TL;DR — Seven days before you arrive, you stop eating meat, dairy, processed food, strong spices, caffeine, fermented foods and alcohol. Here is the full list, why each item is on it, the lifestyle guidelines that go with it, and practical advice for getting through the week.
The preparation diet begins exactly seven days before you arrive at the retreat. For that week you avoid all meat, dairy, processed and artificial foods, excess sugar and salt, pepper and strong spices, coffee and other caffeine, fermented foods, and all alcohol. You also avoid sexual activity for at least five days before ceremony, and all recreational drugs, marijuana and cigarettes. On ceremony days you fast beforehand and take only water or gentle liquids.
That is the whole diet in one paragraph. The rest of this article explains why each item is on the list, what the week actually feels like, and the practical things that make it easier. Full details are on our preparation page, and you receive the complete guidelines once your booking is confirmed.
Why there is a diet at all
Two reasons, and both matter.
The first is safety. Some of what you eat and drink interacts with ayahuasca. Alcohol, recreational drugs and certain supplements are the obvious cases, but fermented and aged foods, and some medications, belong in the same conversation. The diet clears those out of your system before you drink. This is also why we ask about every medication and supplement in your health application, and why our safety page lists the ones that rule out participation entirely.
The second is the ceremony itself. This diet comes from a long tradition of preparing the body before working with the plant. In our experience, guests who arrive having followed it carefully tend to have a clearer, steadier night. Guests who cut corners tend to spend more of the ceremony feeling heavy or nauseous and less of it present. You are traveling a long way for this. A week of simple food is a small price for arriving ready.
The list, and why each item is on it
Beginning seven days before arrival, avoid:
- All meat, especially red meat. Heavy to digest and slow to clear. This is the single most important item on the list.
- Dairy. Milk, cheese, yogurt, butter. Congesting, and for many people a source of fogginess they only notice once it is gone.
- Processed and artificial foods. Anything with a long ingredient list. Packaged snacks, ready meals, artificial sweeteners and flavorings.
- Sugar and salt in excess. A little of each is fine. The point is to avoid the spikes and crashes that come with a lot of either.
- Pepper and strong spices. Black pepper, chili, hot sauce, heavy curries. Mild herbs are fine.
- Caffeine. Coffee, black and green tea, energy drinks, and chocolate in any real quantity. More on this below, because it is the item people struggle with most.
- Fermented foods. Kimchi, sauerkraut, kombucha, miso, soy sauce, aged cheese, and vinegar-heavy foods.
- Alcohol. All of it, without exception, for the full seven days.
What is left is more than it sounds: fresh fruit and vegetables, rice, quinoa, oats, beans and lentils, tofu, nuts and seeds, potatoes and sweet potatoes, olive oil, mild herbs, herbal teas and plenty of water. It is roughly the food we serve at the retreat, which is a good way to think about the week: you are starting the retreat at home.
The lifestyle guidelines
The diet is about more than food. For the same week, we ask that you:
- Avoid sexual activity for at least five days before ceremony.
- Avoid all recreational drugs.
- Avoid marijuana in every form, including edibles and CBD products with THC.
- Avoid cigarettes. If you use organic tobacco, please ask us directly, as it may be permitted.
We also suggest, though we do not require, that you use the week to slow down. Less screen time, more sleep, some quiet time to think about why you are coming. Guests who arrive rested and with a clear intention get more from the retreat than guests who arrive straight from a deadline.
Ceremony days
On the day of a ceremony you eat lightly early in the day and then fast until the ceremony. Only water and gentle liquids in the hours beforehand. This is for your comfort as much as anything: purging is a normal part of many ceremonies, and it is a great deal easier on an empty stomach. We tell you exactly when your last meal should be once you are here, so you do not need to plan this yourself.
What you eat at the retreat
Once you arrive, the diet takes care of itself. Every meal is vegan and organic, prepared with seasonal fruit and vegetables grown locally without pesticides, much of it from our own gardens or neighboring farms. The food is simple on purpose: grounding, nourishing, and easy on a body that is doing deep work. After ceremonies especially, warm and simple meals help you settle and restore your energy.
If you have allergies or dietary restrictions of any kind, tell us in your application. We tailor meals to every guest, but only if we know in advance.
Practical advice for the week
These are the things guests tell us they wish they had known.
Taper caffeine before the seven days start. Stopping coffee suddenly gives most regular drinkers a headache that lasts two or three days, sometimes with fatigue and low mood. If you begin cutting down ten or twelve days before arrival, halving your intake and then halving it again, you will be through the worst of it before the diet officially begins. Herbal tea helps with the ritual of a hot drink. Drink more water than usual.
Plan your meals in advance. The diet is easy when the food is already in the kitchen and hard when you are hungry at 8 p.m. with nothing prepared. Cook a large pot of rice or lentils at the start of the week. Keep fruit, nuts and hummus around. If you eat out, most places can do rice, vegetables and beans without spice if you ask.
Read labels. Soy sauce, stock cubes, sauces and packaged snacks hide fermented ingredients, sugar and additives. When in doubt, choose the food with no label at all.
Expect your body to change. Most guests feel lighter and sleep better by day four or five. Some feel tired at first as the caffeine and sugar leave. Both are normal. If something feels wrong rather than uncomfortable, write to us.
Do not try to be perfect at the expense of eating. The diet is not a fast. You should eat enough, and eat regularly. A guest who arrives underfed and exhausted has not prepared better than one who ate well within the guidelines.
If you slip, tell us. A meal with cheese on day three is not the end of the world, and lying about it helps nobody. Tell us what happened and we will tell you whether it matters.
The week after
The same food that prepares you for a ceremony helps you land after one. After the retreat your body is sensitive and often lighter than it has been in years. Going straight back to coffee, alcohol and heavy meals is the fastest way to lose that. We give you guidance on post-retreat eating before you leave, and the short version is: keep it simple for another week or two, and notice how you feel.
Before you begin
Read the preparation page for the complete guidelines, check the safety page for the medications and conditions that need a conversation before you book, and look at what a retreat with us involves so the diet makes sense in context. If anything on this page raises a question, write to us. We would rather answer it now than have you guess.