The Lemonade Diet, also known as the Master Cleanse, is a popular detox diet built around fasting. The ultimate goal of the Lemonade Diet is to rid your body of harmful toxins that have built up over the years, although weight loss is a common side effect. Augmenting the diet with exercise is optional and depends on the individual.
The Lemonade Diet
The Master Cleanse was devised in the 1940s by Stanley Burroughs, who further popularized his detox diet plan with the 1976 publication of his book, "The Master Cleanser." The Master Cleanse involves strict fasting, with dieters subsisting on a drink consisting of filtered water, fresh lemon juice, cayenne pepper and maple syrup. Based on the contents of this drink, the Master Cleanse has come to be commonly known as the Lemonade Diet. The Lemonade Diet gained recent prominence when singer/actress Beyonce Knowles revealed she lost 20 lbs. on the Lemonade Diet when her role in the movie "Dreamgirls" required she lose 20 lbs. within two weeks.
Fatigue
One of the most common complaints among those who undertake the Lemonade Diet is fatigue. According to the Master Cleanse website, this fatigue is caused by the body using its energy to expel toxins via perspiration, defecation and even through the skin. However, common sense dictates that any fatigue you experience while on the Lemonade Diet is at least partially due to the fact that you're not eating solid food, with your only nourishment coming from the lemonade drink.
Working Out
According to the Lemonade Cleanse to Go website, most people who undertake the Lemonade Diet can continue to exercise while doing the cleanse, as the nutrients in the lemonade drink are purported to provide the necessary nutrients and calories to fuel your body when exercising at the gym. However, the site points out that individual responses to the Lemonade Diet can differ; while one person may feel energized and hit the gym even harder, another may feel faint and even ill, in which case going to the gym is not recommended. However, some degree of exercise should be attempted while on the Master Cleanse, as the sweating you'll do while working out will promote further detoxification.
Renewed Energy
On The Raw Food Site, Peter Glickman says he has done the Master Cleanse 18 times, and claims to have written the first new book on the diet in 30 years. According to Glickman, the Lemonade Diet caused him to experience renewed energy that actually encouraged him to exercise. According to Glickman, dieters on the Lemonade Diet will have "no shortage of energy" while doing the cleanse. In his experience, the feeling of tiredness only lasted for one day, which he attributes to a symptom of detoxification.
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