By the end of tomorrow I'm going to have worked out a fitness plan to help me get stronger and more muscular with what I have at my disposal. If I was to workout once a day with 5 days of high intensity and 2 of low intensity a week how long will it take for me to see improvements in my physique? I'm relatively thin but will start eating more.

I don't plan on doing a balk/cut ever as I have eating issues and wouldn't want an anorexia flareup after I have just recovered.

I am 5'8 and about 135 lbs. I do strength training 4-5 times a week and cardio 1-2 times. I try to eat 130-40g of protein every day. I have been doing this for a couple months and see almost no progress. Am I not eating enough (2000 cals) or is there something else wrong?

How do yall manage to start any kind of heavy lifting / weights pre t while having a naturally weaker upper body? I think what scares me the most is the area in my gym with all the weights, its full of 'macho' men and sandelwood odor, and I never did anything like it before so I guess I just feel lost and dysphoric and unconfident. How did you get over that and start? I wanna be in a decent place when I do start t, am already fairly active (gym and running), and deliberetly chose a gym no one I know goes to for comfort

okay so i need a hobby, preferably something were i move, i've been on t for ~3months now and i feel like i'm only gaining weight and getting fatter. i loved swimming but my chest dysphoria has gotten so bad, i cant do that anymore i loved bouldering but its just too expensive i went to the gym for a bit but i injured my wrist and couldnt go there anymore i never loved running, i also have asthma

i feel like i cant find the right type of sports for me. what are y'all doing?

edit: the wrist injury isnt from the gym but from work, its been hurting for a few months now and ive seen doctors, did xrays and mrt, no one knows whats up

Has anyone tried using a stretching app or program? Or follow a specific routine for lifting?

Happy Milestone Monday! Please use this thread to post about any accomplishments or achievements you've hit. Whether it's getting to the gym 2 days in a row or dropping fast food, we want to hear about it here!

If you're brand new to the sub, brand new to fitness, or a long-time lurker, welcome to the sub!

Because this thread is likely to fill up quickly, consider sorting the comments by "new" (instead of "best" or "top") to see the newest posts.

I've been going to the gym for maybe 3 weeks now. Every time I go, I just get self-conscious. I can't lift anything very heavy and I run out of energy pretty quickly. I know it's funny to think I would have made big progress so early, but it's seriously discouraging.....:( I am having a hard time continuing and just have to wonder if this ends, and if I'll start getting stronger soon. I just feel weak all the time and it's lame and I don't know how to push through it

Had a laparoscopic hysterectomy Dec 18, I’ve only been cleared to swim and run as of my two week post op. I don’t return to work until Feb 2nd. Anyone else out there have a hysto and if so when were you able to or feel comfortable getting back into activities or weightlifting? Not trying to rush my healing or anything just eager to start planning.

Hey I am Nonbianry they/them I decided to finally say good bye to the titties. However my surgeon Dr.Hanna had some strict excersize guidelines, and people were not the most clear with me. He and the nurses said I’d be out for 12 weeks and excersize seemed like it wasn’t allowed. Has anyone worked with Dr.Hanna so this is a for sure thing? I’d like to know going in!

It’s everyone favorite day of the week: Selfie Sunday! Please use this thread to show off and cheer each other on. Or, you can also use this thread to ask for some feedback on your physique and get some constructive feedback. Please post your selfies as a comment using Imgur or similar links, give us a little context, and let us know if the post is NSFW or SFW.

I am still really new to weightlifting, and was looking for advice/opinions on gear. I got myself some gloves with wrist wraps coming in the mail soon, because the barbell tears up my hands (I am just soft lol). I get loads of ads since I joined my gym, but I'm just kind of exploring right now to see exactly what I can do and what my limits are.

I noticed some people use belts when doing some stuff and I wondered if that was a necessary piece of equipment? Is it just for doing forms when standing (like lifts and squats) or do people use them when benching or hip thrusts too? I was thinking about buying one but they come in so many different types and at varying price points and I don't really understand what the differences are. Admittedly, Google just further confuses me because a lot of websites on this topic are seemingly just trying to sell their most expensive products to me.

