Day 5 – 14 February 2013

Happy Valentine's Day! I thought I could sleep in and have one more relaxed day before officially (ahem) breaking the fast, but no, work emergencies call me out of bed. During 4 hours of work, I'm too busy to think of drinking, or eating, or anything.

Now it's almost 2 pm and I'm confused. I thought I would break the fast today, but I feel great – energetic, no grumbly tummy, not cold any more, no evil monsters in my mind. The official formula goes: eat lightly for 1-2 days, then 5 days of complete fasting, then 2 days eating very lightly and slowly again. If you start shovelling crap into yourself after the cleanse, there's no point doing it.

The sun is shining! Yes, in London. Time to have a tomato juice and go out! On my afternoon walk, I pick up food. I decide not to break the fast with an apple, but with something I have been craving all week and is light and easy to digest: a simple miso soup and a small bowl of rice.

Around 5 pm, I finally, properly, break the fast, eating ever so slowly. And yes, this rice tastes much better than yesterday's – nourishing, clean, and even sweet all on its own.

Have I achieved what I wanted to? Yes and yes. I wrote some things on my list which obviously take a longer time to become a routine again, but I feel fresher, more clear-headed and have tons more energy than before the cleanse. It feels good to not only know, but experience that your body and mind can go much further than you think.

However, like on my previous fasts, I didn't really have the feeling that my body is being “cleansed”. I still think this is complete rubbish. Surely changing up your routine and the way you live for a few days also influences your body, but my organs work well. I'm not a container for toxic waste.

Will I do it again? Definitely, whenever I feel I need a little kick-start in life. However, I will probably stick with a maximum of 3 days next time, because the physical effects that are supposed to kick in after day 3 just never happen to me.