I lost a lot of muscle from bed rest and restrictions during my many phallo surgeries.
Does anyone have any advice on how to level out? There’s an obvious dip where the muscle was taken, there isn’t a big strength difference, it’s only aesthetics.
I came across this video in my YT recommended, and I wanted to know everyone's thoughts and if there is any further research on this.
(I've been trying to learn more about strength stuff, and unfortunately that means getting videos about this stuff, which seems to be popular at the moment.)
This is a woman who supports trans people, but talks about her experience taking TRT as a female bodybuilder and her opinion on trans athletes.
She goes on to comment that she would have never been able to match the strength of a man simply because she didn't go through male puberty. Citing things such as, tendons are smaller, lung capacity is smaller, things that are just fact.
I am wondering, is it possible for trans males to achieve similar strength to a cis man, since we are on a steady stream of male hormones every week or yeafrs, and not in spurts like I assume bodybuilders are?
I ask, too, because I've been on T for 5 years, levels always been good, but I have a massively hard time gaining any strength or muscle. I've been trying so hard, to the point where I'm sore all the time now, and my body has not masculined as I feel it should have by now.
I also remember reading comments some time ago that some guys here would go lift with their cis buddies and find that they have progressed much quicker than themselves.
Let me know if this is not allowed. I am just really curious, as not a lot of research is out there and maybe someone here has some nuggets of info.
Basically just a fluff post.
I started testosterone 2 weeks ago (injection) and it's already hitting so hard. After plateauing for so long I'm getting the newbie gains again, basically loading on weight every session on almost all excercises. I also see it, especially triceps and pecs. Feels AMAZING!!
How was your experience regarding this if you also went to the gym before T?
How do you guys feel about peptides?
I’m 18, I work out everyday because I’m preparing for college to do firefighting, it’s been about two months of consistently working out, and I haven’t got much bigger. I try to eat a lot every day, especially protein. which I did start off pretty skinny fat and I’ve gained about 10 pounds so far.
I take T and have been for 3 years, I’m hoping to up my dose soon but.
I’m looking into HGH ( human growth hormone) and GHKCU ( apparently it’s good for skin, hair, sleep)
Ive tried general weightloss before with cardio and dieting. Im now abt 130lb at 5'4 (rip) and am on my first month of testosterone. My curves are still prominent and im new to actual strength building exercises. Im looking for any tips and my main questions are: How to slim down hips, good diet outlines, exercise frequency, etc.
PS: Im not well versed in reddit so sorry if this has already been asked but I haven't been able to find this specific advice.
So I've been having some issues with my period coming back for about 6 months now, and I suspect it has to do with putting on muscle mass. I know that if my T is too high, my body will naturally increase its estrogen to compensate, and that's (hopefully) where the period issue is coming from.
I've been lifting ever since I started T 4 years ago but just started pushing to failure consistently and carefully tracking my lifts 2 years ago. I was on .3ml of T up until this winter, when I was bulking and my lifts were going up quickly. I got my yearly blood work done then, and my Dr said my t levels were too high and I needed to go down to .25ml then get my blood work checked again a few weeks later. I did that, and she said my t was still too high, so she dropped me down to .2ml. All the while, my period was coming back every month but not super heavy, just enough to use a single tampon everyday for like 2-3 days. But when I went down to .2, it came back much heavier, like almost a full period. So I went back up to .25ml that week, and have been taking .225 ever since. It's only been 2 weeks so it's impossible to say rn if that will be effective at fully banishing my period. But I've also experienced painful uterine atrophy for a while now and have been taking topical estrogen. I'm hoping the topical estrogen is not contributing to my period returning bc the uterine atrophy is uncomfortable, and I'd like to continue using the topical estrogen.
Here's my question: has anyone else experienced this as they build muscle mass? Is that what's causing my T levels to be too high? I've had a hell of a time trying to get my dose right for the past 6 months and I really hope I don't have to go through this every year while bulking.
Been doing push-ups with moderate success. My right shoulder doesn't get the message. I thought this was because of me being left handed so I focused on putting more weight on my right side. But my right arm and back muscles are doing fine, it's really just the shoulder that's stays small. And the bigger the left shoulder gets the more lopsided I feel.
Am I doing something wrong?
Hey Buddies!
I am ok T for about 6 months and I was Training for a marathon originally but for around 7 weeks I have Problems in Both of my lower Part of the legs. Not only the shins but also the others Side. Docs don‘t really know what is going on but it will be some Kind of overload but no Shin Splints. Having an MRT in june.
Because it doesn‘t really get better, no matter what I am doing or not, it thought I am asking of someone had a similar Problem at the start of Testosterone.
Both legs Feel Like I have a high tension, stretching Helps but not fixing on the Long run and I have (constant) pain in one of the muscles from the shins.
Thanks!
I have my procedure locked in for early November of this year (yay!), and I'm wondering if there are any resources/tips/personal experiences related to getting "in shape" prior to top surgery. I know it affected my partner's flexibility and mobility in their upper torso and shoulders in particular. I have some chronic pain and other conditions (likely hypermobile tbh) so I'll need to take it slow and/or be very gentle on myself. Basically -- less worried about appearance, more worried about the healing process and being as prepared as possible while I still have time.
