The recipe for THC detox (THC is the active ingredient in marijuana) is quite simple:
“Just stop smoking weed and in 1-3 months your body should be cleansed.”
This is all well and good until the HR department comes up to you with “Hey buddy, you have a drug test first thing Monday”. Then things become real complex real fast.
Drinking gallons of water every day up to the drug test can be described as wishful thinking at best.
Let’s put aside the whole notion that weed should not be illegal and that no one should be fired or not get the job because he or she tested positive for marijuana consumption.
Alcohol which can be much more problematic health-wise and society-wise (while weed has numerous health benefits) leaves our system in a day, but marijuana can take up to 3 months to be absolutely cleansed out of the body.
That’s why when we’re faced with a drug test, we can’t just wait for the weed to leave our system in a natural way. We need the best THC detox the science can offer.
How to properly detoxify your system of THC?
I mean, there are like a zillion ways of how to detox weed. These methods range from urban legends, myths, detox drinks, from cranberry juice to right down dangerous ways with peroxide; and there are some THC detoxes that are actually designed to speed up the drug elimination process.
We’re here to help you find a way out of the whole drug screening jam if you were hitting a joint or a bong lately.
The zillion ways of how to do a THC detox are categorized into 3 groups.
- The useless ways (think GNC detox drinks).
- The useful natural ways (if you don’t have much THC in your system).
- The effective THC detox methods (those that burn THC-filled fat cells and actively pump THC out of the body).
Of course, the 3rd way is recommended if you want to pass a urine drug test by completely purging the stock of THC in your system (you can skip all the questionable methods and go directly to the effective THC detox methods here.)
The whole point of it is to cleanse the THC out much faster.
And, as hard as that may be, it does involve dieting prior to taking the drug test.
If you don’t find the answer of how to do the THC detox in your specific case before a drug test, you can place your weight, height, sex, smoking habit figures in the comments and we’ll try to roughly estimate what kind of detox you need.
Basics Of THC Detoxification Methods
THC is readily deposited in our body when we ingest marijuana either by smoking or eating edibles.
The THC molecules are stockpiled in our fat tissue over time and it can take up to a month (or in some cases even 3 months) to completely get rid of it via urine and feces (more on how long does the weed stay in your system here).
It takes that long because fat serves as a THC deposit in our body and steadily releases THC into our bloodstream. From there on, it goes through kidneys into the urine (and if detected by standard laboratory drug screening; that’s how drug tests work) and through the liver into the small and big intestines (and we eliminate it via feces).
All marijuana detoxification methods should work on two fronts:
- Burning the THC-rich fat tissue. This quickly releases the big stockpiles of THC into the bloodstream and effectively shortens the time that is needed for all THC to leave the body.
- Actively pumping THC out of the system (via urine AND via feces). Here the effectiveness of THC detox kits varies quite a lot (it’s important to choose the right kits).
The majority of marijuana detox methods work either on burning THC-rich fat tissue (cardio exercise, sauna) or on pumping THC already present in the bloodstream out of the body.
The only proper way of detoxification process should include fighting the THC on both fronts.
However, a big part of THC detox kits only focuses on the 2nd point – pumping THC out of the body (and effectiveness of that is questionable in most products like ‘magical detox drinks’).
A truly thorough and effective way of how to detox marijuana for a drug test includes both the release of THC from fat tissue combined with effective ways of actively pumping the weed out of the body completely.
So where do detox drinks for THC come in? Under the ‘useless’ category.
1st Way: Useless Detox Drinks And ‘Masking Agents’
The first group of detox methods consist of, honestly, quite ridiculous sugary detox drinks that with the following promise:
“Bro, just drink this blueberry flavored detox drink and you’ll do fine on a drug test. Works like magic.”
There is only one problem with a majority of these drinks: they don’t actually work.
Two unfortunate outcomes with detox drinks on a drug test are:
- You’re still pissing hot. Mostly because, and we can’t stress this enough, because a drink itself doesn’t provide a proper way to detox THC.