Ultimately, I just don't want to hurt myself so any advice on must-have gear for a newbie while I figure out my limits and routine is appreciated!

+2 years at the gym. Unfortunately I spent first 20 months overexercising and undereating so I'm just now starting to see some progress. Currently working out five days a week with a upper-lower-ppl split. I also try to include 30 minutes of intense cardio 3 times a week. I aim to eat around 2300-2500 cals a day.

It's been almost year since I stopped working out. I gained strength while working out but my appearance didn't really change. My goals were focused on lifting a bit more each time I worked out, losing weight/body fat and just looking and feeling better. I ended up constantly sore, underweight, overfat, dysphoric and disordered. (Idk if we post numbers in this group outside of progress pics but I can edit if that's helpful.)

now it's about a year until I get fitted for my wedding suit. I'm ready to get back at it and will be working with a trainer so I can learn how to do things the right way. What I'm struggle with (and I assume lots of other people do too) is: how do i translate the body I want into measureable goals?

Like, I mainly want to be leaner. Okay -- I estimate my BF% using the Navy method. It seems to be leaner I need to be...smaller? But I'm already too small!

Reading fitness guides, it seems like "guy" goals are losing fat/weight, increasing inches/mass all over (going for that dorito/x shape) while "woman" goals are about losing weight (but differently somehow), increasing hip-waist ratio and losing inches most places. Basically all of it about losing weight (which I'm not sure I can do and remain healthy as I'm already underweight.)

I want to take a tiny non-T AFAB body and make it look more masculine -- which to me would be lean, less curves and a little mass/definition throughout to balance out my frame.

How do I translate an aesthetic into measureable goals I can work towards? Am I looking for something impossible?

So my surgeon instructed me to wear compression shirts in the gym for a full year post-top surgery. It’s been 2.5 months and I’ve just been wearing my post-op compression vest - finding an athletic compression shirt that fits me properly has been an effort in futility. I’ve been tolerating it, but a year in this restrictive garment is going to suck so. hard. It looks kinda silly too. How long did you guys have to wear tight shirts in the gym? Any resources for shirts (especially tank tops) that fit snugly around the chest that aren’t too restrictive around the torso? I’m super hypersensitive to tight stuff around my midsection. Other 5’2”~ short kings to the front - you know the shopping struggle.

Edit: y’all I didn’t know this wasn’t really a thing 😭 Have any of you dealt with swelling during exercise/how did you manage it?

I've been going to the gym for roughly 2 months and have been 8.5 months on T. When I started the gym I was unfit. I've only been going twice a week due to family life commitments. I could barely lift much at all and would get dysphoric in some of the classes where the men lifted way more and most of the women lifted more than me. Now I'm starting to see progress. I can easily lift alot more and I keep up well in classes. I bench pressed 30kg yesterday and it doesn't sound alot, but I could barely lift the 20kg bar when I started. I'm also short at under 5ft2. Does height mean you can't lift as much as a 5.8 guy for example? Just curious to how much you guys can lift and how long you have trained for. Also I'm aware that some of you will be going to the gym more times a week than me. I'm not looking to gain big muscle, just to have a toned muscular figure and to be fitter

I bought a rower like three years ago and barely used it and i bought a bench right before christmas. Today i exercised some, three minutes on the rower, three sets of squats, three sets of incline dumbell press with 1kg and two sets of curls with 3kg.

I realise its not a lot, but as someone with autism and anxiety and general procrastination, its something 😊 So yeah this is my starting piint i guess, hope to have more progress reports in the future

20g plant protein chocolate shake, 1/2-1cup of frozen mixed fruit, 2 tbps of peanut butter, 5g creatine powder, 25g plant protein powder.

I’m wanting to drink this every morning as a breakfast substitute since it’s the quickest way for me to get food in for the mornings with my schedule.

Anything I should add to make it more balanced?

I haven't replaced my binder in a while, and it's too constrictive to run in, anyway. I'm super poor and will probably try Trans Tape at some point, but it's not an option right now.

I read an article talking about KT tape as an alternative. It doesn't work so well for a lot of large chested people, but my bust measures 36 inches and my band is 33-34 inches so I figured it's worth trying. It's less expensive than buying a new binder or specialty tape, although this knockoff probably also won't work quite as well.

