Quote from: Stone Magnum on January 08, 2017, 03:49:31 PM
Yes, women can absolutely get incredibly strong and perform solid lifts. The thing is, they still look like women at the end of the day. Their shoulders are still relatively slight, their hips are still present and they're still going to put on weight/drop weight in female patterns because their systems are predominantly running on E.
This is excellent news for ciswoman looking to get stronger and more toned but not so much for a transman.
No one's saying that he's going to be incapable of gaining muscle or losing fat pre-T, it's just not going to be as effective/noticeable and it's not going to produce the visually masculine frame for which he's looking.
Disagree with this, have definitely seen female strength athletes who's physique I'd envy. And this shoulder's relatively slight/hips still present, again, isn't true for dedicated strength athletes (or athletes of more explosive sports) that have been training for years. However, people in general don't become as dedicated to strength training as athletes of these sports do and that's the thing. Like cis men, many trans men go to the gym once or twice a week for a few months and expect some big results. Often those results don't come like they'd hoped because they aren't following a proper program. Those results are easier, yes, for cis men because of testosterone, but there is certainly things a trans man can do to masculinise his body without T. It will just take longer than it would with cis men if that trans guy isn't on T. Its frustrating seeing posts like the ones in this thread because they tend to perpetuate myths that aren't necessarily true and end up being discouraging for those who aren't on T for whatever reason thinking that's its not worth even trying when in fact there is still a lot of strength and size they can achieve without being on T. I'd also mention that it also depends on each individual person's physique. Some people also put on muscle more easily than others.
@RoryM, if you're comfortable could you give your height and weight? That might be helpful in getting a picture of what you mean by average weight for your height and what you've got to work with. Do you have any kind of athletic background?
As far as a routine that would help you trim some fat and build more muscle, there are plenty of pre-made routine you could follow, though it would depend on your experience. From your post it sounds like you might not have a lot of experience in a weight room. If that's the case, for the first couple months it might be beneficial for you to start with a simple 3x8-12 program. The 8-12 rep range is optimal for muscle hypertrophy. I'd also suggest sticking with free weights, not weight machines, with the majority of your lifts being compound lifts rather than isolation. The main reason, though, that I'd suggest starting out with a 8-12 rep range over going straight to lower rep ranges (3-8) is because if you're fairly new to lifting, you should be careful with pushing yourself too hard too early. I'd give it 2-3 months before moving toward low rep work. You also want to make sure you've got a stable foundation with good technique before you start hitting those lower rep ranges.
With those rep ranges in mind, the exercises you'd want to properly learn and stick to:
Barbell Squats
Barbell Deadlifts
Barbell Standing Overhead Press
Dumbbell Shoulder Press (Seated)
Barbell Bench Press or Dumbbell Bench Press
Lat Pull Downs
Rows (of any kind, can be machine, barbell, dumbbell)
Don't go overboard with isolation exercises, I'd keep it to:
Dumbbell Curls (can choose one type and stick to it for a few months, ex. regular, hammercurls, reverse curls etc.)
Dumbbell Tricep Extensions (again, choose a type and stick to it ex. Overhead extensions, skullcrushers, French press etc.)
Stick to only 1 type of these with only 3 sets per session. Don't be one of those people who spends half their time curling.
If over time you notice particular weak points then add things like calf raises or shoulder raises. Can't stress though how pointless it is to go overboard on isolation, when compound will do much more for you.
Doing all of these in the same session would obviously be pretty taxing, so you could split it up between 2-3 days per week. For example:
Monday:
Squats 3x8-12
Standing Overhead Press 3x8-12
Seated Shoulder Press 3x8-12
Wednesday:
Deadlift 3x8-12
Lat Pull Downs 3x8-12
Bicep curls 3x8-12
Friday:
BB Bench Press 3x8-12
BB Rows 3x8-12
Tricep extensions 3x8-12
Remain aware of how your body adapts to the weight and increase weight as needed so that you're always challenging yourself. If you can go 3x15 at a given weight, for example, its definitely time to up the weights. If you're going for 12 you should be really struggling by the end of that 12th rep.
At least 20 minutes of medium to intense cardio per session is also a good idea. Not just for losing body fat, but for cardiovascular health evidently.
Quote from: dentistsandthedark on January 08, 2017, 02:28:23 PM
I'm not sure what everybody else is talking about? Like yes, pre-t lifting might not be at the same level as when you're on it but there's tons of cis girls who do powerlifting and crossfit with good results... Like this is a girl deadlifting 285lbs at 169lbs bodyweight, and she's not even the strongest one I know...
Do big compound lifts with heavy weight and low reps, you're gonna build muscle and lose fat, T or no T.
+1
