Local high schoolers to compete in CrossFit Games

The CrossFit Open is Coming! - EP 201

JASON PEEVYHOUSE

jpeevyhouse@stategazette.com

Local high school athletes Riley Jensen (above) and Parker Lamb (left) will compete in the CrossFit Games Open tonight in Jackson.

A pair of local high school student athletes will look to measure themselves against other athletes in the region while trying to advance to national competition when they compete in the CrossFit Games Open -- Friday Night Lights event in Jackson tonight.

Dyersburg junior Riley Jensen and Dyer County sophomore Parker Lamb have been working with CrossFit Certified Level I Trainer Jason Kent in recent weeks at Omega Fitness in Newbern to prepare for the event tonight.

"These two, they"ve worked really hard," Kent said. "And, I think I would put them up against anybody."

According to Kent, what CrossFit stands for is constantly varied movement at high intensity.

"What it does, it takes several different movements which consists of Olympic lifting, gymnastics, met-cons and cardio," Kent said. "It combines them all."

Kent added that, in theory, it prepares the athlete for what they are not normally prepared for.

"It"s widely used in military, firefighting, law enforcement," Kent said. "Now, it"s really hitting the mainstream with the general public."

According to Kent, there are 15,000 gyms worldwide and, last year, 278,000 people tried out for the CrossFit Open. The Open consists of six workouts, which are announced to the general public on every Thursday night.

"What you do is, you will do your workout and you will submit your time," Kent said. "At the end of these five-six weeks, they will come up with whoever finishes in the top 10 in a certain region and they will advance to the games in Carson, California."

Kent noted that Jensen and Lamb are participating in a fairly new program, as CrossFit began the team divisions last year, with age groups consisting of 14-15- and 16-17-year-olds. Kent said that both Jensen and Lamb will be competing in the 16-17-year-old division.

Both Jensen and Lamb are athletes at their respective high schools as Jensen started at quarterback for the Dyersburg High School football team last season while Lamb is a corner outfielder for the Dyer County Choctaws baseball team.

Jensen said that he believes the program will help him on the field as he prepares for his senior season with the Trojans.

"It gets me more fit at a level to where I can compete with the better athletes on the field," Jensen said. "And, I think, if I keep on doing this during the summer and during the season, I can stay away from injury. And, like I said, I can compete better because I am more physically fit."

Lamb also believes that the CrossFit training will help him out on the baseball diamond.

"It gets me stronger, so it gives me arm strength throwing," Lamb said. "And, definitely with hitting. Some of the cardio aspect -- it gives me a little more speed.

"Overall, it really helps with what I do in baseball and it"s just really fun."

"They have worked extremely hard," Kent said. "Just in the past couple of months, we have learned to do gymnastic moves.

"It"s something ever-changing. Every workout is different, but there is a formula behind every workout they put together."

Kent added the athletes are always moving forward and progressing and that he is looking forward to seeing what Jensen and Lamb can do against their competition.

"Right now, they"ve got 1,200 in their region -- which is the Central East," Kent said. "And, they will be competing against 80 other kids in Jackson on Friday night.

"If they finish high enough, they"ll get to go to Carson."

Kent said that the main thing is that people are doing the Open to see how they stack up against everybody else and to see if they"ve made any progress.

"Basically, people who have always wanted to compete, still have the chance to compete," Kent said. "That"s why a lot of them do it.

"Some people can"t do the same movements as described in the workouts, but it doesn"t matter. They just do it to see where they stack up against everybody else. And, sometimes you just like to know "how good am I?""

Both Jensen and Lamb will compete in workouts over the next five Friday nights as they look for a chance to compete at the national level in Carson, Calif. on July 19 - 24.

Source: http://www.stategazette.com/story/2281159.html