- Urine is too diluted. Some marijuana detox drinks dilute urine in hopes to pass a drug test. However, urine drug screening includes specific gravity of urine which falls as a result of using a detox drink. You will be asked to redo the test or be accused of tampering the urine sample.
Detox drinks are designed to influence urine elimination. To simplify, they include sugars, caffeine and other diuretic-like ingredients that will make you pee. A lot.
The logic here is that they’ll make you urinate so much that you will completely eliminate all the THC currently available in your bloodstream.
That is quite a questionable notion. Why?
Because as soon as THC is removed from your bloodstream, the new weed molecules will be released from into the blood via fat cells.
There are two kinds of marijuana detox drinks:
- Fruity GNC-like detox drinks. Will make you pee a lot but can’t do anything about THC-rich fat cells.
- Fruity ‘masking agents’ drinks. Will make you pee even more and dilute the urine. Dilution of urine can be detected by a urine test via the lowered specific gravity of urine (falls below 1.05 g/ml).
A general rule here: if it’s fruity flavored, it doesn’t work well enough.
GNC Detox Drinks
When trying to do a quick THC detox, we can add detox drinks from GNC to our diet.
It is like using protein nutritional supplements when going to the gym; if we workout and drink protein shake, the muscles will start to grow.
But that growth won’t be seen in a week. We need a few months of training and protein shakes at least to show some results.
The same thing goes for GNC detox kits and drinks. They do help a bit; and if we have a month or two to eliminate all the THC, it can be effective.
The problem with GNC detox drinks is that we need to drink them for a month or so in order to show the effect.
Those drinks usually contain sugars and caffeine that promoted urine elimination; but honestly, we could be drinking coffee or tea with sugar and achieve the same effect.
Completely detoxifying your body of THC in a natural way takes a long time. With GNC detox drinks, we can shorten that time by increased urination but it’s not nearly quick enough to pass a drug test in a week or two.
‘Masking Agents’
On the other hand, masking agents promise to ‘mask’ or disguise the THC in our body for a certain period of time.
Something like ‘Drink this and you won’t piss how for 1-5 hours’.
This would be perfect if it were true.
Unfortunately, the masking agents don’t so much ‘mask’ the THC – they heavily dilute it.
If you’re near the cut-off rate of the standard lab tests, you might even pass it with a masking agent. However, even the most entry-level lab technician will notice that the urine is diluted.
A normal and healthy human urine has a specific gravity of 1.005-1.010 g/ml. If the test shows higher specific gravity, that means you’re probably dehydrated.
A specific gravity of 1.000 to 1.005 g/ml means that:
- You have a kidney problem.
- You have tampered with your urine by diluting it.
Masking agents have a way of reducing the specific gravity of urine to 1.000 to 1.005 g/ml. If you’re a healthy individual, a lab tech can rule-out kidney problems. That leaves the notion of ‘This individual has a diluted his or her urine’.
In the context of drug tests, this translates into ‘This guy is trying to pass a drug test by using a masking agent’.
Looking at the specific gravity is pretty much the standard procedure to detect the use of ‘masking agent’ detox drinks.
You can imagine that the conversation of why are you using masking agents is not very pleasant.
Nonetheless, detox drinks that dilute urine can lower the concentration of THC-COOH in your urine sample. You will find a list of these best detox drinks for drug test here.
2nd Way: Useful Natural Ways To Detox THC
Doing a natural way of marijuana detox is not as crazy as it sounds to some. It might be deemed ineffective (and it partly is) but it’s partly very effective as well.
The ineffective part of natural ways to marijuana detox: it doesn’t actively eliminate THC via urine and feces.
These natural ways mostly include drinking cranberry juice, lemon water, coffee, and tea.
The effective part?
The way of how to detoxify from weed naturally includes getting rid out of the outer layers of fat tissue. That’s where most of THC in a body is stored.
No detox drink can trim the fat as effectively and quickly as a combination of low-calorie diet and cardio.
In short, the true value of natural ways of how to detox marijuana is in trimming the THC-rich fat stores. It consists of:
- Proper low-calorie diet followed by a high-calorie ‘cheat day’ before taking a drug test.
