The master cleanse diet, also known as either the lemonade diet or the maple syrup diet, is a type of fasting detox cleanse that has caught the attention of both the celebrity and natural health world. Although primarily a detox diet, the master cleanse is also known for creating extreme amounts of weight loss up to 40 lbs in as little as a couple weeks. So is this much weight loss safe and if so, is the weight loss long term? These are questions asked by many and rightfully so.
These are the ways people lose weight on the Master Cleanse Diet:


1. Water weight – The master cleanse was designed to detox the body and flush “excess” amounts of fluid out of the body. A significant part of the weight loss is due to the loss of water weight. Depending on your views this may be good or bad. On one end, losing too much water is harmful, while on the other, it allows your body to shed the excess amounts in addition to excess salts and other things that make us feel bloated.


2. Loss of proteins and muscle weight – During the master cleanse, since no protein is ingested, some muscle mass is lost. Again, this is a common happening when it comes to fasting and detoxification as proteins in large amounts can be dangerous. You will often excert yourself like normally only not taking in any proteins or fats, and pretty much relying on a limited and scaled amount of carbs. This makes you lose muscle mass, but it also tones the body significantly. Remember, detoxification and fasting is all about breaking down and starting fresh, then building yourself back up afterwards.


3. Fats – It is without a doubt that you will burn a significant portion of fat from the body. Since your calorie intake is extremely restricted, you will much more fat that you would normally. Your body will start to use its reserve fats in order to maintain energy, thus toning and thinning the body. This may become dangerous if your body loses too much fat as it is needed for proper bodily function, so many times ten to twenty days is more than enough for some rather than fourty for others. Generally speaking this is a ten day cleanse.


Now how to maintain weight loss after the cleanse:


It may be easier than you think. Since flushing your system, often times people have completely different cravings then they would have before the cleanse. It is also recommended that one gets a guide in order to lose and maintain the weight loss throughout the master cleanse diet and thereafter. Also keep in mind that you need to surround yourself with foods that won’t put you in the same position as you were before. Take all those processed foods out, take all the additive-containing foods out. Give them to your neighbor, and re-stock the fridge with raw, unproccessed foods. This will help you continue to maintain weightloss after the cleanse. Keep in mind, water weight may be gained back, but otherwise you are in complete control of any other types of weight gain.