Everybody (or Every Body) Hurts Sometimes

Day 5 began with me feeling the worst that I have since beginning the master cleanse.  The lyrics of R.E.M.'s song, Everybody Hurts, might be a bit over the top compared to how I was feeling this morning, though.  The song talks more of an emotional hurt that brings on thoughts of ending your life but encourages you to 'hold on.'  Besides, it is not The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine).

The pain I felt this morning was centered right in my abdomen.  I can only guess that people on the cleanse that feel this pain might very well consider stopping before the 10 days have lapsed, but it really wasn't bad enough for me to consider it.  Besides, I know exactly what caused it.  While on the master cleanse it is recommended that you use a laxative herbal tea to help get things moving.  The lack of solid food causes the intestines to take a break - peristalsis kind of stalls - because there is not much going on.  Unfortunately, your intestines have grown used to the built up wastes and no longer consider the need to evacuate it.  The master cleanse is designed to do that very thing, though.  Using a laxative of any sort - herbal or otherwise - essentially irritates the intestines.  It causes peristalsis to occur and encourages the built up wastes to move.
Not being a tea drinker, I opted to use a laxative in the form of a capsule.  Senna is one of the most common herbal laxatives on the market.  It is sold as a tea, capsule, and even as a syrup.  Tea is recommended so as to avoid any additional ingredients such as binders (tablet) or cellulose (capsule) but, as long as those are minimal, the alternatives are better than nothing.
I had previously used three capsules of the senna but it didn't really have much of an effect (the brand that I purchased recommended 2-4 capsules, once or twice a day) so I upped the dosage to 4 capsules last night.  This dose was certainly more effective but it accounts for the pain that I was feeling.  The only downside - if it really is a downside - is that I didn't do the salt water flush this morning.  The flush would certainly help clear out the wastes that the laxative-induced peristalsis freed up, but I just didn't think that I would be able to ingest that much water with the pain that I was feeling.  According to Tom Woloshyn's book, The Complete Master Cleanse: A Step-by-Step Guide to Maximizing the Benefits of The Lemonade Diet, the salt water flush need not be done everyday during the cleanse.

Less Is More...But is it Really?

So, Day 1 of the Master Cleanse is coming to and end and I have only consumed three glasses of lemonade.  I am not sure that less is more in this case, though.  Alright, you may or may not get the song reference this time.  Honestly, I had a hard time coming up with one.  Less Is More is actually the title of quite a few songs.  Most of them - well, in fact all but one of them - I have never heard before.  The one I am referencing is by Relient K.

Normally, when you are referring to fasting, less definitely is more.  In the case of the Master Cleanse, I am really not sure that it is.  With a 'normal' fast, the idea is to restrict food intake even to the point of eating nothing.  The Master Cleanse is different, however.  The idea here is to benefit from the healing properties of the ingredients without introducing new toxins into your digestive system.  In order to gain the benefits, enough of the ingredients need to be consumed.  By having only ingested three servings of the lemonade, I am just not convinced that I have had enough to make a difference.  It is still early, though, so I can squeeze in (no pun intended) another glass or two before bed.  Tomorrow, I just need to work on better time management and space out the drinks better - start earlier and drink more often.

As well, it seems that my modification to the salt water flush is made it ineffective.  Apparently, by consuming one quart of water with 2 tsp. of sea salt quickly, it literally causes the liquid - salt included - to flush right through you within 30-60 minutes of drinking it carrying the toxins with it.  While I had read about the flush, I hadn't really understood the immediacy of the effect.  I have, since this morning, read a couple of different articles regarding a salt water flush - one unrelated to the Master Cleanse.  Knowing that what I did by drinking less water with the sea salt followed by the balance of the water didn't provoke the intended effect, I will do things differently tomorrow morning.