20 Jan The Benefits of a Lemon Detox Diet and Water Detox

There is some controversy about the safety of a lemon juice cleanse, but if it is followed correctly it can do a lot of great things for your digestive system and your body in general.  The lemon diet, as it is also known, involves drinking a certain amount of a special lemon cleanse recipe over the course of a few days to a week. The longest this plan should ever be done at one time is 14 days.  Because of the nature of the plan, it is advisable to do it when you are going to be home, pretty much not doing anything.  This isn’t the time to go on a major exercise regimen due to the fact that you are detoxing the body and not getting the nutrients required to support exercising.

Many people have done a water detox at some point where they consume large amounts of water, but the lemon added in this lemon detox diet makes a big difference due to the effect that lemons have on the system.  For the best results on this plan, ease your body into it and off of it after the cleanse is done by eating nothing but fruits and vegetables the day before and the day following doing the lemon diet.  It is also recommended that you consume 2-3 liters of orange juice with grade b syrup added the day before as well.

Lemonade Cleanse Recipe

Below is the lemonade cleansing recipe that is most often used when doing the lemon detox diet. Follow the amounts exactly and don’t substitute anything else.  You will also need to get grade B syrup. Grade B maple syrup is darker, has more maple taste and is much thicker than grade A.  You should be able to find grade B syrup in your grocery store. Just look at the labels and the coloring of the syrup. You might pay a little more for it but you will be sure to have the right one.

• 12-14 tablespoons of lemon juice (100% or fresh squeezed is best)
• 12-14 tablespoons of genuine, grade B maple syrup
• ½ tsp cayenne pepper
• 2 liters water (hot or cold as preferred)

Mix all ingredients together in a container and drink a glass every time you have hunger pangs. This recipe above makes enough to last one day. You will need to make this amount for each day you are on the lemon detox diet.

The Benefits of this Lemon Juice Cleanse

Done right, this lemon diet can really clean out your system and give you a great jump start to a new diet program. Because of the nature of the cleanse, you can and should expect to gain back about half the weight you lost during the cleanse once you go back to a solid food diet. When you do go back to eating, try to start fresh by eating in a healthier way than you were before.

Stops the Consumption of Unhealthy Food

If you’ve been eating less than healthy, the days following the lemon juice cleanse are a great time to start incorporating some new eating habits into your daily routine.  Avoiding things like processed foods and fried foods will go a long way towards keeping your weight loss going if that is your goal or to just make you healthier in general.  Fresh, raw fruits and veggies, whole grains and lean proteins are your objectives so anything outside of these should be avoided.

Improves Your Digestive System

Giving the digestive system a chance to detox and get rid of any build up that has accumulated can be a very healthy thing for your body. You will feel lighter, less bloated, and less sluggish. Basically what you are doing by stopping solid food and drinking the lemonade cleanse juice is to let your system “catch up”.   Once you decide to start it, also decide how long you will do it and finish on that date as well.  It’s not something you can do hit or miss.

You’ll Have a lot More Energy

High portions of fatty foods, drinks high in sugar and other unhealthy habits can result in a loss of energy. Detoxing your body with the lemon diet will re-energize you and help you feel lighter and better than you may have for awhile.  That’s why it is so important not to ruin all the benefits you gained by going right back to poor eating habits after the cleanse.  That is one reason that the syrup is required for the recipe. This added sugar gives the body something to burn off.

Following something as extreme as the lemon detox diet may seem unhealthy for some but if you follow the guidelines and take care of your body before and after, you’ll gain all of the benefits without any of the worries that some say can happen. The only thing unhealthy about the program is if you go on it and stay on it for extended periods of time.  For a few days it can have spectacular results on your health and body.