I joined a gym

[J.T.]

and my first training session is tomorrow. 

i just spent 1.5 horrible hours at the store trying to buy workout clothes.

I'm too short for pants so i have to wear shorts and my legs look weird.  Five months on T and I'm still pretty hairless.  I've got no "bulge" and still have hips.  Not to mention the fact i've got these two things sticking out of my chest.  Wearing three layers at the gym doesn't cut it.  Binding while working out is gonna be hard.  But i can't not bind when in public, no way.

But i gotta suck it up.  I'm just so ->-bleeped-<-ing nervous.  I'm worried that as soon as people look at me they'll think "freak" or even worse "woman".

How do you guys deal with the gym?  Any advice?   

[trapthavok]

I just sucked it up dude. I'm hairless, I have to wear a sports bra because my growths will definitely pop out if I wear my binder....


I just had to suck it up I hate it, but I love the gym too much.....

Congrats on hitting the gym though!!!

[Osiris]

I get a free membership due to my work, so I'm known by my female name. No point in even attempting to pass as they say my name left and right and I have asthma so it'd be too difficult to bind and workout. So as said above, I just suck it up.

[Ender]

I suck it up.  I get weird looks.  My hips stick out and so does my chest, even though it's small.  I don't worry too much about being hairless; there are plenty of other dudes there without hair (I'm pretty sure they shave/wax it).  I try not to let it get to me, but I have walked out of the gym in panic attacks before.  Dang wall-to-wall mirrors. 

There's a definite 'guys area' at my gym (really just where the larger free weights are, but I rarely see girls over there).  I don't think the guys much appreciate my presence on their side, judging by their confused/hostile stares. 

It has been better since I found out that they have a shower for trans people (apparently they converted a utility closet or something a few years ago when someone requested such facilities & the university didn't have any).  Beats going to class smelling terrible, and especially beats hostile looks in the locker room until I *shudder* publicly disrobe.

[J.T.]

I survived... so far.  Either i totally pass or they are just that supportive/accepting.  Made me feel totally welcome and not once did they screw up on pronouns. 

I'm on my way.  Woot.

[Elwood]

Hmm. Well, I pack, so that fixes the bulge problem.

I don't go to the gym anymore, because I found that working out with my body/weights (things like push ups, sit ups, lunges, yoga, etc) is more effective than machines. But I also left because I kept getting carded. I used the women's locker room but they kept thinking I was a peeping tom. Now if I went back I'd want to use the men's but if they carded me they'd "know" I was a girl. 

[J.T.]

i don't pack 'cause i'd be worried it would fly out somehow.  all the pants i wear already look like i've got something.  its the work out clothes that don't have stiff fabric that suck.

i know without a doubt that i wouldn't have been able to do this without my gender marker change.  i have no problem handing over ID now.

[Elwood]

I don't wear boxers for that reason. I tend to wear boy's briefs. If I know I'm working out, I'll wear bikini underwear over the briefs to make sure the pack is really secure.

[milliontoone]

I really need to join a gym again and start working out.  I need to lose weight, I'm quite lucky as I look slim but I have a horrible stomach roll and too much fat on my hips which I hate and which would definately dissapear if I lost some weight.  I ordered some diet pills with hoodia in from the internet so hopefully those will help but I eat too much crap and there is really no substitute for eating healthily and working out so I really need to be hitting the gym soon.  I want washboard abs bad also I really want to build up more muscle on my arms, my legs are pretty muscular but my arms are pathetic.
The gyms here are great I joined LA fitness before (I live in London), no one really cares who you are or how you dress and everyone keeps themselves to themselves plus there are people from all walks of life and all shapes and sizes using them, gay, trans, you name it so I don't feel too self conscious using them or anything although I do wish they had trans changing rooms as I haven't had top surgery or anything yet so can't really use the male changing room although I badly want to.
I can't really afford a full gym membership at the moment though so I think I will have to find a way aorund that, I can get a free month trial at my local Otium gym(they are really nice gyms with a lot of facilities but a bit expensive) so I might go for that to start me off and then cancel at the end of the trial month if I can't afford it and maybe switch to a council run gym which should be a bit cheaper.

[sneakersjay]

I need to start working out also.  Even though I'm down 18 pounds, I have at least another 15 ideally of fat that need to go.  I'm in a hotel that has mirrors and when dressed I look pretty good; in my tee shirt and boxers I look pathetic!!  I have 12 weeks til top surgery and if I could lose the remaining weight I'd be golden.  I'm still on restricted lifting after my hysto, however, but maybe if I kept the weights low, like 10lbs and lower I'll be OK?  I should call my doc.  OTOH I've already been overdoing it since my surgery (like going back to work and lugging a laptop through an airport).

How cool you pass!  I'm only passing at the moment, I think, because I'm wearing long sleeves.  Hairless arms and a woman's fat distribution on them = obvious woman, IMHO.  Sleeves are the only thing different about me.

Pack, man!  Jockey sells some bikini underwear in Kohls that are seamless and might work to hold a packer.  Unless your workout shorts are the tight-fitting kind.

Jay

[Elwood]

Working out isn't just about looking manly, boys. It's got SO MANY other benefits. You'll feel healthier, be happier. I strongly encourage at least doing cardio work outs. All of us need it, the girls included, since so many transgender people suffer from depression.

[Aiden]

Actually been looking at Gyms lately as a way of reducing stress, loosing weight, and building muscle.  It's like 60 dollers a month though or about 100 something a year membership.  I may bug my aunt to help since she's one who suggested going to a gym in first place lol.

Now I just need to figure out how a broke person is supposed to eat healthy when all the stuff good for you cost to much to eat enough of it to not be starving.

