Dreams of powerlifting dominance had to give way to her current discipline, but the determination to succeed didn’t waiver. Her long-term back issues meant she couldn’t commit to the huge weights needed to compete…that didn’t mean she was less dedicated!
before and after
“People confuse lifting weights to being bulky, not true!” says Crystal.
Maaxx-imum crystal!
As well as championing the stage, Crystal is also an elite model for Maaxx West media photography.
world class - from all angles
Crystal knows she is judged by eyes from all sides, she never misses the opportunity to show off her hard work to all watching.
25 degrees of champion.
As a young girl, Crystal was diagnosed with scoliosis, a condition which affect the natural curvature of the spine. At first it was just a slight curvature of the spine, lots of young adults have it before puberty and is normally corrected through growth – but it helps to keep an eye on it. Most will grow out of it….. Crystal did not!
By about 13-14 years old the condition had worsened to the point of being beyond 25 degrees! At this point the doctors tried a brace… a huge plastic “cast like” enclosure that held her straight and ran all way from about halfway down her ribs to the bottom of her bottom! Imagine the image of any young teen, vulnerable and insecure due to the condition, wearing that just going into high school!!
“God help me it was terrible.. I was also anemic so wearing this thing forcing me to stand straight left bruises all over my sides and finally I gave up wearing it it hurt so bad…!”
Crystal also suffered from sleep deprivation (caused by trying to sleep with it on). Around every 4th night she would have to sleep without it just to try and catch up on rest, just to be able to function….
Finally, at age 18, the curve in Crystal’s spine had reached 45 degrees – which at that point (gravity) would start to take the curve down further. Surgery was needed as a matter of urgency…
The curvature had gotten so bad it was pinching on her nerves making her legs suffer from numbness…
At the time – Crystal had begun cheerleading and was undertaking gymnastics which caused her to injure herself on occassion when her leg would go numb and she would fall out of a stunt. Her back handspring started go sideways and her gymnastics instructor was taken aback “what was that!”, he would shout.
If she didn’t have surgery she would end up in a wheel chair by age 35…
(her age now)!
Surgery was booked and completed about 2 months after graduating high school… this is recalled by Crystal as ‘probably the worse experience I’ve ever had…’
Out of the surgery room and she ended up in the ICU.
“Doctor’s said my 8 hour surgery ended up being about 12 hours and I had lost too much blood… they let me stay like that for 4 days before giving me a blood transfusion.. then let my morphine drip run out… when you have been cut open almost 2 ft down your back and drilled into like a 2×4 running out of morphine is the last thing you want!!!… so much pain I almost passed out..!”
downs & ups!
Her recovery was an interesting tale, living in a recliner for 3 months because she could not lay flat, she became addicted to the pain medication they had prescribed for her pain.
After about 6months (being able to walk, relatively well) she was ready to return work and proceeded to find a job where she could sit. At the one year mark an opportunity presented itself. Working construction with her dad! Crystal claims that was probably the best decision she had ever made…
a bad-ass with a great ass
From the days of not being able to walk (post surgery) to owning the stage, winning her pro card in 2019 and becoming a force for years to come – Crystal Borges is remarkable! Understated yet undeniable!
glam queen
Crystal creations is the bikini and gown company you will see all over the stages of the WBFF and their super-glamorous shows.. Approached by her sister to make, design and realise the dreams of the stage performers appearances, Crystal agreed to start the process of supplying the stunning gowns you see here. As it turned out she laughs at how her sister silently stepped back and left her to do all the work, but she is more than happy with that arrangement!
