John Chick is an established star with Canada’s Saskatchewan Roughriders.

The veteran defensive end has expanded beyond the gridiron with the opening of JC CrossFit, a fitness program that reflects his lifestyle as a professional athlete.

The opening of JC CrossFit means that Chick, his wife Catherine, and their eight children are remaining in Regina during the Canadian Football League, CFL off-season.

Chick had wanted to become involved in personal training for a couple of years. Opening the business in Regina, in conjunction with LG Fitness, was a natural fit.

“We have this vision and this is a community that we have been deeply part of since 2007 so it just makes sense to do it here. We’ve been putting all of our energy for the last year into how we can make it work,’’ said Chick, who has spent six seasons with the Riders over two stints with the team.

Football and fitness go hand-in-hand for Chick. He graduated with a bachelor of science in human movement in exercise science from Utah State before embarking on a professional football career. He spent 2007 through 2009 with the Riders, being named the CFL’s most outstanding defensive player in 2009.

Chick then headed to the NFL where he had stints with the Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Chick returned to the CFL in 2013 and shared in the Riders’ 45-23 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the Grey Cup game at Mosaic Stadium. In 2014, Chick led the Riders with 15 sacks and had a team-leading 11 in 2015.

“JC CrossFit is my passion and it’s what I love to do. I just turned 33 and I’m coming off two of my best seasons. I attribute that to my faith and my determination to the way I train,’’ Chick said.

Chick has worked to attain Level I and Level II certification as a CrossFit trainer. He also feels his years of training for football are part of his qualifications.

“The reason I’ve had a long career in football is my training,’’ said Chick, adding that Catherine is also a Level I CrossFit trainer.

Source: Leaderpost.com