I'm 27, been lifting hard for about 3 years and I'm 5'9"
I recently lost about 25 pounds. I think it was almost all fat because my strength has stayed constant or increased for most lifts. I guess I just stopped eating like a bodybuilder when I started working a tough job. Now I just eat 3 normal meals a day.
I know you guys are right though, if I want to gain serious strength I will probably have to bulk again. If my lifts plateau I will probably start forcing the food down.
For now I'm going to try to keep my bodyweight low so I can master a freestanding hand stand push up, and a planche push-up. Then when I have them down I can start bulking for added resistance.
thanks for the encouragement guys.
-sS