I've been doing some reading lately on orchiectmies as I see that as the path I will eventually take but something that occurs to me is where my testosterone will come from post surgery. The reason for this is that retaining muscle for shape and fitness is important to me and I'd like to not slowly lose my muscle and become a flabbier by the day forever. Cis women still produce some testosterone from the ovaries but, not having ovaries, this will not be the case for me.

Not having testicles or testosterone en mass is obviously very attractive to me as well but is the small amount of testosterone available from the adrenal glands enough to enable muscle retention? Taking testosterone supplements post orchiectomy or SRS seems counter-intuitive and Google is being unhelpful here.

I would love to say goodby to those evil things!  And like Katie said the price you pay is well worth it to me anyways.

It takes a little while for your blood concentrations of testosterone to go down after an orchiectomy. Once that goes, I doubt there will be any difference in your ability to keep muscle tone and a cis woman.

Male bodies post puberty have a heavier bone and muscle structure, and you can't change your bone size. If you want to stay toned, use lighter weights and more repetitions. That will help you stay toned without getting large.

Years ago when body building was really in and women's body building was on T.V., the ones who had taken T to build muscle took on a rather masculine look to their faces. You can get big as a woman without testosterone though so stick with the tone. Don't be tempted by testosterone enhancing drugs that you see over the counter.

sam1234

Quote from: sam1234 on March 09, 2015, 06:50:48 PM
It takes a little while for your blood concentrations of testosterone to go down after an orchiectomy. Once that goes, I doubt there will be any difference in your ability to keep muscle tone and a cis woman.

Male bodies post puberty have a heavier bone and muscle structure, and you can't change your bone size. If you want to stay toned, use lighter weights and more repetitions. That will help you stay toned without getting large.

Years ago when body building was really in and women's body building was on T.V., the ones who had taken T to build muscle took on a rather masculine look to their faces. You can get big as a woman without testosterone though so stick with the tone. Don't be tempted by testosterone enhancing drugs that you see over the counter.

sam1234

I'm not talking about going full roids, There is a huge gap between hobby weight lifting and bodybuilding. I just like the weight lifting part of my fitness regime and what it does for muscle tone and strength, I don't want to have to give that up.  Gradual loss of muscle equals terrible aging and skinny fat which I'd like to avoid.

I have been continuing to research this and it seems like I shouldn't have a huge problem here. I certainly don't mind having to work a bit harder for results, it's the idea of having no ability to stop myself wasting away that's disturbing.

And pro tip: light weights at high reps is how to build big, bulky muscles; that's bodybuilder training (sarcoplasmic hypertrophy). Heavy weights at low reps builds strong, dense, lean muscles; that's powerlifter training (myrofibrilar hypertrophy). The later creates a body which is surprisingly strong, and heavy for its size.

Quote".....where my testosterone will come from post surgery"

I was under the impression (from my Endocrinologist) that following surgical removal of the Testes, the Adrenal Gland would contribute small amounts of Testosterone.
That was certainly the case for me, as I continued to require Androcur to suppress T in the years following a total surgical removal of Testes......although eventually those unwanted Adrenal contributions diminished to levels that no longer required anti-androgens.

And pro tip: light weights at high reps is how to build big, bulky muscles; that's bodybuilder training (sarcoplasmic hypertrophy). Heavy weights at low reps builds strong, dense, lean muscles; that's powerlifter training (myrofibrilar hypertrophy). The later creates a body which is surprisingly strong, and heavy for its size.
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I stand corrected.
sam1234

My experience after orchiectomy 12 years ago was a slight drop in strength and maybe a slight drop in muscle mass 1-2 years later.   My whole life I have been very active (cycling, mountain climbing, hiking, weight training, etc.) so when I started transition I was lean and had solid foundational muscle though I was never 'bulky' and tended toward the thinner side.   To this day I remain active and go to the gym 1-2 times per week in addition to the usual athletic pursuits.

Despite orchi, estrogen injections weekly, with periodic finasteride/dutasteride, I have not appreciably seen a decrease in my overall fitness or competitiveness in sports. Last weekend I climbed a 9,000 ft summit and in two weeks I'll be climbing a 12,000 foot peak.