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[EP#57] Anne-Lise Rousset - Interview - Entraînement, UTMB 2024 et fin de carrière

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Interview with Anne-Lise Rousset: Balancing Trail Running, Motherhood, and Veterinary Career

This interview explores the multifaceted life of Anne-Lise Rousset, a mother, veterinarian, and elite trail runner, focusing on her recent decision to end her professional athletic career.

Background and Athletic Career

Anne-Lise is a member of Team Scott and is coached by her husband, Adrien Seguré. She has an impressive racing history, including podium finishes in ultra-distance events such as:

  • Diagonale des Fous
  • Hardrock
  • GR20 (where she holds the women’s record)

She began trail running around 2010-2011, transitioning from multisport raids to ultra trail races. Her passion lies in mountainous, rocky terrain.

Balancing Life and Training

Balancing a demanding veterinary career, motherhood, and high-level training has been challenging for Anne-Lise. Key points about her training and lifestyle include:

  • Training approximately nine times per week
  • Focus on quality sessions and heavy weight training
  • Long runs have become less frequent due to family commitments
  • Emphasis on mental recovery

Mental and Physical Challenges

Anne-Lise openly discusses struggles with burnout, particularly highlighted by her withdrawal from the 2024 UTMB at kilometer 70. Despite being physically ready, she experienced:

  • Mental strain and loss of motivation
  • Anxiety and physical symptoms during the race
  • A deeper sense of mental fatigue

Evolving Relationship with Running

Her relationship with running has evolved from intense competition and goal-setting to seeking balance and pleasure without pressure. She reflects on:

  • The difficulty of juggling professional ambitions, athletic career, and family life
  • The mental toll of ultra-competitive racing
  • The increasingly crowded and high-pressure atmosphere of events like the UTMB, contrasted with more solitary races such as Hardrock

Future Plans and Philosophy

Looking ahead, Anne-Lise plans to step back from ultra-distance racing. Her future focus may include:

  • Shorter, less demanding events
  • Enjoying running without competitive goals

She stresses that trail running should remain a source of joy and passion rather than pressure or obligation. Additionally, she is involved in ongoing projects, including a film documenting this transition phase of her life.

Key Moments and Themes

  • Early introduction to trail running through multisport raids and discovery of mountain running
  • Rise in ultra trail running with notable podiums and record-setting performances (e.g., GR20 women’s record)
  • Impact of motherhood on training volume, mental state, and race participation
  • Detailed insights into her training approach: frequent sessions, emphasis on quality and weight training, and reliance on her husband-coach
  • Mental and physical challenges leading to withdrawal from the 2024 UTMB, described as burnout and loss of meaning
  • Reflections on pressures of high-profile races and the intense atmosphere of the UTMB
  • Decision to end her professional career after 2024, seeking balance and a new chapter focused on family and personal fulfillment
  • Advice to runners to keep trail running a pleasure and passion above all else

Presenters and Sources

  • Interviewee: Anne-Lise Rousset — elite trail runner, veterinarian, mother
  • Interviewer/Podcast Host: Name not specified (podcast “Couram Meets” / “Courir Mieux”)

Links to Anne-Lise’s social media and additional content are available in the video description for those interested in following her journey.

Original video