Pretend to Be a Guy

Whether it's for espionage, a play, or because you're just tired of being a girl, you've decided to try your hand at being one of the male persuasion. It'll be quite the ruse, but it's doable. Gender is fluid anyway, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Steps

Looking Like a Guy

  1. Cut your hair. Although some guys have very long hair, it generally seems to have a different texture ("contour") then that of women. To cover your bases, just cut it off. At shorter lengths, it is difficult to notice any difference in contour.
    • If you won't cut your hair, wound your hair up and make it flat, and tuck it under a wool hat or baseball cap.
    • Some people associate long hair with females and short hair with males so stringently that just having short hair – at least from behind or from far away – automatically puts you in the male category.
  2. Bind your chest. Those two lumps on your chest? They've got to go if you're going to be a convincing male. For very temporary purposes, cut up pantyhose, a modified corset, or an ultra heavy duty sports bra might work; but if this is a serious lifestyle, try finding actual binders such as Tri-top. Whatever you do, do NOT use ace bandages or duct tape because neither of them are built to go over your ribs and can cause serious damage. Ace bandages are meant to compress, and wrapping them around your chest can cause breathing issues at best, broken ribs at worst. [1]Make sure you stay safe when binding by making sure you can take a deep breath without any trouble.
    • Any type of binder should move your breasts either together and to the middle (looking more like muscles) or off to the sides. Baggy clothes, when mixed with this, may just make it look like you have a muscular chest.
    • For the record, wearing a binder isn't fun. Even people who've worn them for years find them uncomfortable because they are meant to be tight. Never wear a binder while exercising or anything else where taking deep, even breaths are important because even the best fitting binder is meant to compress a little (how else is it supposed to flatten your chest), so a sports bra that's a little tight might be the best option in this case. Even if you have breasts that are too large to be properly bound by a sports bra, do not wear a binder during exercise.
  3. Wear "guy" clothes. Wear baggier clothing to conceal those womanly curves; avoid any clothing that fits tightly around the hips, chest, and legs. Your silhouette should be straight from shoulder to toe. Don't forget about hats and shoes, too – you want to present the whole picture.]]
    • Secondhand shops are good places to start. Besides, you want clothes that look like they've been in your closet for a while, anyway. Remember to buy socks and underwear (boxers, briefs, or boxer briefs?) as well.
  4. Trim your fingernails short and don't worry about shaving your face. To get at the finer aesthetic points of looking like a boy, keep your nails short (a titch grimy doesn't hurt either). As for the lack of hair on your face? Don't bother shaving it; it won't grow back thicker or blacker.[2]
    • In fact, the only thing you can really do is to let your body hair run wild. Didn't have to tell you twice, huh? Why did it take you so long to come around to this idea, anyway?
  5. Hide your armpits, legs and stomach unless you have hair in those areas. Again, to pull off the guy look, you'll need some body hair. Even if you have some, chances are it's going to be far softer and finer than a guy's hair would be. In short, you'll probably just need to hide these areas. It stinks – but hey, it's better than having to wax everything off.
    • But just to be safe, even though you're hiding them, grow your hair out every anyway. If worst comes to worst, you're just a guy who hasn't gone through puberty yet. No biggie. Just like women, some are hairier than others.
  6. Develop your muscles. You know those beefy, body-builder women? They look pretty man-ish, don't they? As a general societal rule, we associate muscles with manhood. If you want to look like a guy, it's a good idea to get some muscles. That means it's time to hit the gym.
    • Since they're generally pretty obvious, arm muscles would be the place to start. After that, stomach and shoulders. Legs are great, but they're pretty easy to hide in baggy pants. Don't wear a bra and panties

Acting Like a Guy

  1. Watch your vocal pitch. While some guys have higher ranges, you don't want your voice to rise too high; keep your tone monitored and to the bottom of your range. Male and female ranges do overlap in the middle, so you should be fine.[3] Just be sure to avoid overdoing it and sounding ridiculous.
    • Keep in mind that it's better to sound like a guy with a slightly higher voice then a guy who is trying too hard to have a low voice. Letting your voice go up once in a while (when you're excited or making fun of someone, for example) is totally normal.
    • Make sure you speak with a chest voice. Most women speak in a head or throat voice but when you speak, make sure you can feel a slight rumble in your chest. As your practice, put your hand on your chest and feel the vibrations. Don't even try to speak too much lower when using your chest voice, but really pull from your diaphragm.
    • An exercises you can do to help find your male voice is to sing Bing-bong, Ding-dong, King-kong and go lower and lower with each note. You might sound very much like a girl trying to speak like a man for a while, but as you get comfortable with your lower voice and develop more of a rumble, you'll find a more comfortable, male-sounding medium.
  2. Get rid of the sway in your hips. Women naturally walk with a swaying side-to-side motion in their hips (due to the set up of their pelvis and hip bones). Because of this, someone watching can instinctively (though usually not consciously) label you a girl if they see you walking from behind. To avoid this label, try your best to copy the straight walk of guys. Walking behind and in the footsteps of one may help you see the difference.
    • Practice. This may be uncomfortable at first, but eases with experience. What's more, not every guy walks the same. Watch a few and aim for a walk yourself that's a happy medium between all of them.
  3. Pick up male body language, like the way they cross their legs. In general, males hold themselves differently than women. They're more likely to spread out with body language that says "I'm big and important" when women tend to curl up, saying "I'm demure and delicate." Here's a few basic starters:
    • When standing, try to shift your weight so that it evenly distributes over your feet (instead of jutting out a hip), and push your shoulders slightly back and down. Watch other men stand and copy them, tweaking it slightly so that it fits your physique.
    • Keep your hands in your pockets; not only is this a common male habit, but women have softer and smaller hands (and this way you can hide them).
  4. Choose how your new persona moves. Some women glide over the floor like a ballerina, and some cover the room with attitude. Some men waltz more like Peter Pan while others clomp around like a hungry lumberjack. There's plenty of room for you to be your own personality and still be like a guy. You just have to choose where along the spectrum of "masculinity" you want yours to land.
    • Does your new identity make very little noise, or do you know when he enters a room? Does he sit down smoothly and then throw one leg over a knee or does he crash into the chair and spread out, all spread-eagled like? Guys do their own thing – what's yours?

