would for sure feel like.  However, I am starting to feel like I 'need' to eat. 

I am starting to understand why American's are so overweight as a society.  Have you ever tried to not eat for a day and driven around?!  There is fast food or restaurants on every corner, there are signs everywhere from beer to candy and everything in between.  I discovered something about myself to, I walk in my front door and I instantly go right to the fridge.  Wow, that was an eye opener for me!

I also realized how much I snack on the children's lunches and snacks throughout the day.  I was unpacking a bag and was totally ready to just dig into the Veggie Booty of the children's and had to catch myself.  I also didn't realize how much I have the baby 'feed' me.  She gave me a spoonful of yogurt this morning and I completely forgot I wasn't eating until it hit my mouth, and I had to secretly spit it out.

I knew that I was an all day eater, I always have been but, I didn't realize how much food consumed my thoughts through out the day and it is only 12:50 pm! 

I am now more determined than ever I need to do this cleanse to not only clean out my body but, to clean out my mind.

I will not kid you, it isn't easy but, I am praying this will be very rewarding.  Please keeping praying for me and for strength!  I need strength and I need a positive attitude and a non-quitting attitude.

Blessings to you all!

-Liza

My funk and the Master Cleanse

Good Morning Everyone!

Well, a quick 'funk' update:  I am still in a funk, thank you to all of you writing me about it!  I am working on it.  I think I am hitting sort of a mid-life crisis.  Wow...totally thought that was a man thing!  But, I think this might be my version of a mid-life.  Guess I just expected life to be a bit different than it is at age 36.  Oh well, I am working through it on my own(best way for me), withdrawing a bit from others(again, best for me) but, hopefully on my way back to normal Liza. (whatever that is!)

So, I am utterly amazed at the amount of people that are following me on Twitter and how about once a week, all of a sudden, a group of 3-4 people start following me..and NO it isn't on #FF! (Follow Friday for those of you who don't Twitter).  Usually it is mid-week.  Just yesterday, 6 more people started following me so Welcome!  I sincerely hope you join my blog followers too :-)

Well, tomorrow....wow, tomorrow.  You will all never guess what I am starting tomorrow!  Our baby is pretty much done nursing now (she is almost 13 months old) so, I am starting the Master Cleanse tomorrow!  Holy crap!!  Yes, as many of you know, my husband did it a few months ago and it worked well for him.  It jump-started his metabolism again and jump started him working out.  He did it for 10 days and lost 23 pounds on it.  It also got him off of caffeine.  It didn't quite work for the cigs but, maybe that is because he smoked the whole way through!  Is that really a cleanse he did then?

Anyway, I am hoping to get all the toxins out, get my hormones that have been really crazy lately back in check and for once and for all, flush the sugar cravings out of my body.  I am highly addicted to sugar and it is really bad for me because I have low blood sugar issues so, my mind/body get really out of whack when I eat sugar....might explain my funk that I have been in for a while.  As people with hyper or hypo-glycemia tend to exhibit similar symptoms to those who suffer from depression and/or bi-polar.  So, hopefully this Master Cleanse will help!  I would like to see the cheerful, happy Liza back!  I am sure my family would appreciate it too.

So my goal is to do the cleanse for 10 days.  I am a bit fearful and trying not to get too excited or I don't know, pretty much going into it emotionless.  I don't know what to expect.  As many of you know, food is my passion, however, very much my enemy.  I have the sugar issues but, I have also been so limited over the years in what I can eat that when I get something I can eat, I tend to gorge.  I am hoping doing the Master Cleanse and only being on a liquid diet for 10 days will finally help me to let go of some of my food issues.

I am obviously hoping it will jump start my metabolism again and help me to start my long trek of losing the 30+ pounds I have put on in the last 2 years.   However, my real goal is to get rid of some of my feelings toward food and to hopefully realize I don't 'need' it all the time and large amounts of it!

So, please cover me in prayer!  I will need it and so will my family because food is so much a part of who I am and so much of life is based around food.  Pray that I will still be able to make meals for my family, I will have patience with my family, and I will most importantly be on my way to being healthy again not only for me but, for my children and my hubby too.  I would love it if you all could pray for strength for me as I am also the worlds best quitter :-)  Oh yes, no one quits first or gives up faster than me!  lol. 

This is going to be a challenge for me but, it will be good for me.  I need to challenge.  Especially as I feel like my life is in a rut right now, this hopefully will be a good spiritual deal for me and bring me closer to God and help me to focus on the good and the truth and not the lies of this fallen world.

I will try and give you all daily updates and if anyone wants to do the Master Cleanse with me we can support each other through it!  Also, here is the recipe and some tips to help you make it 10 days(the minimum they recommend)

The Master Cleanse Recipe:

for 60oz at a time:

60oz of Distilled Water (found in laundry aisle)

12Tablespoons of Grade B Maple Syrup

12Tablespoons of Organic Lemons (must be organic and fresh squeezed)

1/2 teaspoon of Organic Cayenne Pepper

Ok, so what?!  You might be asking that right now.  Distilled Water because you are trying to flush out the toxins and since drinking water has fluoride and chlorine in it plus whatever else, you can't detox with it. 

Organic Maple Syrup Grade B (Formaldehyde Free) why?  Because you need the natural sugars but, don't want any chemicals and you need the natural sugars to keep your body healthy.

Organic Lemons why?  Because you again are detoxing and don't want chemicals in your juice so, organic is the best there is plus, there are good vitamins and natural detoxing elements in lemons

Organic Cayenne Pepper why?  Because it gives it a bit of flavor and has some of the vitamins your body needs to do a 10 day cleanse without harming your system.

They also strongly suggest you do Sea Salt flushes in the evening...WARNING!!!!  DO NOT leave your home or get too far from the toilet!  I am serious!  You WILL have an accident!!  Might not the first 1-3 days but, after your body starts cleansing itself, you WILL have an accident if you don't stay near a toilet after your salt water flushes!    Only use natural Sea Salt and distilled water.

Also, you can try a detox tea...Smooth Move is a good tea and can be found anywhere.  Just make sure your tea is De-caff!!!

When Steve did it he also did a wheat grass shot every morning.  That is where you get your protein for the day so, even though they are gross highly recommended.  He said he felt a lot better after those and you only want a 1 ounce wheat grass shot..no more than 2 oz for sure!

You need to drink your weight in Distilled Water every day...yes, you read it right...you need to drink the same amount of ounces of water that you weigh in pounds.  So, if you weigh 200 pounds, you need to drink 200 ounces of distilled water a day PLUS your 'lemonade'. 

It sounds like a lot but, remember, you aren't eating ANY food or drinking anything other than your lemonade and water so, it won't be as hard as you think it will be.

They highly recommend you drink a minimum of 60 oz of the lemonade a day but, recommend 80-100 oz of the lemonade a day for optimum results.

As you get used to the cleanse by day 3, you can add some decaf natural tea, raspberry is a good choice to sort of break up the day and add some other flavor into your life.

I need to go, the baby just woke up.

Good luck if you decide to try the cleanse with me and PLEASE, cover me in prayer and pray for me often as I do so LOVE food :-)

Blessings to you all.

-Liza