Your
Protocol,
Aleks.

Your Numbers

• Calorie target: 2,400-2,500 calories daily - a small, clean surplus above your maintenance. Enough to build muscle without adding fat. You're not trying to blow up, you're trying to fill out.
• Protein target: 130-140g daily - sufficient for muscle building at your size. No need to force more than this.
• Target weight: 70-72kg - that's 5-7kg of lean mass. At your height that's where the face and frame start looking completely different.
• Weigh yourself every morning after you pee, no food before. Same conditions every day. Track the weekly average. If the scale isn't moving up after 2 weeks, add 150 calories.

Your Exact Daily Meal Plan - ~2,450 cal / ~135g protein

All meat weights are raw. Potato weight is raw.

Potassium Protocol

You cook without extra salt which keeps your sodium low. Aim for around 4,000mg potassium daily to flush any fluid retention. The meal plan already gets you close - potatoes (750mg) + banana (420mg) + tomatoes (500mg) + apricots (700mg) + kefir (400mg) + kiwis (400mg) = roughly 3,170mg. Add a handful of raisins or an extra kiwi to close the gap.

The Rule - 2 Sets Per Exercise

• Set 1: Heavy. Stop 1 rep before failure.
• Set 2: Absolute failure. Go until the weight will not move.
• Progressive overload every week - add weight or reps. If it's not going up, something is wrong.
• Full mind-muscle connection. If you're swinging the weight you're not building muscle.

Upper/Lower Split - 4 Days Per Week

Exercise Cues - Read Before Your First Session

Since you're starting from zero, the most important thing in the first few weeks is learning how to actually feel the right muscle working. The weight doesn't matter yet. Connection does.

• Lateral Raises - the most important cue: Before you even pick up the dumbbells, pull your shoulder blades down and back slightly - this is called lat engagement. From that position, drive your elbows upward and outward, not your hands. Lead with the elbow. Pinky slightly higher than thumb at the top. If you don't engage the lats first, the traps take over and you'll feel it in your neck instead of your side delts. Practice the lat engagement separately first - stand in front of a mirror and try to make your back wider. Once you can feel that, apply it to every lateral raise.
• Lat Pulldown: Don't think about pulling the bar down. Think about driving your elbows toward your hips. Imagine you're trying to put your shoulder blades in your back pockets. This turns it from a bicep exercise into an actual lat exercise.
• Machine Upper Back Row (chest against pad): This is specifically for upper back thickness and posture correction - which you need. Keep your chest pinned to the pad throughout. Pull the handles toward your lower chest, squeeze the shoulder blades together at the end of each rep. Don't let the weight swing forward - control the descent fully.
• Straight Bar Pushdown: Keep your elbows pinned to your sides throughout the entire movement. Only your forearms move. At the bottom, squeeze the tricep hard for a full second before returning. If your elbows are flaring out, the weight is too heavy.
• Preacher Curl: Upper arm stays pinned to the pad at all times. Curl slowly, squeeze at the top, lower under full control. If your elbow lifts off the pad, drop the weight.

Form Foundation - Rib Tuck and Full Body Alignment

This is the most overlooked thing in beginner training and it matters more than the exercises themselves. If your form is wrong from the start it becomes a habit that takes months to undo and it's what causes injuries.

The Rib Tuck: Most beginners lift with their ribs flared out and lower back hyperextended - they think this is "chest up" but it's actually just arching the lower back and putting the spine in a compromised position. Before every single set, do this:

• Take a deep breath into your belly, not your chest - your stomach should expand, not your shoulders rise
• Brace your core like you're about to take a punch - 360 degrees of tension around your midsection, not just sucking your stomach in
• Now pull your ribs slightly downward and inward - think about closing the gap between your ribs and your pelvis
• Hold this position for the entire set. This is called intra-abdominal pressure and it's what protects your spine under load

Neutral spine: At every exercise you should be able to draw a straight line from the top of your head to your tailbone. No excessive arch. No rounding. Head neutral - not craned forward, not tucked down. This applies whether you're pressing, rowing, squatting, or curling.

