This just seems like a roundabout way of saying: water fasting results in loss of muscle and fat tissues. By the internal logic of this thread, and since I don’t see any way to intake protein on a water diet, where is the nuance?

they're splitting the hair between "muscle wasting" and "burning muscles". I don't know if its a question of internal logic or not. They are separate things, and when you fast your body does some stuff with HGH (which can skyrocket hundreds of percents) which I've read is supposed to reduce some of the expected muscle loss.

They're technically correct, the best kind of correct (?)

We completely agree - I was forcing myself to be less blunt, frankly. Well put.

The gist of my point is, the body can't use muscle as a replacement for fat. The best it can do is not invest in muscle upkeep, and redirect that energy / resources elsewhere.