Lemon Detox- for dummies

Ben and I were on a walk last week and we were talking about weight loss and how neither of us feel we've lost as much as we would have liked prior to our honeymoon. His co-worker claims that his girlfriend goes on the diet before every vacation and her grandmother does this 3 times a year and it helps her arthritis.

The Master Cleanse

Ben wanted to do it this week before our honeymoon. I was skeptical; knowing what I know about fasting and diets. So, today I decided to do a little research. Of course I wanted to find an article that would go against it, but all I could initially find were articles supporting it. I'm guessing I only found two because it is not necessarily bad for you, it's just not good for you. Catch my drift?

Master Cleanse Diet = Master Scam

NY Times Article

Anyway, if you don't feel like reading these articles I'll summarize.

Master Cleanse
Day 1: Remove processed foods, and meat from your diet.
Day 2: Eat fresh produce, but only if you juice it.
Day 3: Juice enough oranges to make 2 liters of Orange Juice mixed with water to taste and with 2 tables spoons Maple Syrup for caloric needs. Drink only the 2 liters throughout the day.
Day 4-6: Make your detox elixr.

• 14 Table Spoons Lemon Juice
• 14 Table Spoons Maple Syrup
• 1/2 Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper - or to taste (as much as you can stand)
• 2 Liters of water

Mix all ingredients together, put in two separate bottles. Have one additional liter of plain water. Ration this as it is all you can have all day. In the evening drink 1 liter of salt water (1 tbsp unionized salt/liter of water) Stay near a toilet for a couple hours.
Day 7 - Orange Juice - 3 1-liter orange juice with 2 tablespoons of maple syrup
Day 8 - Fruit and Veggie Juice - or Broth
Day 9 - Fruits and Veggies
Day 10 - Regular Diet, however you should try to eat live foods - grains, etc.

The End.

Some people do it for 40 days, some people do it for 10 days, once a year. Other people do it for 1 day, or 3 days once a month.

Lemon is simply a weak acid, maple syrup is for caloric intake and add sweetness to lemon. Cayenne pepper irritates your colon (making you have diah... ew) Do this for 3 days and voila you have no food in your system and you're well hydrated (explaining the weight loss and the increase energy)

In my opinion, just take a strong laxative and drink 4 liters of water in a day. You'll be cleaned out and it'll do the same thing as the 3 day lemon cleanse. Wait, don't do that, it's very bad for you!

People tend to forget about the obvious things that fasting and starvation does to your body when they are looking for a quick fix. Such as; your body goes into starvation mode and starts storing fat and eating muscle. You're losing weight because you're not eating and you're pooping a lot. Duh. Two words : WATER WEIGHT. I tend to gain 5 lbs when I have my period and lose it when my period is over. It happens.

As for the increase energy.... I'd be pretty excited and happy and energetic if i lost 10 lbs in 3 days, too! Also, think those people who get a lot of energy from a coffee enema... really, think about it.

Basically, as I've always known and everyone knows but won't admit, the only way to lose weight is drink more water, eat better, eat less, and move more.