Shoulder position: Shoulders down and back on every pushing and pulling movement. Before every press or row, actively pull your shoulder blades down away from your ears. If your shoulders are shrugging up as you lift, the weight is too heavy and your traps are compensating.

Why this matters for your face: Training with forward head posture and flared ribs reinforces the exact posture patterns that are dragging your jaw down and compressing your neck. Training with correct alignment - rib tucked, spine neutral, head stacked over shoulders - reinforces the opposite. Every rep is either working for your posture or against it.

Neck Curls - Non-Negotiable

Your neck is visibly thin and the forward posture is making it worse. A thicker neck immediately changes the proportions of the head and makes the triangular face shape less pronounced.

• Lie on a bench, head hanging off the edge. Tuck chin, curl up slowly. Slow up, slow down. No swinging.
• 2 sets, 15-25 reps, bodyweight to start. Progress it like any other lift.
• Add to the end of every upper day.

Creatine

• 10g daily for the first 2 weeks, then drop to 5g daily maintenance.
• Take it any time, doesn't matter when.
• Most researched supplement in existence. Safe, effective, and at your stage it will noticeably accelerate progress.

Beard - Shave the Bottom Off Now

The goatee bottom needs to go. I understand why you grew it - you were trying to add length to the lower third to balance the midface. But it's doing the exact opposite. The extended chin beard is making your lower third look longer and more triangular, and combined with your inward gonial angles it's creating a shape that's working hard against you.

What to do instead:

• Shave the chin extension completely. Keep the mustache and clean it up properly with defined edges.
• As the masseters develop from mastic gum, the lower third will widen naturally and fill in the gonia. That's the real fix - not adding hair to the chin.
• Keep everything trimmed and even. No neckbeard - line it at the jaw.

Hair - The Biggest Immediate Change

The current hair is the single biggest thing working against you right now. You're spiking the sides outward which creates a triangle effect - wide at the top, narrow at the chin. Combined with the big ears being fully exposed, it's not working at all for your face shape.

• Stop cutting the sides immediately. Let everything grow out. The goal is a longer cut with the hair sitting down and framing the face rather than spiking outward.
• Grow the zulufi (sideburns) long enough to partially cover the ears. This is important for you specifically - the ears being exposed is adding to the triangle effect. Length here frames the face properly and reduces how prominent the ears read.
• Get the top longer too - you need length on top to work with. Right now the cut is too short everywhere to style properly.
• Target look: a mod cut or flowing middle part. Hair that falls downward and frames the face, not up and out. Think longer sideburns, more length on top, softer overall shape.
• For styling right now while growing: Sea salt spray on damp hair, push it down and slightly forward rather than spiking out. Let it dry in that direction. Texture powder on dry hair for hold and definition.
• Don't go to the barber for 8 weeks minimum. Let it grow. The awkward phase is temporary.

Eyebrows - Density Protocol

Your brows sit too far apart and lack density - they're not set close enough to the centre which makes the eye area look wider and less defined. The fix is growing them in denser first, then shaping.

• Minoxidil 5% on brows, AM and PM - small amount, fingertip application directly to the brow area. Give it a full 2-3 months minimum before judging results.
• Derma roller 0.5mm once per week on the brows before applying minoxidil. Improves blood flow and absorption significantly.
• Castor oil at night over the minoxidil - improves the quality and thickness of hairs as they grow in.
• Once you have real density: clean up stray hairs underneath only. Do not touch the tops. Aim for a straighter, flatter masculine shape.

Eyelashes - You Have Almost None

Your eyes are genuinely one of your strongest assets - the color and iris are good. But there are barely any lashes framing them which is killing the impact. This is one of the highest return things you can fix.

