I'm almost 16 months on HRT now and I have lost quite a lot of body mass around most of my body except one area, my lower legs. When I was younger I used to cycle a fair bit and developed pretty chunky leg muscles. The thigh muscles have reduced somewhat but the calf muscles have barely reduced at all. I dare not show my legs or even allow a profile of them to be seen as they look so out of balance to the rest of my body.
What do I need to do to get these down in size?
For reference, here are my general body measurements:
UK size : 12
Bust : 38"
Underbust : 31.5"
Waist : 27.5"
Hips : 38"
Lower leg circumference : 15"
Hello Leila,
I can`t offer any practical advice on how to lose muscle; other than it often takes a long time for the body to adjust to changes in activity levels and hormonal status (that was certainly the case for me; all those years ago).
But while you`re waiting for Mother Nature and time to re-order things, what I can speak of, is that one of my cis-female friends is a professional hill-walker {well perhaps not 'pro'; but it often seems like she is :D} and her calves are incredibly muscular and well defined; does it concern her?.....not a bit! In fact she enjoys her status as being visibly fit and healthy.......In all the years I`ve known her; not once have I noticed anyone looking a`wry at her leg`s physique. ;)
Kind regards.
Deb.
I'd say the safe way is cardio, some more cardio, and a bit more cardio. While you're on HRT, the muscle gain from exercising will be less pronounced, especially if you don't consume a large quantities of protein. Doing your cardio with an exercise that has less intensity for your legs and more whole-body, like swimming will also help, although it might increase the muscle mass on your shoulders. Still, the antiandrogens in your system should make it harder for you to gain muscle than ciswomen, because they have active testosterone even if it is on average 15 times less than men's.
I don't recommend this, but I heard about it recently:
There's a pretty new surgery in vogue in South Korea, where the girls get their leg muscles reduced. Apparently, many of the young women there are wearing high heels so much that they have began to develop pronounced leg muscles from the strain of wearing them. Because they don't find it aesthetically pleasing, and don't want to stop wearing heels, they pay a surgeon to excise some of their muscle from their body.
Hugs,
- Katie
Mine has been a long process, added to that I ski hard through our winter here... however over the years of intense activity in winters, to less intense the rest of the year, plus weight loss and the wonder of HRT my leg shape has changed, slimmer with much less muscle mass... :P
Otherwise I'd fully agree with Katie :)
L Katy :-*
Quote from: Leila on February 17, 2015, 03:47:07 AM
What do I need to do to get these down in size?
...
Hips : 38"
Lower leg circumference : 15"
If you have full 38" hips and presumably thighs to go along with it, I think 15" actually sounds good. Have you tried rocking some 3/4 pants?
HRT has made a huge difference in my upper legs, but only a little at the lower leg (which I've always thought of as too skinny). They've changed from 12.75" to 13" (at 138 lbs). My low hip comes in at 36". I've never been muscular in any department though.
A lower calorie, lower protien diet can easily reduce muscle mass. OP are your calfs hard or soft?
Quote from: mfox on February 17, 2015, 08:56:52 AM
If you have full 38" hips and presumably thighs to go along with it, I think 15" actually sounds good. Have you tried rocking some 3/4 pants?
HRT has made a huge difference in my upper legs, but only a little at the lower leg (which I've always thought of as too skinny). They've changed from 12.75" to 13" (at 138 lbs). My low hip comes in at 36". I've never been muscular in any department though.
Before I went on a LCHF diet my hips were 39" and looked fab, but dieting brought them down to 37" and it's only since easing back on the diet that the hips (and thankfully not the waist) have started to pad back up again. I like my thighs. They're slender, toned and rounded out nicely with HRT, but the calves have basically stayed the same give or take a little loss of definition in the shin area. My legs gradually slim down from the hips till they get to the knees and then are joined by a manly pair of calves.
I just about manage to wear bootleg cut jeans as they are snug on the calves. With my milky white skin (on my legs) and humongous calves I think I'd scare off people if i were to wear 3/4 length trousers/pants.
Quote from: Kaylee2140 on February 17, 2015, 09:06:29 AM
A lower calorie, lower protien diet can easily reduce muscle mass. OP are your calfs hard or soft?
They are hard muscle from years of cycling. I was on a diet before and everything but the lower leg muscles diminished in size.
When I flex my calf, they're at around 15" as well. I don't really have any issues with mine although some skinny jeans won't fit in my size (6). I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's very minor compared to how you walk, talk and act.
I started playing soccer at 3, and spent most of high school training a lot for leg strength. So I get issues with having muscular legs, but I honestly think they balance with my body and shoulders more than skinny ones would. As long as the muscle softens some, guys mostly pay attention to how shapely they are.
Hugs,
- Katie
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Quote from: Obfuskatie on February 17, 2015, 10:24:10 AM
When I flex my calf, they're at around 15" as well.
When I flex mine they are 16.5" inches around. :(
Wearing skirts or dresses just draws attention to them. In winter I can hide them under a pair of boots, but no chance once the weather warms up. I'd have to wear something like dark coloured palazzo trousers/pants to hide them. Tight or snug fitting pants/trousers do not fit me there and the legs just bunch up below the knee. :/
Quote from: Leila on February 17, 2015, 09:20:59 AMI just about manage to wear bootleg cut jeans as they are snug on the calves.
