1 Year HRT Milestone & 80 lbs lighter - my full changes at 37
Hello everyone, its Aurora~
1 year of HRT done and already so much has changed from the place I was in last year! Still figuring things out as I go, but one major theme that has taken root is a newfound strength in myself in confronting my imperfections. And also celebrating these important milestones and not be bogged down in dysphoria every day and night.
The 80 lbs lost is a major part of that, and also the reason why I've been slacking in other things too! Since there is so little information out there about weight loss during HRT and especially in our older demographic, I wanted to share my experience to help others decide their future goals and see at least one success story.
I started last year at 258 lbs, and as of now I'm 178. Month 1 was when breast development started, measuring 47.5" bust and 44.5" band. Visually they were about an A cup. All my other measurments were in high 40s as well. I started 100mg progesterone in month 8 after bust/band difference grew an inch. At this time I was around 200 lbs. Bumped the prog up a month ago to 200mg and at 178lbs my measurments are 35.5" band and 41.5" bust. 12 years of manual labor gave me quite a broad upper torso but my girls have only continued to grow and round out beautifully even while losing ~2lbs a week during this long stretch. I heard quite often from other femmes about needing to maintain a slight calorie surplus for breast development but in my case, they still grew on a quite strict deficit.
Good diet and nutrition + exercise was how I lost 80 lbs, no GLP-1's at all. I wanted to do it myself. The key is to get all your daily nutrients, so your body doesn't send you hungry signals every hour. Before I transitioned, I was eating entire subway footlongs and still feeling hungry after. Ultra processed foods are the devil to our bodies, I try to cut as much bread and wheat out of my diet as possible and make sure to always get 100g of protein a day. There's plenty of meal tracking apps to help you with this. Use them. Protein for me fills me up way faster then carbs and fat. I had a lot of eggs, chicken, fish and plant based protein and GREEK YOGURT! (Probably the easiest meal to prepare to instantly boost your protein). I cut out all high calorie sauces and lived off of siriacha sauce for the lowest calorie replacement I could find. (This stuff goes well on everything! Salads, sandwiches, rice.... its amazing!). And after i hit a brick wall around 190lbs, I eventually went to fasting between breakfast and dinner, or had a 30g protein shake in between at most. Basically find the most creative ways to fit in more protein in your diet and it will help you not feel like your starving yourself during your deficit. I also walk 3-8 miles at least 5 times a week which only takes about 1-2 hours and gets you outside and mobile, helping your hormones along in their feminization. Its literally a win win! I plan a big 8 mile walk right after every weekly injection.
Unfortunately at 178lbs, I still have an ugly bloated stomach and love handles that are burying my small hips and still have about 30-40 lbs left to lose. But this is why I pushed so hard on year 1, so I can take it easy for the rest of my second puberty. I will keep updates going throughout the years!
– Aside from the weight loss, major changes to note –
Starting prog supercharged my libido in ways I couldnt believe were real! It gave me a real, natural, defined personality for the first time in my life... and my boyfriend was absolutely thrilled!
lost over an inch of length in my feet, went from size 13 womens to size 10... THANK GOODNESS MY BIG FEET WERE SUCH A HUGE SOURCE OF DYSPHORIA FOR ME. This didn't happen till about the 8 month mark. It was very gradual.
Also started at around 5ft 8in tall and lost 2 inches of height. Amazing! Happened around the same time as my feet shrinking, also raised my BMI too.... bleh!
My ass rounded out and grew quite a bit after starting prog but it's still kind of hidden behind all my excess back fat left and my large back. Muscle mass is very gradually shrinking but for the most part still kind of maintaining its pre transition shape..... Its only year one at least....
Other than that, my eyes are much brighter and by far my most feminine feature and it saddens me so deeply that male puberty sort of buried that part of my face. Im thinking about FFS but given how expensive even small procedures are it might be 3 more years away.
Anything else, feel free to ask!! I try (and fail miserably) to keep my posts concise here....
Now on to year 2!