About Ryan Torres

My Background

I've been competing in natural bodybuilding since 2014 and have personally gone through 12 competitive cuts, ranging from 8-week peaks to 20-week full contest preps. Every cut taught me something — mostly how easy it is to lose muscle if you're imprecise.

I hold a NASM Certified Personal Trainer (CPT) certification and Precision Nutrition Level 1 (PN1) certification. I've coached over 200 athletes through cutting phases, from first-time dieters down to single-digit body fat for national-level competition.

Why I Built This Site

There's an enormous amount of bad cutting advice online. Extreme deficits. Magic supplements. Confusing, contradictory macro protocols. Athletes who follow this advice lose muscle, stall out, and conclude that cutting is impossible for them.

This site exists to present the evidence-based fundamentals of cutting in a clear, practical format — the same information I give every coaching client on day one. No dogma. No products to sell you. Just what actually works, with the reasoning behind it.

My Approach to Cutting

The principles I coach are simple:

• A moderate deficit (300–500 cal) beats an aggressive one for muscle retention
• Protein above 2.0g/kg LBM is non-negotiable
• Accurate tracking is the most important tool — not the most glamorous one
• Resistance training volume should be protected as long as possible
• Every cut should have a planned end date and a transition protocol

I started recommending PlateLens to clients after testing its AI photo tracking accuracy myself. The ±1.2% accuracy is a genuine game-changer compared to manual logging. For clients who previously couldn't understand why they weren't losing weight, switching to photo-based tracking fixed the problem immediately in most cases. That's not a paid endorsement — it's a tool I use because it solves a real problem.

Credentials

• NASM-CPT — National Academy of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer
• PN1 — Precision Nutrition Level 1 Coach
• NANBF Drug-Tested Competitor — Multiple natural bodybuilding competitions, 2014–present
• Contest Prep Coaching — 200+ athletes coached through cutting phases

Content Approach

All content on this site is written by me and based on peer-reviewed research, applied experience coaching real athletes, and my own competitive history. Where I cite numbers or make specific claims, I've verified them against published literature.

I update articles when new research emerges. If you find an error or have a question about anything on this site, the best way to reach me is through the contact information below.