- Exercise activity designed to burn THC-rich fat. Recommended: cardio and high internal intensity training.
Important: the natural way is usually missing the vital ingredient every quick THC detoxification process should include. You can read more about the active elimination of THC out of the system via urine and feces in a 3rd way (scroll a bit below).
Low-Calorie Diet To Burn THC-Rich Fat Tissue
If we want to speed up the THC elimination, we need to trim the fat. The fat tissue (especially the outer layers of fat) is where most of the ingested marijuana takes refuge.
How to burn the fat? Well, everybody knows that.
Just eat less and exercise.
Why?
Because this will trigger the fat-burning mechanism. Our bodies need continuous energy to be sustained. We can get them via:
- External foods sources. We call that ‘eating food’.
- Internal fat sources. We call that ‘burning fat’.
When we reduce the energy from foods we eat, our bodies start to burn fat for energy.
And it’s precisely in that fat that THC resides.
Via burning the fat we burn the THC stores and allow them to be flushed out of the system.
An effective THC detox diet should consist of 800 to 1500 kcal per day, depending on how quickly you need to be completely THC free. The more we restrict the diet, the more quickly THC is cleansed out of the body.
What is important to point out here is that the majority of natural detox way lack the final ingredient: something to actively pump the THC out of the body via urine AND feces.
The full combination for the best THC detox method is described in the 3rd way of detox methods; the one everybody should use for thorough detoxification.
While enjoying a low-calorie diet in days or weeks before the drug test, we have to switch the diet a day before the screening.
Up until now, the body is actively burning THC-rich fat tissue and releasing the molecule in the bloodstream.
A day before a drug test, however, we should stop this process and switch calorie intake into high gear. Eating something like 3000 or even 5000 calories a day.
Why the change?
We have burned as much THC as humanly possible. If there is something of it left in the fat tissue, we want to effectively trap it there.
That means that we have to start building fat stores again (if only for a day). The high-calorie diet will limit the THC from entering the bloodstream as much as possible on a drug test day. It will effectively trap the THC so much so that it won’t enter the bloodstream and will effectively not be present in our urine test sample.
Exercise – Predominantly Cardio To Burn THC
A low-calorie diet is good. The diet with cardio is even better.
To detox marijuana naturally, we naturally want to burn as much fat as possible. That’s because if we burn more fat, we’ll flush more of the THC out of the fat cells.
Of course, exercise helps a lot. Running a marathon every day twice would be perfect. However, we need to stay reasonable.
Running a 10k, swimming or cycling and other lengthy cardio activities are the best options. After we use all the stored sugars in our system, our body will resort to burning fat for our sustained energy needs. This will flush the THC out faster than being a couch potato.
The more calories we burn, the better.
Of course, keep in mind two things:
- We need to start eating and stop moving a day prior to the test. This will trap any residues of THC in our fat cells.
- Dieting and exercise is only one part of the equation. The second part is actively pumping the THC out of the body completely (described in a 3rd way).
3rd Way: Complete Detox Formula (Diet + Exercise + THC Detox Kit)
As we’ve learned all the THC detox methods up till now had some benefits but were largely incomplete.
When trying to flush the marijuana out of your body, it makes sense to be as complete and as thorough as possible.
In any case, it’s better to overdo THC detox than underdo it (because we all know where the failed drug tests lead us).
The best THC detox consists of two steps.
The first one is burning the THC-rich fat tissue to release the THC from fat cells. This is why dieting and exercise make abundant sense when detoxing.
The second is actively pumping the released THC out of the bloodstream via increased urination AND feces elimination.
It’s obvious that without the THC elimination out of our body even running a marathon every day, drinking gallons of water and eating nothing will not help.
What will?
THC Elimination Via Urine AND Feces
Well, we need to ensure that all the THC released will be rapidly metabolized via kidneys and liver and eliminated via urine and feces, respectively.
Most of the detox drinks do quicken up the pace that our body can eliminate THC via urine, if only for a bit. However, they do nothing to ensure the elimination via feces; and elimination of THC via ‘dumping it out’ is actually even more important than via ‘peeing it out’.
