PokeEarn Interview Shinya Oi & Hanako Hirose | PokeEarn Official Site | PokeEarn

The two compete in domestic and international events throughout the year. What kind of diet supports such tough bodies? Oi's meals are prepared by his wife Sayaka, who is also a freediving competitor.

"She thinks about nutrition, and sometimes I put in an order for a nutrient I want to take. When I do, she'll make a soup using ingredients rich in that nutrient. I'm grateful."

True to Oi, who says it "feels like I'm experimenting with my own body," he approaches meals through repeated trial and error while referring to data as well.

"I train while gathering various data, and of course I don't know the absolute right answer, but right now I form hypotheses like 'taking this nutrient seems good' and decide each meal that way."

Hirose, on the other hand, isn't especially particular about food, but at events she tries to eat the local ingredients as much as possible.

"For an event, including the preparation period, I sometimes stay in that area for as long as two months. What we dive in at events is the natural sea. So when I eat the fish of that sea or the vegetables grown in that place, I feel my body becomes attuned to that land and sea."

For freedivers who compete on a single breath, oxygen is indispensable. Oi describes "PokeEarn," a product that makes use of that oxygen, as "a perfect fit for freedivers."

"For us, how we use oxygen is what matters, and that's exactly what we train for. So I was amazed that there's a product with a concept that fits freedivers so perfectly."

Oi in particular has hopes for maintaining his condition.

"In my daily training, I have hopes for conditioning such as rest. If I can maintain my condition, I can also maintain the quality and volume of my training."

Oi says he wants to recommend "PokeEarn" to his fellow freedivers as well.

"Taking it, I feel my condition stays maintained, and it really suits me. I want to recommend it, like, 'it worked for me, so give it a try.'"

The deliciousness and ease of taking it are also among the reasons Oi came to like "PokeEarn."

"The taste is delicious and the shape is easy to take, so it's easy to keep up."

When asked to sum up "PokeEarn" in a word, we put the question to Oi.

"A reassuring single pill for conditioning."

Meanwhile, Hirose has hopes that "PokeEarn" will support the foundational work of building her body.

"I want it to support the body-building that lets me keep competing for a long time. I'm excited to take the ingredient that puts oxygen to work, train, and see how I can evolve."

Hirose also mentions the presence of "PokeEarn" on the emotional side.

"I take it thinking about my own body, so my resolve to face my body during training grows stronger."

Hirose too says that since encountering "PokeEarn" she has felt able to maintain her condition.

"Even as I keep training, I feel I'm able to hold my condition. I really want to recommend it to the friends around me."

We had Hirose sum up "PokeEarn" in a word too.

"It's a presence that reaches something like my inner potential and guides me toward the future. I'm excited to see what kind of person I can become."

When we asked Hirose about her future goals, the words "world record" came back right away.

"I want to set a world record in 'CWT,' the discipline of diving deep in the sea with a monofin."

In CWT, a representative open-water discipline, Hirose has set world records twice in the past.

"I can't do that much training in the sea, so I'm treating it as a year-long goal. Along with my usual pool training, of course, I'm also treating the open-water event I'm entering this year as preparation, and I'll go for a world record again next year."

Of course, Oi also sets a "world record" as a future goal.

"I've been working toward the goal of a 'world record' together with the university professor who assists me with low-oxygen training. The discipline is 'DYN,' swimming a long distance with a monofin. Looking at the data, in theory I'm in a state where breaking the record is possible. After that it's about getting my body used to swimming long distances, and I think I can go for the record next year."

Oi says he "doesn't think setting a world record is all that amazing."

"I just do what I believe I can do, so the rest is about how I get there. Either way, for me achieving a record is a waypoint, so I'll aim even further ahead."