In general it is recommended for trans women to start with HRT with small amounts of fat so that any new fat will grow in a female pattern. Reducing fat by eating at a caloric deficit may be a necessary part of transition for some people.
Weight loss correlated significantly with decreases in the circumference of the waist and hips, and decreases in WHR in men and women. At comparable levels of weight loss, men had greater decreases in the waist, and smaller decreases in the hips than women, resulting in greater decreases in WHR. [1]
You can also improve the appearance of WHR by doing exercises targeting muscles in the lower body, in particular the glutes and quads.
Guide on lifting for better proportions: https://www.setforset.com/blogs/news/how-to-get-wider-hips-and-improve-waist-to-hip-ratio
Exercise and a good diet is also a crucial component of maintaining higher IGF levels which will increase the rate at which cells grow and cycle over, giving a greater benefit from the effects of HRT.[2]
Diet
Weight manipulation
Macro nutrients
Protein
It's necessary to eat high amounts of protein[3] to promote healthy tissue regeneration, muscle growth and high IGF, all of which are important for achieving a more feminine body shape.
Protein intake should be at least 0.8g/kg of body weight, but 1g/kg is generally recommended for minimal physical activity.[4] For higher intensity physical activity intake should be at least 1.5g/kg and up to 2.2g/kg is recommended. [5][6][7][8][9][10]
Increasing protein intake can also contribute to fat loss, even when there is a calorie surplus [11][12][13], due to the thermic effect of protein, which means that proteins contribute 15-30% less to the effective calories for the body's metabolism compared to fats. [14]
Protein consumption should be optimally distributed throughout the day, ideally over up to four meals, to optimise utilisation for anabolic processes such as muscle building [15]. Any excess protein will be used as energy in the metabolism and therefore cannot contribute to tissue growth.
Carbohydrates
Fat
- ↑ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1595579/
- ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7869853/
- ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3988204/
- ↑ Wu, G. (2016). Dietary protein intake and human health. Food & Function, 7(3), 1251–1265. https://doi.org/10.1039/c5fo01530h
- ↑ Helms, E. R., Zinn, C., Rowlands, D. S., & Brown, S. R. (2014, April). A Systematic Review of Dietary Protein During Caloric Restriction in Resistance Trained Lean Athletes: A Case for Higher Intakes. International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 24(2), 127–138. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijsnem.2013-0054
- ↑ Morton, R. W., Murphy, K. T., McKellar, S. R., Schoenfeld, B. J., Henselmans, M., Helms, E., Aragon, A. A., Devries, M. C., Banfield, L., Krieger, J. W., & Phillips, S. M. (2017, July 11). A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 52(6), 376–384. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-097608
- ↑ Ribeiro, A. S., Nunes, J. P., & Schoenfeld, B. J. (2019, April 26). Should Competitive Bodybuilders Ingest More Protein than Current Evidence-Based Recommendations? Sports Medicine, 49(10), 1481–1485. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-019-01111-y
- ↑ Stokes, T., Hector, A., Morton, R., McGlory, C., & Phillips, S. (2018, February 7). Recent Perspectives Regarding the Role of Dietary Protein for the Promotion of Muscle Hypertrophy with Resistance Exercise Training. Nutrients, 10(2), 180. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10020180
- ↑ Morton, R. W., Murphy, K. T., McKellar, S. R., Schoenfeld, B. J., Henselmans, M., Helms, E., Aragon, A. A., Devries, M. C., Banfield, L., Krieger, J. W., & Phillips, S. M. (2017, July 11). A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 52(6), 376–384. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-097608
- ↑ Bandegan, A., Courtney-Martin, G., Rafii, M., Pencharz, P. B., & Lemon, P. W. (2017, February 8). Indicator Amino Acid–Derived Estimate of Dietary Protein Requirement for Male Bodybuilders on a Nontraining Day Is Several-Fold Greater than the Current Recommended Dietary Allowance. The Journal of Nutrition, 147(5), 850–857. https://doi.org/10.3945/jn.116.236331
- ↑ Antonio, J., Ellerbroek, A., Silver, T., Orris, S., Scheiner, M., Gonzalez, A., & Peacock, C. A. (2015, October 20). A high protein diet (3.4 g/kg/d) combined with a heavy resistance training program improves body composition in healthy trained men and women – a follow-up investigation. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-015-0100-0
- ↑ Antonio, J., Ellerbroek, A., Silver, T., Vargas, L., Tamayo, A., Buehn, R., & Peacock, C. A. (2016). A High Protein Diet Has No Harmful Effects: A One-Year Crossover Study in Resistance-Trained Males. Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism, 2016, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/9104792
- ↑ Antonio, J., Peacock, C. A., Ellerbroek, A., Fromhoff, B., & Silver, T. (2014, August 15). The effects of consuming a high protein diet (4.4 g/kg/d) on body composition in resistance-trained individuals. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1550-2783-11-19
- ↑ Pesta, D. H., & Samuel, V. T. (2014). A high-protein diet for reducing body fat: mechanisms and possible caveats. Nutrition & Metabolism, 11(1), 53. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-7075-11-53
- ↑ Schoenfeld, B. J., & Aragon, A. A. (2018, January 5). How much protein can the body use in a single meal for muscle-building? Implications for daily protein distribution. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-018-0215-1