this post was submitted on 12 Feb 2026
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Transfem
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I definitely wasn't ripped, but I might also just be really sensitive to any perceived muscle tone ๐
I think I'm definitely weaker, I can't lift as much as before (I never measured how much I could lift before, I just notice my capacity seems reduced), and my endurance is worse (I can't hold a heavy object for as long as before). I also notice sometimes my biceps feel really shredded after I try to carry too many groceries at once (though mostly I've just learned to take more trips rather than overload my arms).
But I would imagine if I had a job with manual labor I would have a much greater sense of my body's weakening ... that's really interesting.
This study of US Air Force service members who started HRT found that trans women lost their pre-HRT advantages over cis women in push-ups and sit-ups within 2 years of HRT, and I've passed my 2-year mark, so I would like to think I too should be weaker overall, but I mostly just feel disappointed with my muscle loss - I would like to see more, lol.
And yeah, rough re being forced to take oral because they would force you to pay shipping ... since you're mentioning public healthcare I assume you're in Europe and not the US - here in the US injections are more common and more accessible ... it's really sad to hear how behind Europe is in terms of healthcare practices. Gatekeeping is more common there (compared to the adoption of informed consent in the US), and injections are not really supported by the public healthcare (which for most people just means it's not an option at all).
At least you do have oral through public healthcare, though.
I've heard sublingual absorption is better and you can somewhat reduce the burden on your liver that way - but it might also make your metabolism of the drug more spikey (though oral is super spikey no matter what as I understand).
I wish the better alternatives were more common. Trans healthcare really needs improvement across the board, but esp. in places like Europe where best practices have already moved on and they're stuck in older ways.