Lauren Fisher never just blends in.

On Nov. 16 in Tempe, she spent nearly 12 hours on the IronMan Arizona course, watching her older brother Andrew complete his second IronMan triathlon in personal-record time. But even in a sea of ridiculously fit triathletes, Fisher, trademark ponytail flopping, muscular quads on display under Reebok short-shorts, stood out. All day long, spectators and athletes alike sidled up to Fisher to ask the same question: You have nice legs, what do you do?

If only they knew.

Fisher is the up-and-coming darling of CrossFit. She's a 20-year-old powerhouse with a megawatt smile and strength that is not at all relative to her 5-foot-5, 135-pound frame. Last August, as the youngest competitor in the 2014 CrossFit Games in Carson, California, she finished ninth overall. She has 23,000 Twitter followers, another 13,000 on Facebook and, in addition to her more niche sponsors (Rogue Fitness, Progenex and PurePharma), she has a Nike shoe deal, which is indicative of her crossover appeal.

Through CrossFit, Fisher made an entrée into the world of Olympic weightlifting, and has represented Team USA at junior meets worldwide. This weekend, from December 5-8, she will again don the red, white and blue at the World University Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Fisher has her sights set on her biggest numbers yet -- a 114kg (251-pound) clean-and-jerk and an 86kg (189-pound) snatch.

The clean-and-jerk is Fisher's bread-and-butter lift, the one she makes look easy. For the standard gym-goer, though, the movement may be foreign. It is executed in two steps; in stage one, the clean, the athlete lifts a barbell from the floor to her shoulders. In stage two, the jerk, the athlete moves the bar from her shoulders to overhead. Despite the complexity of the exercise, it has become a familiar one to CrossFitters wordwide; to the Average Joe in that arena, a bodyweight clean-and-jerk is considered a huge accomplishment. Fisher is closing in on double that.

She began doing CrossFit when she was a 14-year-old high school freshman basketball player at St. Mary's in Stockton, California, where her team won two state championships and a national title. As an 18-year-old senior, Fisher qualified for the CrossFit Northern California Regionals and finished 12th overall, a remarkable outcome for an athlete so young. She was inspired by the CrossFit community and the strength of its women, and decided to forgo basketball at San Diego State University, where she is currently a junior, to focus on her CrossFit. Since moving south she has been training at CrossFit Invictus -- twice a day, early in the morning and again in the evening -- around a full class schedule.

"My roommate is in a sorority," Fisher says. "She doesn't understand how all I do is eat, sleep and train. But when she saw me on ESPN during the CrossFit Games she said, 'I finally understand your commitment.'"

Fisher is still motivated by the performances of CrossFit's elite women. At this year's Southern California Regional, Fisher knew she would have to contend with 27-year-old Lindsey Valenzuela, 36-year-old Valerie Voboril and 34-year-old Rebecca Voigt, who finished second, third and 11th overall at the 2013 CrossFit Games. Only the top three Regionals finishers move on, so Fisher was feeling the pressure. "I have the opportunity to train with those girls and I see up close how good they are," she says. "Competing against them pushes you to a whole other level."

Due mostly to her proficiency at gymnastic movements like pull-ups and strict handstand push-ups, Fisher edged out Valenzuela and finished third, securing her spot at the Games. In Carson, her strength was also on display: She finished sixth in the overhead squat (lifting 238 pounds) and speed clean ladder (225 pounds), events that were won by women who weigh nearly 20 and 30 pounds more than her.