[milliontoone]

God I so know what you mean about good food costing more.  It's like you get penalised to be healthy or something.  If I were to buy organic meat, tons of fresh fruit and salad, fresh juice etc my grocery bill would be unacceptable.  So in the end I end up filling my basket with the cheaper stuff which just isn't as good for you or thinking f**k it I'll just go to Mcdonalds.
Terrible for me I know.

[J.T.]

How cool you pass!  I'm only passing at the moment, I think, because I'm wearing long sleeves.  Hairless arms and a woman's fat distribution on them = obvious woman, IMHO.  Sleeves are the only thing different about me.

Pack, man!  Jockey sells some bikini underwear in Kohls that are seamless and might work to hold a packer.  Unless your workout shorts are the tight-fitting kind.

Jay

i got a couple of stares from other members today, the kind where they stop what they're doing and blatantly watch... so maybe its "they're just that accepting/understanding" when referring to the employees.

we did legs today and the trainer said "testosterone comes from the legs" and i thought to myself "well yeah that's where i inject it" lol.

Working out isn't just about looking manly, boys. It's got SO MANY other benefits. You'll feel healthier, be happier. I strongly encourage at least doing cardio work outs. All of us need it, the girls included, since so many transgender people suffer from depression.

absolutely agree... i feel so much better already even though i am sore as hell.

Now I just need to figure out how a broke person is supposed to eat healthy when all the stuff good for you cost to much to eat enough of it to not be starving.

yeah i made a choice today... i went for the healthier option.  chinese food or subway, picked subway.  i would have gotten two meals out of the chinese too.

[Ender]

Now I just need to figure out how a broke person is supposed to eat healthy when all the stuff good for you cost to much to eat enough of it to not be starving.

Just wanted to chime in that I had very little money my junior year of college...  I lived on a strict budget of $30 of groceries a week, no eating out (couldn't afford it).  The bulk of that $30 went towards fruits & veggies.  Not the certified organic stuff ('cuz that really does cost too much), but just regular produce.  The rest of the money went towards lean (non-organic) meats in bulk packages (better prices, and keeps several weeks in the freezer), nuts, generic cereal, bread, rice, yogurt, and milk.  Yeah, I basically lived on stir fry/steamed veggies/hippie hash/any other meat & veggie combo imaginable + smoothies for a year, but... it's easy & fast to cook and can be made in pretty much endless variations, so it's hard to tire of.  It's also a pretty balanced & healthy meal as long as you watch what sauces (if any) you put in it.

I'm actually kind of unimpressed by the whole organic thing...  Good 'organic' farming practices (rotating crops, not dousing them with pesticides, not injecting animals with hormones) are important, and I know that there needs a way to standardize what is considered 'organic' so that the public can be (correctly) informed about what they're buying.  However, the US system for organic certification is currently very expensive.  There is a small family-owned farm that I often go to for my veggies and all of their stuff is grown organically (see above farming practices, which are just plain good sense anyways), but they haven't applied for organic certification simply because they can't afford it--or rather, they could afford it, but then they'd have to jack up their prices so that many of their customers couldn't.  I get the impression that a fair bit of the markup on organic foods are simply due to the costs of organic certification itself...

[myles]

Glad you posted, exactly what I was going to say. I make sure when chicken is on sale I buy a lot and freeze it, I can no longer go for the organic produce  (unless its on sale) so I try and buy "local" so the stuff isn't trucked across the country. Works out well because I live in a city/area where a lot of produce and fruit are local grown. Also it's usually cheaper since they didn't have to pay the fuel to truck across the country. I also took my kids to a few upick farms this summer we had a blast, saved money by picking the fruit then I froze a bunch of it so we can eat good fruits all year long. I put them in smoothies in the winter.
You can eat healthy on a budget but it does take creativity and buying in bulk when things are on sale. I think my freezer is always full because I am always finding a deal on some healthy meat/ protien source.
Myles

[Aiden]

Maybe it's just that I am a terrible cook and perticular about what is mixed together lol

[Ender]

Glad you posted, exactly what I was going to say. I make sure when chicken is on sale I buy a lot and freeze it, I can no longer go for the organic produce  (unless its on sale) so I try and buy "local" so the stuff isn't trucked across the country. Works out well because I live in a city/area where a lot of produce and fruit are local grown. Also it's usually cheaper since they didn't have to pay the fuel to truck across the country. I also took my kids to a few upick farms this summer we had a blast, saved money by picking the fruit then I froze a bunch of it so we can eat good fruits all year long. I put them in smoothies in the winter.
You can eat healthy on a budget but it does take creativity and buying in bulk when things are on sale. I think my freezer is always full because I am always finding a deal on some healthy meat/ protien source.
Myles

Local farmers are awesome.  There are definitely some beneficial things about living in a rural area (or at least a place where there is some open land and farmers).  And good point about the shipping; I'm sure that also contributes to the lower cost of local food.

Maybe it's just that I am a terrible cook and perticular about what is mixed together lol

Lol, it kind of does help that I'll eat just about anything..

[Christo]

whoo hoo. congrats bro I go to the gym evevry day. I do what my buddy says. hes a personal trainer there. I lift up weights, worlk on the tread mill . jog & work on my arms. bout 2hrs evevry day.  u just gotta do what ur trainer tells u. its x ur own good. they can make u a individual  plan 2 work on the places u need to work on. stomach. legs. arms. shoulders. biceps, triceps. whatever u want. work w/them they know what they're talkin about. if u can. get a tread mill at home. we got one. it kinda helps when u cant go to the gym.

[J.T.]

yeah i've got a treadmill at home.