We sound like leg twins. Wish the lower legs would shed some muscle too - it's rather limiting when it comes to anything that might reveal more than an ankle. :(
I'll be the girl who
always wears full-length pants, no matter how hot it gets. Like, even on the beach.
It isn't the easiest thing, but you lose muscle the fastest by not eating much and letting your body digest it. Exercise won't do it, and most people eat more than they've worked off because they're hungrier after... Limit your exercise and restrict your diet for a few weeks and you'll see a difference.
I don't think that mine shrunk much but around the two year mark I noticed that they had somehow softened and suddenly looked completely feminine. I think size has a lot less to do with the overall feminine appearance than you might assume - it's all about soft curves that only come with time.
You might try various exercises that tend to produce longer, elongated muscles, such as swimming. That's about all I can think of. I'm sure there are some other exercises that produce elongated muscle structure. It may be easier to change those muscles than lose them.
Hi Leila,
I'm not quite the expert on this subject. However, have you tried looking into Pilates to slenderize your muscles?
Also found this article online:
http://healthyliving.azcentral.com/exercises-slenderize-legs-18474.html
Hope this helps my love
April
Cis women tend to have more lower-body strength on average than cis men, so on the bright side, this is a gender-appropriate problem to have?
I'm avid cyclist, walker and I just took up running. So, my legs are very muscular. I'm actually worried I'll loose them to hrt and I've worked so hard to get them! I recently got some hiking capris from an outdoor retailer. They're realy cute and bring my legs out. Remember, women work out too. But I do sympathize, I do manual lanor for a living. I'm Not jacked or anything but my arms are decidedly masculine and I hope hrt will lessen that. Likewise, my neck, I realy hope it natows a bit. Yesterday I was at a hospital and had an IV put in. It took the nurses for ever because the skin on my hands was so tough. I didn't let it get to me because I thought of the women I work with. In particular an older one who mentored me a bit taught me a lot about our trade. She's much like me, a real tomboy at times and I bet her hands are just as tough! I have zero plans to change jobs after transition, I love what I do and where I work is very pro queer and pro woman.
Quote from: GendrKweer on February 17, 2015, 11:05:39 AM
It isn't the easiest thing, but you lose muscle the fastest by not eating much and letting your body digest it. Exercise won't do it, and most people eat more than they've worked off because they're hungrier after... Limit your exercise and restrict your diet for a few weeks and you'll see a difference.
If you want all around muscle atrophy, this is an option. It isn't recommended, because this is essentially starving yourself of protein so your body cannibalizes your muscles to preserve brain and heart functions. There's no way to target a particular area for atrophy either, unless you were to wear an immobilizing cast on the legs for months. So if your cool with voluntarily being in a wheelchair for 6 months to a year, and then dealing with painful physical therapy after...
The other method is toning the muscle. While it may seem counterintuitive, exercising with that muscle group will break and tear the muscles before rebuilding them. If you eat a higher fat and low calorie diet, the muscles won't have the protein necessary to add bulk.
If you have the discipline to maintain a 500 calorie deficit per day, it doesn't matter if you exercise or not, you'll lose weight. Eventually your body will run out of fat to burn and burn muscle. Exercising that muscle group as well as dieting will speed the process, but it'll be harder to stick to lower healthier portions the larger a calorie deficit you create. It is highly recommended that you not exceed a 1000 Cal per day deficit, which will burn 2 lbs of fat per week.
I don't know the calculations for muscle-mass to Calories needed to burn 1 lb. I eat a high protein diet because I'm losing weight and trying to keep as much of my muscle as I can. So I don't know any of the proportions for altering your diet either. It's super hard to stick to my Atkins diet when I'm pescetarian, but I make do by eating a lot of fish and protein bars and drinking protein shakes.
Hugs,
- Katie
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Office work. :icon_userfriendly: I played basketball from when I was a little kid to my mid/late 20s. I had the thighs and quad muscles that looked like He Man. I got compliments on my calves too. HRT has made my legs much slimmer and unmuscular, that may be just me but overall muscle was lost overall. I bike as often as I can, maybe a few miles a week. My cardio sucks too as I have a bunch of nagging injuries.
I played a lot of sports until undergrad, and most of my injuries were around my ankles, knees, or hands. Unfortunately I tend to get shin splints and knee pain from running/jogging on the trails by my apartment, even with elaborate stretching. Because of this, I prefer the elliptical for longer cardio if I run anywhere there isn't sand or turf.
HRT has greatly reduced my muscle mass as well. My arms and legs that used to be rather bulky have slimmed a lot and become smoother. I'll probably worry more about how muscular I am once I reach my target weight though, 15-20 lbs to go. [emoji3]
Hugs,
- Katie
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
The best method is long distance cardio with a low protein diet. If your sweat smells like urine (it is the ammonia byproduct caused by the breaking down of proteins once the carbohydrates are depleted). Also size is not so much of an issue as how your muscles are shaped. My calves are 16.5 inches flexed but look like they are 12-13 inches since most of the mass is on the inside and the muscles are elongated.