• The Ordinary lash serum - twice per day. Morning and night. Apply to the lash line. This is not optional and needs to be consistent. Results take 2-3 months but the difference is significant.
• Once you have length from the serum, get a lash curler. Curling opens the eye and reveals the iris color more fully.
• After curling, a tiny amount of Aquaphor from base to tip - holds the curl and adds a healthy shine.

Tanning - This Will Transform Your Look

This one is genuinely underrated for you specifically. You have light hair, green/grey eyes, and fair skin. A proper tan is going to pop your eye color hard, make the hair color contrast beautifully, and give you a completely different presence. Right now everything reads pale and washed out. A tan fixes that immediately.

The approach: SPF 50 on your face every day, no exceptions - you do not want to age your facial skin. Everything below the neck gets sun exposure and builds the tan naturally. No SPF on the body.

• Start getting outside shirtless or in shorts whenever the sun is actually out. Beach, pool, park, whatever - just get the skin exposed. Don't overthink it, just get out there.
• Build it progressively - don't go from zero to 3 hours on the first day or you'll just burn and peel and lose the tan. Go out for a real session, get some color, let it develop over a couple of days, then go again. Within 2 weeks of actually doing this consistently you'll have a real base.
• After sun exposure, apply a good moisturizer to the body to lock in the color and stop the skin from peeling. This is what keeps the tan lasting instead of fading in 3 days.
• Once you have a base tan you can stay out longer without burning. The first week is the only time you need to be somewhat careful.
• If you're in a period where the sun isn't strong enough, tanning drops or tanning water on the body is a legitimate option to maintain it. Not a spray tan - tanning drops you apply yourself, build gradually, and look natural.

The combination of a tan, the longer framing hair, and the cleaner beard is going to be a completely different person to what's in the photos right now. Light hair with a tan is genuinely one of the best color combinations there is for facial aesthetics.

Mastic Gum - Masseter Development for Gonial Angles

Your gonial angles point inward which is what's causing the triangular lower face shape. You cannot change the bone angle but you can grow the masseters - the muscles that sit directly on top of those angles. Wide masseters visually correct inward gonia and add the lower jaw width you're missing.

• After meals only, never on empty stomach
• 30 minutes once daily. Slow, deliberate chewing - feel the masseters engaging on both sides
• Even left and right. Start every session on the weaker side if you notice any asymmetry
• On top of mastic gum - eat hard natural foods daily. Tough meat, carrots, apples. Every chewing rep is mechanical loading on the jaw.
• Muscle fatigue is fine. Sharp joint pain means stop immediately.
• This takes months but the visual change in the lower face is real and noticeable.

Morning Routine

• The Ordinary Glucoside Foaming Cleanser - gentle cleanser, rinse with cool water
• Benzoyl Peroxide 2.5% wash - apply after cleanser, leave on 60 seconds, rinse. Kills acne bacteria directly. This is the main thing you're missing right now.
• The Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA - lightweight moisturizer, apply after BP
• SPF 50 broad spectrum - La Roche-Posay Anthelios UVMUNE 400 SPF 50+ is the best option. Non-negotiable every morning.

Evening Routine

• The Ordinary Glucoside Foaming Cleanser - same cleanser
• The Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors + HA - moisturizer
• Adapalene 0.1% gel (Differin) if available in your country - apply to the whole face, not just spots. Normalizes cell turnover, clears pores, prevents breakouts long term. Start 2x per week, build to nightly over a month.
• If adapalene isn't available: The Ordinary Retinol 0.5% in Squalane - same protocol, slightly less direct but works well.
• BP in the morning, retinoid at night - never layer them together.

