Hey guys. So I've been on a low dose of T for 3+ months now and I've just recently joined a gym. So far I've mostly been doing compound exercises of basic, major muscle groups. It seems like a good place to start. I'm not really looking to be the Hulk, just lean, muscular and athletic and of course, to get that V shape. I've always been a skinny, not very muscly person. Obviously the testosterone has been helping my muscles gain strength significantly.
Okay, the questions:
What's the best way to safely work out? I mean, how do I know when I'm actually injuring tendons or something and not just working on muscle? From what I've understood and been told, ligaments and tendons take longer to catch up with the fast muscle growth we can see.
Do we actually gain more muscle at the start faster than cis guys? The same? Slower? Is there a difference because our bodies aren't producing it and it's just a constant? This bit's not really important, I'm just curious.
I hope this hasn't been asked before, I did a few searches and couldn't find anything on this specifically. But I might not be good at searching, idk xD
Quote from: Evan of Spades on January 14, 2015, 05:38:46 PMWhat's the best way to safely work out? I mean, how do I know when I'm actually injuring tendons or something and not just working on muscle? From what I've understood and been told, ligaments and tendons take longer to catch up with the fast muscle growth we can see.
I think that one thing to remember in order to work out safely is to set realistic goals. The next thing is to start off slowly and remember how important warming up and stretching is before you begin your workout in earnest. You will most often know if you've injured a ligament or a tendon by the amount of acute pain you feel and the location.
If you stick to realistic weights (starting out) to lift, warm up appropriately, use proper technique, and don't overtrain (stick to 3 days a week starting out, no more than 45 minute sessions with a weight that you can do no more than 8-10 reps of) you shouldn't be injuring yourself.
Quote from: Evan of Spades on January 14, 2015, 05:38:46 PMDo we actually gain more muscle at the start faster than cis guys? The same? Slower? Is there a difference because our bodies aren't producing it and it's just a constant? This bit's not really important, I'm just curious.
I would say that we don't gain muscle any faster than a cis guy - my opinion is that our gains would be fairly identical to any other guy's gains. "Newb gains" are significant changes due to fast growth in muscles by a non-lifter who has started a lifting program - it happens for most men. A lot of guys tend to give up when they reach a plateau, assuming that they will continue to gain muscle at the same rate they did starting out - it's about remembering that bulky guys like The Rock didn't swell up like that overnight. It's years of training.