Let's start with the classic shots from the tail end of my strongman days, circa summer 2006 before the repeated back injuries and eye problems. Near the high side of the days of being big (around 272-275 lbs. in the photos), but also very bloated and far from being lean.
Next up, photos from just a bit under 2 years ago. That was the low point - I would injure my back every few months and have to start all over, I was coping with my eye condition early on and still questioned whether or not I should even keep lifting, stress was at an all-time high. Barely trained much during those days, and what training I did, it wasn't very good. Photo is me at about 265 lbs., lots of muscle lost, but got a bit fatter than I was in my first photos.
Then, finally the current day. Dropped about 35 lbs since the photos from 2 years back (came in at 230 lbs. on the mark today), strength is up from those days, and things keep getting better for training. Still not as lean as I'd like (I'd prefer to drop another 10-15 lbs. of fat over the coming year or so to be where I'd like), but I don't feel ashamed in my own skin any longer. It's the start of things to come - the rest of the year is going to be on a mission of rebuilding, aiming to get back to 240 with little to no fat gain while adding more quality mass and getting my strength back to the old numbers. That will also keep me in the range of the lightweight cutoff for strongman (231 lbs.), which I can get down to in time for a contest if I get back in the game next summer.
So, that's how I've been bouncing around this last few years, finally getting my diet under control via cutting carbs periodically and removing sugars and starchy stuff from my diet when I want to drop some fat. I don't have it perfect, but one day, I'll get it there!
You've made great progress and you look much better now: still big, but in very good shape. Congratulations!
