It's different, but it's what ought to be protocol. When I started aas I got my prop from a friend of a friend. I asked a few questions, and I was told to do 50mg per week, and eat whatever and lots of it. I did. No nothing about bloodwork, nothing about on cycle support, nothing about pct... just eat and train.
I wish I could go back 10 years and apply what I know now. I have no idea what my baseline was, and of course now it will be hella low, test that is.
I really wish people would learn from my mistakes, but getting people to spend $100 or less on bloodwork is like pulling teeth. Many if not most are foolheartedly pushing gear in their asses not REALLY knowing what exactly is in that oil, but refuse to take adequate precautions for their long term health. It's like, "I'm gonna pin 500mg of test for 12 weeks and look like Coleman!" Not. Maybe 15 years and a dump truck full of compounds and maybe a few close calls with death. Needless to say, a few ruined relationships, I ain't even in that boat, and I nearly messed up my relationship more than once!
I believe that it ought to go like this, and how I wish I had done it:
1. Train and eat natty until I top out (5 years or so depending on ones starting point, age etc). Have a good understanding of diet and how I respond to macro sources
2. Research the hell out of aas, and understand the risk to benefit ratio. Understand what compounds do what.
3. GET BLOOD WORK, full hormone panel, CMP, lipids etc. And, from the findings make corrections
4. Diet and train some more in one direction or another (cut, bulk, recomp)
5. Do a show? Maybe? Once at that place in training
6. From that experience, and after a second round of bloods decide whether I want to continue, and whether gear is right for my goals.
That would have been ideal. But, I didn't do it that way for better or worse, so I keep moving forward.