Ask Matt: Male or Female – How Do I Decide?

[Shana A]

Ask Matt: Male or Female – How Do I Decide?

January 21, 2013 by Matt Kailey

http://tranifesto.com/2013/01/21/ask-matt-male-or-female/

The following two questions are actually quite different, but there was enough of a connection that I was able to pair them under the same headline. So to keep the Ask Matt questions from getting too backed up, that's exactly what I did.

A reader writes: "I'm a mid-twenties FTM (four months on T) and a devout meathead. Now I KNOW you're not a doctor, but I was hoping I could have some input regarding body fat during transitioning. At what point, if ever, are transmen able to use the male standards for body fat percentage? And is there a general point in time when body fat redistribution steadies? I'd appreciate any technical info or just personal accounts. Thanks!"

This is an interesting question, because I have wondered this myself on occasion and have never thought to ask my doctor. Although I no longer work out to any extent, when I look at Body Mass Index and Basal Metabolic Rate calculators online to try to figure out where I should be weight-wise or what a realistic calorie intake is, I always question whether I should enter "male" or "female."