One very successful and proven method to actively pump out the THC are the Toxin Rid detox kits.
Usually, detox kits work only on flushing the marijuana out via urine. The Toxin Rid kit is different precisely because it induces THC elimination on both fronts:
- By increased urination of THC-rich urine.
- Increased production of THC-rich feces.
Using Toxin Rid to activate both ‘channels’ (urine AND feces) removes the THC significantly faster. The end result is a more thorough and complete elimination of THC from the body and a high likelihood that you will pass a urine drug test.
In order to activate both elimination processes, the kit includes:
- Pre-rid tablets (quickens elimination route via feces).
- Dietary fiber (increases feces production prior to a drug test).
- Detox liquid (taken prior to the drug screening).
The dietary fibers and the detox liquid are not extraordinary; it’s pretty much fiber and a high-quality detox drink.
However, the pre-rid tablets are essential to activate the elimination via feces. There are several varieties of Toxin Rid products, from ‘3 Day’ to ‘5 Day’ and the strongest ’10 Day’ detox kit. They only differ in how much pre-rid tablets are included in the package.
Do keep in mind that these pre-rid tablets are the real value here. They include natural root extracts that promote the best THC detox via feces (you can read a full Toxin Rid detox review here).
This alone makes a massive difference and completes the full formula for the best THC detox:
Low-Calorie Diet + Cardio Exercise + Active THC Elimination
The full combination of proper dieting, additional cardio, and active THC elimination can quicken up THC elimination so significantly that you stand a much better chance to a THC-free body.
Check Your Progress With Marijuana Single Panel Drug Tests
A thorough detox from marijuana can last from a few days up to two weeks.
When you start to detox to get rid of THC, your body probably has a certain quantity of THC that you need to get rid of.
But how do you know you’ve really cleansed your body fully and thoroughly?
Even if you commit to a 10-day THC detox plan with a low-calorie diet, cardio, and Toxin Rid detox kits, you might achieve the full detox in less than 10 days.
The simplest way to check if you need to detox further is to buy a single THC drug test panel at your local pharmacy.
You can get a pack of 10 tests for less than $10.
Check your urine for traces of THC before you start the detox, every day while in the process of detoxification, and after the detox. That way you’ll know when your body is completely toxin-free (and you can start eating more).
You could buy the 5- or 10-panel drug test but those are more expensive and, well, if you’re trying to get rid of THC, you only need a test for that.
Conclusion
In the world where weed legalization is happening every day, no one should be punished for ingesting marijuana in an appropriate and lawful way.
The best way to use a THC detox is to cleanse your body of the marijuana residues that might be accumulated over time. Plus, you might even lose some pounds with dieting, cardio, and increased urination/feces production.
If you have any specific question about how best to approach a thorough detox, you are welcome to use our comment section below.
In either case, we wish all the people out there good riddance and good luck.
Hi, im a 100 pound woman and thin. im a chronic when it comes to weed. Im do for a drug test for work how many days will it take for the weed to leave my body n i can pass my drug test. My metabolism is fast as well. Im always on the go.
Hello there, for a 100-pound woman with a chronic habit it takes around 30-40 days.
I haven’t smoked weed since June 26, 2019 and I was a chronic user for a more than a year, and I have a drug test on September 5, 2019. I am 4’11 female and weigh 140 lbs. Will i pass the drug test?
I am 16, 160 pounds and around 6 feet tall. I’ve been smoking for a few years now almost 1 gram a day and quit about 2 months ago. I started back up about a month back and smoked a few hash joints mixed with tobacco a day for a week. (Around 3-5) since then I’ve stopped using. I have a drug test due to probation on September 9th. Since my last intake I’ve been doing about 30 min of cardio a day and driving 2 liters of green tea a day. I’ve just started a eating about 1000 calories a day for the past 3 days. I need to know if my thc will be gone in the next 5 days or masked enough so it won’t raise any red flags. Should I purposely dilute my test so much that they are forced to reschedule which will give me a few more days to detox or face it head on using your methods?
Oh and from the last day I smoked to my drug test is around 22 days.
