Master Cleanse Recipe

The Master Cleanse diet is also sometimes called the Lemonade Diet. It's a 10 day diet that originally created back in 1941 by Stanley Burroughs. The diet was made popular in recent years with a book called Lose Weight, Have More Energy and Be Happier in 10 Days by Peter Glickman. Celebrities have been touting the effectiveness and benefits of the diet. Once of the most famous examples of a celebrity using this diet is Beyonce Knowles. Beyoncé used the diet to drop 22 pounds in 2 weeks for a movie role in Dreamgirls. Robin Quivers (Howard Stern's talk show cohost) claims to have lost 73 pounds using the diet. Rapper Trina, magician David Blaine, and actor Jared Leto also claim to have lost a lot of weight on the diet.

It's a fasting diet, which means you don't actually eat anything while you're on the diet. Instead, you spend 10 days drinking a special lemonade recipe. The diet is usually used for a minimum of 10 days, but some people do stay on the diet for longer periods of time.

I was recently asked if I have tried this diet myself. Yes, I absolutely have tried it. I originally intended to stick to it for 21 days, but I only ended up making it for 14 days. My PMS kicked in and I came off early. But I did manage to lose 9 pounds in those 14 days. (I am already quite thin, so I didn't have much to lose. I am a raw food vegan, and I rarely eat cooked food.) I also experienced a great detox effect that gave me a lot of energy and did indeed increase my focus substantially.

I still use this cleanse occasionally for 3-5 days at a time to detox myself when I slip up and eat cooked food. It doesn't take long to detox if you're not extremely toxic already. :)

You can get the Master Cleanse Recipe at the end of this page. :)

Some people claim their are health safety issues regarding the Master Cleanse. It does indeed lack a lot of essential vitamins, minerals, protein, calcium, fiber, and other important nutrients. This can cause constipation, dizziness, fainting, headaches, and even delerium.

Proponents of the diet claim these effects are caused by the elimination of toxins by the body, which happens when these toxins are released from the body. The body temporarily becomes more toxic as the toxins are eliminated, but the symptoms usually disappear within a few days.

This diet can remove harmful bacteria from the body, but it can also remove beneficial bacteria from the intestinal system. These bacteria are neededfor proper digestion, so many people take probiotics for a while after they complete the diet.

The constipation from Master Cleanse is relieved by drinking a sea salt water solution daily, which causes defecation in less than an hour.

There are 5 main phases of the diet. Different effects happen to the body during each phase.

PHASE ONE - (Days 1-2) The blood sugar may drop below 70 mg/dl during the first day of the diet. There is enough glycogen in the liver to last for 12-24 hours. During this time, the metabolism is reduced to conserve energy. This can slow the heart rate and drop the blood pressure a bit. This can cause some fatigue and weakness.

Symptoms during this phase might include headaches, nausea, dizziness, and a coated tongue.

PHASE TWO - (Days 3-7) Fats start go get broken down during this phase. The body starts to break down the fat in the body in order to convert it into glucose for use as energy by the body. The skin often becomes quite oily during this time, because the oils in the fat begin to be purged from the system through the pores. This may cause a bit of acne, or even boils. You may start to experience a lack of hunger during this phase.

Some people start to feel a bit of pain in their lungs as mucoid matter is expelled from the system through the lymphatic system. You may experience a very stuffy nose as the body tries to expel toxins.

PHASE THREE - (Days 8-15) If you stay on the fast this long, you will probably get a lot of energy and focus like you've never had before. You might even start to feel better than you have since you were a kid!

During this phase, old injuries can also remanifest Scar tissue may start to heal better than it could when your body was full of toxins. This may be a bit uncomfortable, but shouldn't cause too much pain.

The body will start to heal itself. The body will seek out damaged tissue. The lymph nodes will send special substances to these damaged areas to destroy them so they can be rebuilt. This is the reason why some people experience discomfort at the site of old injuries, and is a GOOD thing. This means your body is healing itself.

PHASE FOUR - (Days 16-30) If you stay on the fast for this long, your body is generally well-adjusted to the cleanse. Most days your body will feel great, and occasionally you may feel a little bad again as new toxins are eliminated.

Memory and concentration are generally very high during this stage, and people report feeling relief of memory issues and even ADD!

PHASE FIVE - (Coming off of the fast) This diet will cause the sticky, toxic lining of the intestines to loosen, but it generally isn't expelled until you begin to eat again. This is mostly due to the lack of fiber, which is needed to pull things through the bowels.

At the time of the first meal, there may be a bowl movement immediately. A period of intense diarrhea may follow, as the body cleanses itself of the build-up of toxic material in the colon.

This is the recipe for making 60 ounces of the lemonade for the diet. You should consume about six 10-ounce servings daily, so this makes enough for the entire day.

• 60 ounces of filtered water
• 12 tbsp. organic grade-B maple syrup
• 12 tbsp. organic lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

It's important to use only filtered water and organic ingredients, because the diet depends on the elimination of toxins! The lemon juice MUST be fresh-squeezed. Bottled lemon juice WILL NOT WORK! This is very important! Also, you MUST used grade-B maple syrup. DO NOT USE BREAKFAST SYRUP! This syrup can be found at health food stores if you can't get it at your local grocery store.

If you want more details about the Master Cleanse diet (the Lemonade Diet), I highly recommend Master Cleanse Secrets. It tells you everything you need to know to be completely successful on the diet!