Eye Area

• Ice roller every morning - 2 minutes under and around the eyes. You scroll TikTok before bed every night which is directly causing the tired eye bags. The ice roller is the morning fix while you work on the sleep habit.
• Lymphatic drainage - ring fingers, inner corner of eyes outward toward temples, then down toward ears. 2-3 minutes. Guides fluid away from the under-eye area.
• Orbicularis oculi exercise - fingers on outer corners, pull slightly up and out, close eyes tightly against resistance until you feel the burn. 2-3 minutes once daily.
• Forehead relaxation - fingertip circles across forehead and temples, 2 min, twice daily. Lets the brows drop to neutral and reduces upper eyelid exposure.
• Stop the TikTok before bed. Blue light is directly delaying melatonin, destroying your sleep quality, and causing the eye bag situation every morning. Phone down 30 minutes before sleep minimum.

Mewing - You're Doing It Soft, Fix It

You said your tongue is on the roof but only softly. That's not enough. The back third of the tongue needs to be engaged - not just resting there passively. Say the word "sing" and feel where the back of the tongue lifts up to the palate. That position with suction, not just resting. Mouth closed, nasal breathing, jaw relaxed. At 18 this actually influences midface development so it genuinely matters for you specifically.

Tongue Chewing - Build the Endurance

You probably can't hold proper mewing posture all day because your tongue isn't strong enough yet. Tongue chewing fixes that.

• One piece of gum on the palate just behind the upper front teeth
• Press the entire tongue against it - middle and back, not just the tip
• Hold 3-5 seconds. Release. Repeat. 10 minutes daily.
• Fatigue is normal. Sharp jaw joint pain means stop.

Chin Tucks - Daily

Your neck is weak and forward head posture is confirmed. This directly compresses the under-jaw area and drags facial skin downward. Chin tucks fix it.

• Stand upright, eyes forward. Pull your head straight BACK - not down, back. Like giving yourself a double chin on purpose.
• Feel the tension under the jaw and along the front of the neck. If you only feel it in the back of the neck you're nodding not retracting - reset.
• 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps, 2 second hold. Daily.

Why Posture Affects Your Face

Your face sits on top of your spine. Forward head posture pulls the neck muscles tight which drags the jaw and facial skin downward. Every centimeter your head sits forward adds roughly 10 pounds of compressive load on the neck. The neck compression creates that buried jaw and soft under-chin look even on lean faces.

The kinetic chain: bad foot/hip position causes anterior pelvic tilt, which causes kyphosis (rounded upper back), which forces the neck forward to keep your eyes on the horizon. It cascades upward and ends at your face.

Daily Posture Routine - 15 Minutes

Phase 1 - Release First (5-7 min)

• Upper trap stretch - drop ear toward shoulder, hold 30-45 seconds each side
• Doorway pec stretch - forearms on door frame, lean through. 30-45 seconds. Tight pecs pull shoulders forward.
• Thoracic extension over foam roller - place roller across mid-back, arch over it. Work up and down the T-spine for 60-90 seconds. This unlocks the upper back.
• Hip flexor lunge stretch - one knee on floor, lean forward into the hip flexor. 45 seconds each side.

Phase 2 - Strengthen (8-10 min)

• Chin tucks - 3 sets x 15 reps, 2 second hold. Most important exercise for your face. Pull head BACK, feel it under the jaw.
• Wall angels - 3 sets x 10 reps. Back against wall, arms at 90 degrees, slide arms up and overhead and back. Keep contact with wall throughout.
• Band pull-aparts - 3 sets x 15 reps. Hold resistance band at chest height, pull apart until arms are wide at sides. Squeezes shoulder blades together.
• Dead bug - 3 sets x 10 reps each side. Lie on back, arms up, knees at 90 degrees. Lower opposite arm and leg toward floor. Stabilizes the pelvis.
• Glute bridges - 3 sets x 15 reps. Feet flat, drive hips up, squeeze glutes hard at the top.

All Day Habits

• Phone at eye level - not in your lap or on the desk below you. This alone makes a difference.
• Screen at eye level when at a desk or studying.
• Don't rest your head on your hand. It asymmetrically loads the neck.
• In the gym - rows and rear delt work directly strengthen the muscles that hold your head and shoulders in position. Hit these hard every upper day.