Hi, I am 210 lbs and 5’2”. I don’t exercise all that much and my diet isn’t great. I do 1-2 wax dabs 5/7 days of the week and take a few puffs of my concentrate dabber about 3-4 days a week. I have been smoking regularly for over a year. I have a drug test in 2-4 weeks. I know my chances of passing are extremely slim, even if I exercise, eat antioxidant rich foods, and do the 10 day toxin rid. Is there any chance I can make this work?
Hello Audrey, being a chronic user with high BMI you do have slim chances of passing a drug test in 2-4 weeks if you do nothing about. However, with exercise and especially the powerful 10 day Toxin Rid you have a good chance to pass the test in 3-4 weeks. Make sure you use all the 150 pre-rid pills, drink plenty of water and start enjoying a high-calorie diet a day before and on the day of the test. That will give you the best chances of passing the drug test.
I’m a 5’2” female and roughly 170lbs. I don’t workout regularly. I haven’t smoked in four days. I smoked for two weeks to one month about 3-5 hits off of a dab cart a day. I had two carts in total (approximately 4 grams). I took a body detox from a drug store today. I normally drink about a gallon of water on a normal day. I might have to take a drug test in two weeks. Is it possible I will pass the drug test?
It’s hard to know for sure; buy a home drug test from a local pharmacy and check if you’re still testing positive. Considering you have two weeks left, the appropriate time to start with a THC detox is now. Given your use and body constitution, you are probably testing positive right now.
I just took my test today! Wish me luck! I will update as soon as I get the results. Thanks for all the information you have provided.
I passed! Your website has been very helpful!
I’m 5’6 female 130lbs. I have been taking one hit from a high concentration THC pen every 2-3 days for a few weeks. I stopped 3 days ago and will have a drug test in probably 7-10 days from now. I’m somewhat active, I do yoga and light cardio most days and eat healthy most of the time. Will I have a chance to pass?
Hello J.K, you do have a chance to pass a drug test; unfortunately, the chances of not passing are bigger. The highly concentrated THC pens do have a sizable about of THC in them and it does take longer to be eliminated.
I am 5’3 150 lbs and take about 40mg THC capsules daily. Of course I’ve come up for a new job that will drug test. Moderate exercise, diabetic so low carbs. Any guess on how long it could take to get out of my system? Thank you for your help.
Hello Terry, this will truly be a guess: about 10 days. 40 mg THC per day is not a big dose; however, it is still a big enough dose for THC to be accumulated over the months in your fat tissue. In about 10 days the accumulated THC should leave your body; but that is a rough estimate, obviously. Do check with a home drug test to see when you start testing negative.
5’3″ 125 pound female very active daily. Ride bike around 10 miles everyday that it isn’t raining nd Pilates and rebounder everyday. I also smoke potent Sativa daily for past two years. Very good diet. Drug test coming up in about 9 days unexpectedly. No smoking for 24 hours already. What are chances of passing pee test.
Hello Susie, sadly pretty non-existent. The only way out seems to be synthetic urine or postponing a drug test for at least 20 days.
Hi,
I’m approximately 5’5, and fluctuate from anywhere between 130-135lbs. I smoked for the first time in several months on Sunday, Wednesday, and Thursday of last week. I only took 2-4 hits each time. Last Friday I received a job offer contingent on passing the drug test, so I haven’t smoked since then. The date has yet to be determined but I believe I will have to take the drug test sometime next week or the one after that. I go on walks and jogs 4-5 days out of the week. I bought at home tests but since it’s only been six days, I am going to wait closer to when my lab test is scheduled to take them. I also bought a detox drink just in case. I am having extreme anxiety about not passing. Do you think 20 days would be enough time for me to pass a urine analysis?
Im 22, height 5’9, 240lbs. Ive stopped smoking for 3 months but got back into for the whole last week and i have smoked chronic J’s and dabbed hit 3 times in one sitting on my first day of that week, i have a drug test for urine and blood from 30 days from now, will i be okay?
Hello!
