Zydrunas Savickas is one of the best athletes in strongman history, and like most heavyweight competitors in the sport, he’s a darn big guy: 6’3″ (or an inch taller than that, according to some sources) and weighing in around 400 pounds during competition season.
Savickas — a 4-time World’s Strongest Man winner and 8-time Arnold Classic Strongman Champion — is known to lean out a bit during the strongman offseason, but his most recent cut down has him looking more ripped and lean than we can ever remember seeing him.
Check out the side-by-side comparison of an in-competition Savickas from a couple years back and Savickas last week, posted by his friend/competitor/frenemy/fellow giant athlete Hafthor Bjornsson.
At 41 years old, Savickas shows few signs of slowing down; while he missed the World’s Strongest Man this year, he did compete at the Arnold Classic Asia the same weekend (August 22nd), taking second behind fellow Lithuanian athlete Vytautas Lalas. In the weeks since, he’s cut down significantly on body fat.
Of course, “Big Z” is still training heavy, and he’s stated that he plans to compete in strongman competition again next year.
Savickas has impressive longevity, and seasonal weight loss may be one of the keys to his ability to train heavy — often — and compete on a rigorous schedule.
After all, this is a man who’s been competing in strength sports since 1998, when he entered the European Junior Powerlifting Championships. Top strongman competitors — like Mark Felix of England — have been known to compete at the highest levels (and not just Masters) into their 50s, so it’s likely we’ll be seeing a lot of Savickas for years to come.
Featured image: @thorbjornsson on Instagram