How to use lemons to lose weight and detoxify

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Twelve years ago, I was a retail wine buyer for a liquor store in Healdsburg, California.

As you might imagine, I got to taste A LOT of wine.

I was also invited to countless wine industry parties loaded with gourmet food.

Sounds great, right? Getting paid to drink fine wine and stuff my face with barbequed oysters, shrimp scampi, artichoke dip, French cheese, truffles…

But after a couple of years living like this, I gained about 30 pounds. And I felt like crap – lethargic and tired all the time.

I realized it was time to clean out my system.

What I did was repeat a weight loss-detox regimen I’ve done any number of times over the years – the lemonade fast.

It’s also known as the Master Cleanse Fast, which was first developed by Stanley Burroughs in the 1940s and is based on the idea that toxic foods can not only cause weight gain, but disease.

According to his theory, eating toxic foods results in accumulated poisons throughout the body, especially in the lymphatic glands.

His fast is designed to eliminate these poisons and rest the colon and digestive system.

At the same time, it works to purify the bloodstream and free up tremendous amounts of energy within the body.

As a result, it helps the body assimilate nutrients better, making it more effective at fighting off disease and maintaining a healthy weight.

Many Americans would benefit from doing this fast, as thanks to factory farming and our penchant for processed food, much of what we eat is toxic.

HOW TO BEGIN THE LEMONADE FAST

It’s very important to prepare your body a few days beforehand and ease into this fast.

If you don’t, chances are good you well feel very sick for a few days.

(Trust me on that…I know this from experience.)

The best way to prepare is to have four days of light, healthy eating under your belt before you start.

Begin by eliminating processed foods, meat, dairy, alcohol, caffeine and processed sugar (soups and salads are good meal choices for your first day).

On the second day, continue abstaining from the above foods and stick to raw organic fruits and vegetables.

On day three, switch to a liquid diet (if you don’t have a juicer or blender, get one).

Use it to make fresh vegetable juice and fruit smoothies from organic produce.

On day four, just take in fresh-squeezed organic orange juice (you’ll also be breaking the lemonade fast with orange juice).

Now you’re ready to begin the lemonade fast.

The lemonade fast is a strict daily regimen that lasts 8 to 10 days. It consists of a morning saltwater flush, 6 to 12 glasses of a special lemonade mixture, and a nightly laxative tea.

That drink consists of:

• 2 Tablespoons of fresh-squeezed organic lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons Grade B or C organic maple syrup (do NOT use Grade A, as this grade is over-refined and lacks essential minerals you need to maintain good health during this fast)
• small pinch of cayenne pepper – about 1/10 of a teaspoon  (more if you can handle it)
• 8 ounces of spring or purified water

During the fast, the calories and nutrients in your regular diet are replaced by those in the lemonade. You absolutely MUST drink at least six glasses of this lemonade throughout the day.

There’s no limit to how many you can drink….and you can drink them any time you want.

In fact, I recommend drinking some every time you feel hunger pangs (and you WILL experience hunger pangs, so be ready for them).

You can also drink water and peppermint tea on this fast.

If you have to go out for the day to work, make sure you make enough of this lemonade to last the day (or even better, take the ingredients with you and make the lemonade fresh).

But there’s more to this fast than just lemonade.

Before you have your first glass in the morning, you’ll have to do a saltwater flush.

This will ensure you get rid of toxins that will accumulate in your colon as a result of this fast.

What you do is put two level teaspoons of non-iodized salt into a full quart of lukewarm water. Drink this down first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. After about an hour, you should experience several eliminations.

If they don’t occur, increase the amount of salt you use slightly the next morning.

And if the eliminations are too forceful, reduce the amount of salt you use slightly.

DO NOT USE IODIZED SALT. The reason is that iodized salt will separate in your body and be absorbed.

You don’t want that because if the salt’s absorbed, it won’t flush anything out.

On the other hand, non-iodized salt won’t separate, but will stay intact and quickly and thoroughly wash your entire digestive tract in about an hour.

You should also drink a laxative tea in the evening, as it will work hand in hand with the saltwater flush (the tea loosens the nasty stuff and the salt water helps flush it out).

HOW TO BREAK THE LEMONADE FAST

It’s very important to break this fast gently, because if you jump back into a normal diet too soon, you’ll likely have digestive problems and feel sick.

On the first day after the fast, just drink fresh-squeezed organic orange juice (and drink it slowly…in fact you should swish it around your mouth and chew it).

The orange juice will prepare your digestive tract to properly digest and assimilate regular food.

On day two after your fast, continue with orange juice and – if you want – prepare an organic vegetable soup (NOTHING CANNED!). I suggest making enough for several meals, since making soup from scratch is time-consuming.

Have the soup for your evening meal (using mainly broth).

Use any or all of the following organic vegetables: potatoes, carrots, celery, greens, onions, okra, tomatoes, squash, zucchini, or green peppers. You should also add one or two kinds of organic legumes, like beans, split peas or lentils.

If you want, you can add some organic wild rice.

And no meat or meat stock! Your digestive system isn’t ready for these heavy foods just yet.

You can also add some sea salt (but not too much).

Make enough soup to last you through the third post-fast day, as this will be part of your diet.

On the third day after your fast, drink the fresh-squeezed orange juice in the morning, and at noon have some soup. In the evening, eat a salad with raw, organic vegetables (or just fruit).

Do not eat meat, fish, eggs, bread or pastries just yet (you really should cut out bread and pastries completely anyway).

On the fourth day, you may start eating normally…but make it a new normal – no processed foods, greatly restrict starchy carbs and don’t go crazy with alcohol.

I’ve done this fast a number of times since then and it always works great for losing weight. Now I do it two or three times a year.

I recommend you do as well.

Source 1 – Source: http://calorielab.com/news/2008/07/17/master-cleanse-in-detail/ (talks about Burroughs and how he came up with the Master Cleanse and how it aids in weight loss and detoxification))

Source 2: “Prostate Health in 90 Days, Without Drugs or Surgery” Larry Clapp, Ph.D., J.D. – page 95 (for instructions on making the lemonade)

Source 3: https://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/how-does-lemon-juice-assist-detoxification/ (reiterates detoxifying benefits of the lemonade fast)

dougzen
Copywriter and health writer at Self-employed
Doug Fogel is a former journalist who has embraced natural healing and holistic health. He is devoted to spreading the truth through his daily newsletter (Natural Wealth, Natural Health) that we all have more control over our own health than is commonly realized.