- [metallicadpa’s Reddit PPL ](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/s/8XXcJDA0sY) The above was mentioned in the below comment on a Reddit post by someone whose appearance resembles a skinny-fat South Asian body type so seems relevant. > [I started at 140lbs and it took 3 months of following metallicadpa’s Reddit PPL and getting to 122.5lbs for me to be satisfied. I had abs. It was enough for me. That’s when I decided to start bulking. I am 5’9”. Male](https://www.reddit.com/r/leangains/s/lPZ9ksZDqH) There’s another longer [comment](https://www.reddit.com/r/leangains/s/nOlDGcNxJf) in that same post, which might be worth comparing to the PPL: > Ok long answer here. First off you need your data to be in order before you try doing anything. So make a spreadsheet and EVERY morning after you wake up, before eating and after having a 💩 write down your weight. Then every week on Sunday work out the average for that week. Monitor your weight change week on week. > > Next track calories. Use my fitness pal and get good at it. Cheating, missing snacks or guessing weight will just cause you to miss your goals. > > Lastly track your lifts and get a programme. I use a 2 day full body split which is great for a beginner. Each week either weight or reps go up. Start small and expect incremental gains. Focus on compounds not isolation. Edit: To avoid confusion I mean that it's an A and B workout and I alternate between them. Train every other day (ish) so 3-4 times a week. > > Rule of thumb here. But bulking you can expect to gain 0.2-0. 4kg per week. Cutting you would lose about 0.5kg. people will argue these numbers and everyone is different but if your at that rough range your doing ok. > > All of the above is absolutely necessary for tracking anything else. Seriously DO THAT FIRST. > > Calories start with calculating TDEE. Then Subtract 300-500cals to cut and add 200-400cals to gain. Again this is highly subjective and why we need the first part. If weight is going up too fast or down too fast you need to add or reduce calories accordingly. Make sure you hit protien goals but asa beginner don't worry about macros. > > Getting a bit more fancy, but yourself some skinfold calipers and also track BF%. A warning here is this is hugely error prone. So you can easily over under calc this way. Take with a pinch of salt. > > Then try bulk/ cut cycles. Try out the gate for say 3mths bulk then 1mth cut. Use it as an experiment. A good chance to practice tracking all the above. Also try and make sure you NAIL your form on exercises. Watch YT vids or honestly ask someone at your gym for advice if needed. See how much you are gaining and losing respectively. Then plan your next bulk/cut cycle as needed. Done expect to see changes over night or even over a week. Use progress photos and compare month on month. As you go through this you will start to get more in tune with your body. Then you can use bulk/ cuts more effectively to aim for specific body compositions. > > To sum it up. This game is about consistency and making small adjustments and optimisations. It's NOT a sprint despite what YT says. You won't just bulk up then be ok, and if you stop for a few mths it will undo your progress a bit. > > To make it all work you need to learn discipline and to enjoy the journey not the destination. > > Last Edit: DONT COMPARE YOURSELF TO YOUTUBERS/ influencers. For real. They do this for a living. Many are on Juice and those who aren't spend their days on perfected diets and training and have also been at it for years. Your only competition should be your last progress photo or training log.