Most people feel energized and compelled to exercise while on the Master Cleanse. They report feeling healthy and strong through some of the most invigorating work-outs. I have worked out while on the cleanse, and I agree with all those reports.
I have ran for 45 minutes on several days times during a cleanse. I have played hockey a gruelling anaerobic team sport activity, on two occasions over a 2 week master cleanse. In fact, I was running on the days I wasn’t playing hockey during this particular cleanse.
Check out this video that covers some of the extremes of The Master Cleanse and exercise, including a presumably even more gruelling triathlete who was training for their competition while on the master cleanse.
Should you avoid Working Out on The Master Cleanse?
However, while on The Master Cleanse you can feel sick at times as the toxins are removed and your immune system is more vulnerable, so some people feel like relaxing and taking it easy. That’s ok.
For most people a nice balanced compromise is the way to go.
It’s important to listen to your body: if you feel like resting, then it’s not a good idea to force your body through a grueling workout especially when cleansing. However, some people will feel compelled to get moving, and that’s just fine.
Key Factors to consider
- Avoid muscle building work-outs, since you’re not taking any protein. Although this has been done, logic tells us that any workout that causes you to be stiff the next day due to “micro trauma to the muscle fibers” as you literally tear the muscle fibers so that your body will repair them stronger (isn’t it cool that our body does that).
- Exercise in moderation (within your normal bounds). The key take-away from the video above regarding working out on the lemonade diet particularly is that don’t start, training for a triathlete when your best olympic sport has traditionally been couch surfing, or you can’t even do 10 lay-downs let alone 10 pushups. You have to let your normal be your guide.
- Stay Hydrated and “Eat a LOT”. Just because the average daily intake of lemonade servings while on the lemonade detox is 10 glasses, doesn’t mean you should limit yourself to that. You can take double that. Even triple, if your caloric expenditure dictates, and if you’re satisfying #1 and #2 rules above on the master cleanse and working out. You can also ensure your water intake is at least matching your lemonade intake. You could also 1.5x or 2x your water to lemonade ratio.
Types of Exercise You Can Do on the Master Cleanse
Of course, there are many types of exercise one could do while on the Master Cleanse. Some are more strenuous than others. Light jogs and walks help a lot, as does some other obvious exercises like Yoga. These in fact are highly recommended exercises while cleansing.
Here’s a list of some common recommended activities you can try while on a detox or cleanse.
- Running
- Walking
- Stretching
- Yoga
- Tai Chi
- Swimming
- Biking
Master Cleanse Exercise Routine Report
If you want to see our recommended Master Cleanse Workout organized into a daily and weekly routine, please tell us where you want us to send the report by clicking here (currently unavailable).
What kind of exercise do you like to do while on The Master Cleanse?
Please tell us your experience with the master cleanse and exercise. What exercises do you like the most? Which workouts caused you problems. Why do you think that is? Do you have any tips for specific workouts, or how to make them more effective.
I ran, did power yoga and hit the stairmaster as usual. My runs were 3-4 miles 3-4x per week and no long runs. I couldve done my long runs because I felt great (7-8 miles) but did not want to over do it.
Exercising on the master cleanse is not recommended. That being said, it will totally depend on your overall health, how much weight you should lose, BMI, etc…
By doing nothing but laying in bed all day your body burns 1200 calories typically. Depending on how much lemon juice and maple syrup (sub honey or agave in some recipes) you use in your drinks will depend on how many calories you are consuming. Most daily cleanses will not exceed 200-800 calories.
According to the Mayo clinic, 3500 calories is a pound. We can do math from there.
If you are obese, very obese, or do not exercise regularly I would not exercise on the cleanse as there are too many health risks. Now, if you are say 125 lb female with a healthy body fat of say 15% or lower, with a regular exercise routine and are looking to burn 5 to 15 pounds then you might consider incorporating it into your routine.
No matter who you are, if you exercise while on the cleanse you run health risks. In addition, your appetite will be harder to combat as you are burning calories while consuming hardly any.
This is my day 5 and I am doing great. I had a headache out of the world on day one but I got thru with no meds. I still go to the gym and work out for a hr and do my job for 9 hrs a day. I am a UPS delivery driver. I was worried if my body would handle the demands of my job and it did just great. I am looking forward to going to work Monday for the cleanse is better for me to do it at work I am busy all day. I drink my lemonade every 2 hrs at work. I never let myself get hungry. I have noticed after I drink it I get a energy boost. Everywhere I go I take my bag with me with my drinks in it. They have become like a American Express card don’t leave home without them. I work out 5X a week for 1 hr.
I did an Insanity workout on my first day of the cleanse (yesterday). It’s the first time I’ve done Insanity and I’ll admit I was working hard and sweating like crazy. But I didn’t feel sick so that’s a great sign I think. I’m going to be playing volleyball tonight and I have a volleyball tournament tomorrow! (I know, I wondered myself why I chose this time to do the master cleanse). BUT it’s day 2 and I feel amazing!!!! I’m actually really looking forward to the matches tonight and tomorrow. Who knows, maybe my performance will even improve!
I’ve been training myself to be able to run for 5 miles this week I’m on 3.5 miles but i start the master cleanse tomorrow. I’m kinda scared I’m not gonna have enough energy to run but then again maybe its all in my head. Im currently 160 pounds at 5’7 i want to join the Marines so i have 40 pounds to lose. I’m 17 so i have a year to lose this weight but honestly i just want to lose it all now !! Ugh BUMMER
Don’t give up!! Typer in ‘master cleanse’ on youtube, and check out some of the people that did vlogs of their cleanse- some of them even did it for 40 days!! >:o
Haha, the videos are very inspiring though, so do check it out. :)
lemonade diet day 4, i have been doing an hour of callentics every day since i started i cant believe it myself!!
I am doing Zumba! Only 30 mins!
My son ran an XTerra half marathon on day 6 of the Master Cleanse. It was 13.1 miles of trails with huge elevation gains and drops. It took place at ski resort in the Utah mountains. He felt fantastic! Never bonked! He stayed on the cleanse for a total of ten days.
What an amazing inspiring story. Thank you Brenda!
I have a BodyPump class tonight and I am on Day 3 of the Cleanse – good idea or bad idea to go? It’s a hard class – that I paid for but I don’t want to pass out or feel sick during it. I thought about eating a banana before hand to make sure I had the extra calories in me for it but I am thinking that might mess up the cleanse too much. What do you all think?
I guess it’s too late for you to use this answer Oblivion, but for anyone in a similar situation – just go to your class and try it out. Start out in the back of class in case you need to leave and if you feel ok, move up closer. Might as well try. I met a woman yesterday who cheated on the cleanse on day 5 and day 7 with bits of food and said that she still got a lot out of the experience and felt better after. I think she had a bit of an apple as her cheating.
I am on day 2 and I’m wondering if it’s ok for me to do my usual workout for the first couple days of the cleanse (seeing as I don’t feel so great). Is it really dangerous to get your heart rate up for about 20 minutes? Also, they say you lose a lot of weight on the cleanse, but how much of this weight is actually fat and not muscle tissue?