Doing sports in Omicron

Defined by the Royal Academy as "the fifteenth letter of the Greek alphabet, which corresponds to the short o of the Latin", omicron has become the buzzword. Unfortunately, it should be added, because that celebrity for the esdrújula comes for having given its name to a new variant of the coronavirus, the one that has triggered infections (not hospitalizations) in recent weeks. "The thing is not for jokes, but they do tell us something, of course," admits Rubén Concepción Santana, owner of a crossfit box on the island of Tenerife... called Ómicron. "What if now we are even stronger because we already have a strain, for example", he adds between smiling and worried.

He did not expect a coincidence like the one that has occurred in this final stretch of the year, of course, but... why that name? "Well, there is no specific reason, although that Greek alphabet has always caught my attention," he clarifies in his talk with Primera Plana. This affirmation is corroborated, in fact, by a simple look at the box fees, baptized according to the number of classes (and according to price) such as alpha, beta, gamma, delta... "In fact, I studied something else. Geography..." , he remembers right after finishing one of his classes. There are approximately 300 students that the box now has, a very considerable number considering that it was inaugurated on January 10, 2019 and that, of course, it suffered the effects of the pandemic. "These dates before Christmas or just before summer are the ones for the most people, but it is also true that the reopening after confinement was a real 'boom'. We had to adapt to the situation when we closed, with online training or directly providing material so that our clients could work at home, but when the service returned to the public we noticed that we had not lost almost any of them... plus those who have come later", Rubén explains with satisfaction.

Omicron actually offers two training systems: crossfit itself and endurance. The first is strength and conditioning, based on functional exercises taken from different sports disciplines, such as gymnastics or weightlifting, and aerobic exercises such as running, rowing or pedaling, all of them combining and executed with high intensity in the WOD (Work of Day). ). The second, meanwhile, is resistance and works physical abilities such as speed and power, making it a perfect complement to those WOD's of the first. There are guided classes, of course, but also Open Box: "You train on your own, although we are always here to help with whatever is needed."

Omicron, to complete the service information, is in the Los Majuelos Industrial Estate, in San Cristobal de La Laguna. And it is a box that attends to health... because the same word can be used for very different concepts.