public/subjects/user-experience/piscine-ux/athlete-keep-hydrated/user-interviews/interview-script-antoine.md

Antoine, 29 years old, CEO in a renewable energy company French, lives in Lisbon, Portugal

Run

• What sports do you practice?
  • Regularly? Running mostly, I'm also trying to practice regularly tennis and kite surfing.
  • From time to time, I practice sailing, skiing, and surfing as well. And that's pretty much it. I'm not an athlete nor a professional trail runner.
• How often do you run?
  • It depends. When I have a good habit of running, I run 3 times a week. And when it's more irregular, I run once a week.
• When was the last time you went out for a run?
  • Yesterday evening. 42/43 minutes. I ran along the Tejo river, in Lisbon. It's a soft run, I didn't put too much effort into it. It's good to release pressure after work.

Races

• What was the last race you ran?
  • The last race I ran was probably in August 2019. Then, there were not many opportunities due to Covid-19.
• How was it? Tell me about the experience you had.
  • It was cool. It was on a Sunday morning. It's the Sydney 2 Race. It's a race that goes from the city center to Bondi beach. 14km run with some hills, with 240m elevation gain. It's been a big race, with lots of people, the view is nice, you run along the bay. What was surprising was the lack of milestones along with the race. Usually, you have an indication at each kilometer. But there was almost none. I didn't manage to know the pace I was going at. I went way quicker than what I was aiming at the beginning, and I managed to keep up the pace. I ended up running faster than what I was prepared for.
• How did you get prepared?
  • By going running not on the same path, but through the same main hills during the previous weeks.
  • But I couldn't get prepared 3 times a week as I wanted to. What helped me was providing a similar effort regarding the amount of hills. That was not a proper preparation, as much as I would have liked.
• What would you have done differently? Why?
  • I would have set my priorities right. I would have gone running at least 3 times a week, to improve my pace and the way I dealt with the race.
  • Why: to run faster. To run the race in less than what I did. I already ran fast, but I could have run the race in less than one hour.

Hydration

• What do you remember about the way you hydrated?
  • I know we should not drink alcohol before the race. But I went out with friends and drank alcohol the night before. I went home early though.
  • Before running a race, you need to make sure you get hydrated the day before, as well as all the stupid things you should do the day before. You don't want to pee during the race. You have to go before.
• How did you manage your hydration?
  • I didn't have water with me but there were stands with cups of water available. I took the cups of water and drank a few sips.
  • It's better to have a few sips every once in a while than a lot at one specific moment because it cuts the effort. You want to drink slowly. If you run a trail with hills, it's better to drink after the effort rather than before a hill, during the effort.
• How did you prepare your hydration process?
  • I didn't prepare anything. I knew there were stands along with the race. It's a 14km race, it's not like a 50km race where you need your own water.
  • When I run on a flat course, I usually drink before and after the race. I drink water during long sessions. But that may not be what's best or convenient.
• Have you ever found yourself in trouble due to hydration? What happened?
  • Let me think... I don't think so. Not in running but when going on a long hike when I had to manage water. But I never ended up dehydrated.
• What would you never do again? Why?
  • Nothing

Next Race

• I'm thinking about registering for a race soon. Maybe the Paris half-marathon in March. It's good to have something to get ready for, but I'm not sure. Maybe I should find something near Lisbon, where I live.