Caitlyn Jenner: "There's More to Being a Woman Than Hair and Makeup"

After being criticized for saying "hardest part about being a woman is figuring out what to wear" during her Glamour Woman of the Year acceptance speech, the "I Am Cait" star is setting the record straight on what womanhood really means to her.

"There's more to being a woman than hair and makeup," she tells The Advocate in its February/March 2016 issue. "So recently, I've been trying to study up on it. What I realized ... is how my experience is so different than what a normal woman's would be growing up – that's obvious ... I will never deal with [getting my period]. So there is so much in life that I need to learn about who I am and be authentic with myself. But I never want to assume that this whole thing called 'womanhood,' that I could ever experience all of that. I will be able to live authentically as female, but I've missed so much."

Inside the mag, the 66-year-old former Olympian also opens up about her decision to transition and her fears about what she would have to give up.

"You're going from such a strong image—male, athletic, superstar, Wheaties-box iconic kind of stuff —and leaving that to go to, quote, 'to the weaker sex,'" Jenner describes using air quotes. "Certainly, I don't see it that way … But my main concern was really only my kids. I don't want to do anything to embarrass them."

Cait also admits that she's working to find a balance between "looking good" as a celebrity and understanding that there's more to womanhood than appearance.

"Kimberly [Kardashian West] says, 'If you do go out, you've got to rock it, baby!' You cannot let [the paparazzi] get that picture. They'll take a picture of you with no makeup on, lousy outfit – and they'll use it forever. You'll never get rid of it. Kim's very good at that stuff," she explains.

"It does take a little bit more work if you do go out. You've got to at least look good, at least the best you can. But there's more to life and womanhood than just that. And those are things I'm learning," she declares.

Jenner is using her public persona to spark change in the trans community, and she knows it's not going to be easy. "This is a human condition. It's not just here in the U.S. It's everywhere ... It's gut-wrenching," she explains. "Suicide rates, murder rates ... the hatred. There's just so much work to be done. I am certainly the exception to the rule. I am not the rule."