Maybe this isn’t the best place for this, maybe it is?
I’ve been thinking of changing my workout routine, but I’m not sure how?
For literally at least half of my life I’ve focused more on building muscle. Now I’m wondering, how can I workout and keep as much strength as possible, but lose some mass? I mean, I’m not extreme bodybuilder, but I’m nowhere near afab size.
Is it possible (pre-hormone) to mostly keep streng, but lose mass? I wish a lot of me was smaller, especially neck, shoulders, thighs, and belly. Not totally sure how(or if) I can make changes pre-hrt to get more feminine? I don’t want to lose too much strength, but I’m fairly big so I’d like to lose some mass.
I guess most of my routine is 3 sets of 8-12 reps in various exercises focusing on larger groups of muscles(e.g. Push-up, pull-up, - dips…)
Edit: not sure if it was clear enough, I’d love to lose some mass/size, but as much as possible, not lose strength. Does that make sense? I totally get there is a tradeoff, but I’m not sure how to switch up working out to lose mass? I think I’d like to be smaller (help me to pass?) but I feel like any strength training at all is inherently somewhat bulky? At least from a feminine pov?
The only thing I could think would be to try and develop your fast twitch muscles fibers over your slow twitch.
The unfortunate reality is that the mechanisms in our muscles that give us strength increase the volume of our cells the more effective they are. Of course you can be strong and lean, but at some point more strength = more mass.
I don’t have a direct answer for you, but perhaps you’ll find the Renaissance Periodization YouTube channel helpful. Dr. Mike Israetel is a PhD in Sports Physiology, teaches at the university/college level, and does coaching so he’s legit and science-based. Here’s a series (that unfortunately isn’t in a playlist) specifically about avoiding muscle loss while cutting - video 1 video 2 video 3. For more general info, here’s a Dieting Made Easy playlist which features videos you may find useful.
Hopefully those prove to be a useful starting point. As a channel he covers a lot of weightlifting topics so it’s a good place to explore if you’re interested. Best of luck on your fitness journey!
Hi! Not really and answer, but I’m in a similar situation muscle wise. I decided to visit a dietician to reduce muscles altogether in a healthy fashion and she recommended taking no more than 20 grams of protein every 2 hours or so. If you take more it will go to muscle build-up.
Still, it’s also important to get enough protein throughout the day, because you need it for just about anything (hair ✨ for one).
Spreading your intake throughout the day helps with not building more muscle mass (and potentially reduce it). She also told me E helps a lot, but I can’t speak from experience Hope it helps!
Reducing protein does make sense, I guess. I feel like I need a different workout strategy too. I’ve been doing go as heavy as possible for 6-10 reps for as long as I can remember but something I read recently mentioned something along the lines of ‘don’t go for 90% of your capability. Aim for 60%-80%’ 🤷♀️
I can totally believe E since I know T is important for muscle building, but I’m not there yet. Maybe that’s all I need, and keep up what I was already doing? 🤷♀️
I’ll be honest and say that I know next to nothing about workout thingies. But my brother does. He once told me something that I think could have a lot of truth in it:
Workout is for building muscle. Losing weight is something you do in the kitchen.
I really don’t want to encourage you to starve yourself tho. The best advice that I am able to give you is to maybe get into calorie counting.
Also, there is nothing wrong with being a little more on the bulky side. I’ve got several afab friends that are a little bigger and they still look amazing.