Living Like a Guy

  1. Use the guys' bathroom. If your aim is to be convincing with this, you're gonna need to go all out, and that means even using the guys' bathroom when you're in public. Lucky for you, in bathrooms guys don't tend to ask very many questions. If you go straight for the stall and skip the urinal (which you should definitely do), no one's going to bat an eye. However, if you really do what to look completely like the other guys, there are pee to stand packers you can buy. They might be a little expensive but they tend to be very life-like, although they might take a bit of practice at first.
    • And, just for the record, don't stare. There's nothing to see here.
  2. Smell like a guy by using men's products. Even if you're not shaving, you can still use men's lotion, body wash, shampoo, conditioner, and deodorant. Heck, you might even like it better. Not to mention a whole world of scents just got opened up to you. Pomegranate and berry? No thanks. Musty pine? Yes, please.
    • It's not a bad idea to keep deodorant or spray with you at school or in your car. After all, you have armpit hair now and a persona to keep up. Just make sure they can't smell you from a mile away – then it could become clear that you're trying a little too hard.
  3. Buy stereotypically male accessories. If you want to be perceived as a guy, you'll be doing yourself a favor by not toting around a Hello Kitty backpack. Complete your look with "male" accessories, too, like a nice leather watch, a simple, dark-colored backpack, headphones, or whatever your new persona might carry around.
    • Though it is admirable when a guy goes for something pink once in a while, you'll probably be better off sticking to more "male" colors, like black, blue, green, and orange. The fewer eyebrows you can raise, the better.
    • Yes, the idea of "male" accessories is totally dated and a little closed-minded, but it's still the truth nonetheless. People have ideas of what a "male" looks like and this is what you're conforming to. Keep that in mind when making your decisions. It's not necessarily right or wrong, it's just society's view.
  4. Throw out your girly possessions. If you want to be a convincing guy, you'll need to pass the background check, too. Open up your school locker and it should not be plastered with Justin Bieber posters and glitter (unless, of course, that's how you roll). Your bathroom shouldn't be a make-up table with a toilet in the way. How would this new male you live?
    • Again, this is only if you're choosing to come off as male as a way of life. If you're just tricking your friends or completing a school project or dare, no need to go this far. This is simply advised if you want to start picking up a new identity.
  5. Pick up a stereotypically male activity. Just like with possessions, there are certain things the world views as "male." They're not actually male, but they have male connotations. To enforce your new testosterone-driven personality, supplement it with a "male" hobby, like playing drums, woodworking, fixing cars, or whatever else floats your newly macho boat. It can't hurt, right?
    • Make sure it's something you enjoy though (and yes, you can enjoy "male" activities as a girl). You still want to be true to yourself – your just being true to your more masculine side. If you don't want to hunt, don't do it. But has carpentry always fascinated you? Go for it. Whether you're male or not.

Tips

  • Muscles can also help sell the illusion; soft lined arms and stomachs are acceptable, but not preferable.
  • Use hair products and colognes designed for men.
  • When sitting down, never cross your legs! Or, if you do, place the ankle of one leg on the opposite knee.
  • Sigh. Sighing and talking right after will make your voice sound like a guy's/man's voice.
  • When testing to see if I binder is the right size, take a deep breath. If it's too hard to do, then you might need something looser.
  • If you chose to use a stand to pee device, practice in the bathtub or shower first because it might get a bit messy as you're learning how to place it and how to aim. Once you're more comfortable, try with your toilet at home and then move up to using it in public. Even if you're not a transman, standing to pee can be pretty useful if you're someplace you don't want to sit down.

Warnings

  • Never use anything that's not made to go around your chest or stomach and never use a binder that's too tight.
  • Binders should never be worn for more than 8 hours and never slept in. Even a high quality binder that fits perfectly should never be slept in because they can restrict your breathing when you sleep.
  • When using the bathroom, don't try to use the urinals unless you have a stand-to-pee packer such as Peecock. Pretend you always have to go number two, so you're never caught without the equipment. It is also important that you do use the male restroom. If you use the female, you will, almost definitely get found out. As said before, go number two. Do whatever it takes.

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breast_binding
  2. ↑ http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/10/how-shaving-your-face-keeps-you-glowy-dermaplaning.html
  3. ↑ http://your-personal-singing-guide.com/vocal-range-1.html

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