I’m 44 y/o male, 5’8″, 170 lbs, rather sedentary lifestyle. I smoked chronically for a few years but have reduced my use dramatically, to once or twice a week. I drink at least 40oz water a day, but my diet isn’t very healthy. I am not sure when I will be having a drug test but I have a few interviews coming up. Would I be able to squeeze by with a quality temporary cleanse drink, if I have a test in about a week?
Hello,
Great information you have compiled. It’s much appreciated.
I am 6ft, 245lbs, 48yo. Was a chronic user for several years and quit on 02/02/20. Exercised like crazy (was 270lbs when I quit), ate healthy, and started getting negative results on 03/12/2020. On 04/02/20 – 04//04/20 i smoked a joint (1/3 joint a day), then from 4/5/20 – 4/10/20 I smoked a bowl a day of indica probably 1.5 grams total for the 6 days. Pretty sure I’m about to get a job offer and will need to take a UA on Friday, 04/17 or Monday, 04/20 (have to laugh at the date). I started the toxin rid five day yesterday, eating healthy, exercising, and sauna for 45 minutes a day. I also bought mega clean drink (day of) with precleanse pills (day before). Anything else I can or should be doing? Chance of passing?
Hi, I am a 50 year old very active male, ride my bike 6-12 miles almost every day and eat fairly healthy, (almost no fried foods.) After not smoking for at least 4 months I started smoking 2-3 hits a day about a month ago, and failed a test with a very feint line last week. I am told I will have another sometime within the next three weeks(hopefully later). I tried a THC detox drink a couple hours before the test, and still there was the feint positive line. I was also drinking alcohol at the time, but have abstained for a week now. What can I do to rid my body of THC as soon as possible? Thank You
Hello Bob, 2-3 hits a day should clear out of your system in 3 weeks. The best course of action is to get at home drug tests, check yourself after 2 weeks, and if it’s still positive, get a 3-Day Toxin Rid to flush everything out in that 1 week. Hope everything goes well.
Hi, I’m a 30 year old male- weighing 160-165 and I smoke weed at least twice daily. I’ve stopped smoking for about a week now(today is Wednesday and the last time I smoked was this past Wednesday) because I filled out a job application and my trade requires drug tests with new employment. I am somewhat active and drink lots of water and diet includes lots of turkey, salmon, chicken and beef along with many veggies.. as well as my junk food which usually is just Cheetos.. the job offer came sooner than expected and I have to take a drug test tomorrow or Friday. Can you guys help me out and tell me what you think I should do or where you think I’m at as far as passing? Thanks. -J
Hello there, congratulations on getting the job! That really is a short notice drug test. Given your smoking habits and body contitution, you will most probably still have too much THC-COOH in your urine. You don’t really have time to detox; if you have a pack of synthetic urine lying around, that would be the best option in this situation.
In any case, if it can be done, it might be a good idea to postpone the drug test. It all happened quickly and lets say you had ‘other plans for Thursday and Friday’. With a regular smoking habit, your really looking at about 20-30 days before you can pass a drug test. About 10 days with the best detox but unfortunately you don’t have that much time. Hope everything goes well.
I’m 6’2″ 280 lbs haven’t smoked weed in 8 yeare. So here recently I’ve been smoking weed for 3 weeks Strait. How long do y’all think it will take to get clean
Hello Jesse. You’re in luck; THC has not accumulated in your body and it will clear out of your system a lot faster. It depends on how much you’ve smoked in the past 3 weeks. Rough estimate for someone with your body constitution would be 20 to 30 days. Be sure to check with at home drug test after 20 or 30 days if you’re already testing negative.
I am 5’10” female weighing about 110 pounds. I have smoked daily for almost a year. When this first started I would usually smoke half a blunt per day but for the last two months, I had only been taking 1-3 GB’s per day. The last time I smoked was May 5th and my drug test is June 10th. I have a high metabolism but do not exercise frequently. Do you think I will pass?
Hello there, due to chronic smoking over the past year, the THC has accumulated in your body. That can prolong how long it will take for all the THC to be flushed out of your system. Without a detox, it can take 30-60 days. It is theoretically possible for some people to pass the test after 35 days but those are not in a majority. Hope this helps.