Just another skinny dude trying to gain a little muscle. I have a goal to learn 2 push up variations and be able to do 15 good form ones each morning. Help?
Hi everyone! Hope this doesn’t come off as rude or stupid haha, I’m just curious:-)
Why is cutting and bulking good, or better than eating balanced the entire time? I’ve seen this trend for a while on social media and reddit but never really seen anyone discuss why it’s better. Like I can see why a professional athlete would do it, bulking in off-seasons and cutting during the season, but why us normal people?
I got put on a low protein diet by my kidney dr. I was regularly working out and eating fairly high protein and focusing on body fat loss but was just about to change up and start focusing on muscle building.
Now I'm stuck on this stupid diet and I'm worried I not only won't be able to build any muscle but I'll lose what little I have.
Has anyone had luck with building muscle without the high protein hype?
I’m ~3 months on T and love going to the gym (been going almost 2 years). I’m happy with my pr0gress and I’m committed to staying dialled regardless.
However, the only area where I’m not seeing recognisable improvements is my waist/hips/ass. My calorie deficit has reduced fat around my hips but it seems like a stubborn area. I also think losing fat has also accentuated my waist.
I do PPL and hit abs on push and leg days. I specifically hit obliques. I’ve noticed more definition but don’t feel like much boxier yet.
I also have wide lats but my hips (as in the bones) are just wide. And I still have that kind of hour glass shape.
My legs are looking more masc as I build muscle but my ass and quads still read feminine. I lowkey have a dump truck ass. I don’t train glutes too hard as a result of this (I train SLDL first thing on leg days for my hinge which involves some glute recruitment). I know I should hit glutes better; it’s just a mental hurdle I need to get over.
Generally, I just train like any guy would. I was hoping some of yous who have been on T/working out longer can give me a bit of hope on this front. Did improvements come later on? Did time on T change anything? Did you change more than you thought you could?
Interested to hear your guys’ experiences rather than exercise-specific advice, per se, as I have read the hips wiki—I promise.
Hello, i am new to working out, i have been ftm for 4 years now and am 19, i need tips on gaining muscle in my arms mainly, and overall getting a good body shape, im more so looking for something similar to a femboy ftm workout build, so small-medium arm muscles, small abs, smaller legs, etc but all still built, i can’t explain it too well guys but hopefully yall get me.
i am 5’5 110 pounds, what calorie intake should i have to help this.
Recently realised my core muscles are suuuper weak (like couldn't even get my shoulders off the ground to do a sit up) and I think it's contributing to my bad back which has prevented me from working out for the last three months.
Any tips on how to ease myself into strengthening the muscles??
Top surgery 9 years ago, I can’t seem to build up around the bottom outer sides of my pecs (arrow, you can see the shadow from the lack of muscle form.)
Instead of a square of muscle, I get these sharply diagonal lumpy bits. My nipples face like outward because of the indents on the bottom outer quadrant.
I do inclined pec flys, and seated pec flies every time I’m at the gym.. been going a couple of years. Did the surgeon scrape out something he shouldn’t have? It just feels like skin and bone there.
Advice on workouts to fix this if possible?
I know numbers and stats aren't the end all be all, but I like having quantifiable metrics, damn it. Which one do I go with? 2-3 years on T idr and still got boobs, if any of that information is relevant.
I’ve been on T since July 2022, and I have a somewhat decent relationship with the gym, so I’ve been pretty consistent in going 2/3 times a week (except last year when I got through a period where I couldn’t stand going. Lasted about 4-6months)
Sometimes I struggle to see any change at all in my body, I focus too much on mu love handles and big butt/thighs, but today I found this old photo that helped me put things in perspective.
Still a long way to go but for the first time today I actually saw progess, so I wanted to share that
May 2026 vs. Feb 2022
Hellooo! Im a 17 y/o AFAB (still questioning NB or transmasc) and I’ve found myself really bothered by my breasts, even though they’re already somewhat small. But I’ve heard that they can continue to develope and grow in my 20s and I’ve been dreading the moment since i learned that.
Is there any way to reduce the size other than dieting (I was almost underweight for a while so i don’t think that’s a great idea) or maybe even workout another muscle to make them look smaller?
Sorry if this is a dumb question and thank you for your time :]
Hello! I have a question about doing a cut. So I've been in the gym scince 2024 (with some months on and off) and recently I've been getting more muscle! And I'm happy about that. But also I've been gaining fat, and I would like to do a cut but without the risk of loosing too much muscle so I wanted to get on a diet.
I was talking to another trans friend of mine and he said that I should cut because I'm at the beginning of my second puberty, but idk if that's real and I should wait because I follow a trans influencer that is also 1 year and some months on T and he has done cuts.
So what do you guys think? Should I better look at medical advice with a nutritionist or should I wait more to try and cut?
Thanks!