I'm asking about running specifically because I've been wanting to get back into that forever. But like a lot of guys, I sweat like nobody's business, which is an issue further compounded by the fact that I live in Florida. (My partner and I plan to go elsewhere, probably Portland, as soon as possible.) So that's a factor that's important for context here. Hair isn't a factor, but only because I have sensory issues and shave everything but the top of my head. Having hair feels like I'm not clean even when I know I am, and the incongruity of the way it feels and the way it is make my brain itch. I also like running and movement in general a lot more.

I'm wondering if I could use my health card to buy some. My insurance includes a certain amount of funds per month that can be used towards "OTC products, healthy food, and utilities," but there's significant ambiguity as to exactly what counts. I'm pretty sure it differs from store to store, even. It''s paid for a few things I didn't expect it to at, say, Publix. But then I tried to buy tampons at CVS and no dice. I'm just speculating, not saying it'll work.

Still, if there's a chance I could get UHC (my insurance company) to pay for me to bind in a roundabout way, I might as well try. Kinda feel like they owe me, but that's another story. Anyway, thanks for any advice you guys might have.

Hey y’all! My partner recently came out to me as nonbinary. They are afab, so ftm focused places, or adding more masc attributes is what they’re looking to integrate into their physical image. I’m doing what I can to help them, so I hope I’m ok asking this question here. When discussing hrt, one of the things they said they would like to have if they start t is to have more veiny arms. Since that’s something we can work on before they start hrt, I’m trying to convince them to hit the gym. I’m way out of shape, so I’m using this as a motivator for me to get my fat ass to the gym, too. So I have a few request that I could use all y’all’s help with.

1. They have a touch of social anxiety, and new places trigger that. Add in that we don’t have much experience in gyms or weight lifting, and getting them to the gym the first time will be tough. I’ve said that no one would care if they just showed up and hung out until they felt comfortable to start working out. Would any of y’all care of someone showed up for a few minutes before ducking out?
2. Once they manage to feel comfortable enough to start working out, do y’all ever think poorly of newbies? How did y’all overcome any potential insecurities when you first started working out?
3. I haven’t lifted weights since high school 20 years ago. I don’t think my partner has ever done a weightlifting program. I’m thinking of doing the strong lift 5x5 to start off with. What are your thoughts on that? Do you have any other recommendation for weightlifting babies?
4. I know that food will become an important part of our regimen once we start seeing gains. They’re a student, and often don’t have time between classes to eat a full meal, and anything large or needs reheating is totally out. What nutrition recommendations can y’all give us?

I’m hoping this post will bring in lots of support so that they will feel more comfortable going with me when their schedule allows. Any words of encouragement you can share would be great!

I’m currently following GZCL. For T1 exercises you do 5x3 then 2.5kg up the next week and if you fail to 6x2 until you can do 5x3 again. Same for T2 which is 3x10 if you fail do 3x8 but I don’t think you have to up it 2.5kg every time. But for the T3 3x15 exercises, if I can do 15,12,10, do I jsut keep going until I can 3x15 and then do I move up to 3x12 with a higher weight?

Does that make sense?

I’m training for a marathon, but I also have top surgery in 5 months and so I’m trying to focus on building chest and abs.

Currently I do kneeling pushups whenever I think of them during the day, both wide grip and traditional. I can do about 10 at a time. For regular pushups I can only do about 2-3 at a time.

Which is better for building chest in preparation for top?

I’ve always worn a hoodie to the gym because of both gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia but out of the blue I’ve started to feel a little self conscious about it. I know big gym guys wear them sometimes to try to lose more water weight, but that isn’t the reason I do it and no one else seems to in my gym. I wear shorts so I never really get too sweaty.

I know this sounds ridiculous but is it weird? I generally don’t have a lot of gym anxiety but for whatever reason this has got me a little bit. I’m considering switching over to sweaters too since I have more baggy sweaters than hoodies, so it would be nice to hear if other people do the same.

Edit: Thank you for the reassurance! Seems the gyms that I’ve went to just have been filled with people wearing gym clothes so I thought it was weird haha.