Toti bodybuilder wins three trophies at Provincial Champs

CHARMAINE Crofton (68) won three trophies at the IBFF South Africa KZN Provincial Championships held at ATKV-Natalia in Illovo Beach on September 3.

Crofton and her competitors were judged on their overall physique and stage presentation in the Fitness Model O/35 category. Firstly, they dressed in evening wear and then in bikinis.

“There are always nerves on the day of competition. You ask yourself questions like, is my posing on par? Have I done enough? Do I look the part? Should I put in a bit more training? However, thinking like that won’t make a difference. You have to put the hard work in throughout the whole year, not just the day before,” she said.

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She added that the time spent waiting for her cue to walk the stage, consisted of a lot of self-doubts and questioning whether she has prepared enough and had put in enough work. Despite her overthinking, Crofton successfully placed second in Fitness Model O/35 and in the same line-up, best over 50. She also placed first in the line-up for Fitness Model O/40, taking home three trophies on the day.

She also received an invitation to take part in the IBFF All Africa Cup on September 24 in Pretoria.

Crofton is a retired Absa customer service representative, who started bodybuilding at the age of 59. From 2016 to 2022, she competed in about 10 competitions and won herself a collection of trophies and medals.

However, her journey to get to where she is now has not been smooth sailing. She temporarily put her passion on pause due to work commitments and relocating. Then, after retiring, the additional costs that come with the sport also made things difficult.

However, it was not long until her hard work and dedication paid off, as a professional trainer reached out and offered her the necessary support and training. Crofton is also a firm believer that age is just a number.

“You’re only as old as you feel, and I feel like I’m still 18 years old. I wake up at 05:00 every day and train. I will continue to compete and build muscle for as long as my body allows me to,” she said.

She thanked Annelize Döhne Fitness, her coach, Delene Matthews, and her husband, Darryl, for all the support throughout her journey and for helping her get to where she is today.

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