Master Cleanse Day 1

So today I began the Master Cleanse. It's been alright. Not been hungry but everytime I go through the kitchen, my brain says, "Oh! You've not eaten anything today! Maybe you should grab a banana or a bite out of the kids' plates that they didn't finish." My brain is confused. Haha! But so far the belly is doing fine.


Here's the why, and what of the Cleanse:




WHY
I was looking up information on colon cleanses and detox systems online when I came across the Master Cleanse. It was something I could do myself, was inexpensive and has been around for many years with thousands upon thousands having success with it. This may be TMI, but I have been constipated since the day I was born, literally. At the worst, I had once monthly movements. Yea, not good. It's not that bad now, but I was starting to get desperate and that's why I was looking up the info to begin with. I discovered an added bonus, however while reading testimonials and watching youtube vlogs: People lose weight on this thing! Woo-hoo! I can handle that. lol! We actually started a 100 days of real food pledge a few weeks ago, and I really like the idea of detoxing and purging all the nasty stuff we've been eating in the past as we're still in the beginning stages of our pledge. So my goals are cleansing, detoxing and weight loss.
WHAT
The Master Cleanse is a detox/fast diet. I drink an herbal senna tea in the morning and evening and eat nothing! Crazy, I know. The main part of the detox is the lemon juice I mix up. It's fresh lemon juice, maple syrup (to keep up my caloric intake) and cayenne pepper. That's it. It's really yummy! I'm a big fan of spicy foods, so I made my lemon juice a little on the hot side. Actually, a lot on the hot side. It tastes like a fiery lemonade. Love it! We use organic maple syrup grade b, and it has a lot of vitamins and minerals in it so with that plus the calories, my body is still getting what it needs just in liquid form. 




The Cleanse recommends a minimum of 10 days and max of 45. My goal is to take it 10 days at a time. After the first 10 days if I feel like I'm done, I'll be done. If I feel like I need to keep up the detox, I'll keep going. 


Our chiropractor said that I'd be surprised how even if I didn't start this as a spiritual fast, it will become spiritual. I believe God made our bodies to connect better with the spirit when fasting. Think about it - God asked the Jews to fast on a regular basis so it would be good for us to do now as well! So, I am committing to spend a good portion of time in quiet time and studying during this fast. I'm focusing on praying for our church. I sense discouragement and hopelessness creeping in to our tiny congregation. I particularly want to petition the Lord for spiritual growth within the hearts of every member and a renewed passion for the Great Commission. Part of praying for my church is praying for my husband. So I'm going to also focus on lifting Jeremy up. That God would protect is heart from discouragement and compromise. 


So that's it! I'll try to update every couple of days so you can help me track my success. Oh, my weight....hmmmm.....actually don't have a scale right now but if it's the same it's been for months....I'm probably about 150 lbs. Hopefully that will go down. We'd love to have another baby and it's hard for us with my PCOS. BUT my PCOS symptoms get a ton better as I lose weight so here's to happy baby thoughts. Lol!