Robyn x The Running Effect

I had the honor of being featured on The Running Effect Podcast. If you don’t know Dominic, it’s time we change that immediately!

Dominic launched The Running Effect Podcast in 2020, with the hope of inspiring the next generation of runners through conversations with athletes at every level of the sport. In 2023, he became the youngest individual in history to make it to Spotify’s podcast charts. The core of The Running Effect is to inspire others to turn their what ifs? into realities.

Dominic & I covered everything from marathon purpose to product design to the future of girls’ sports, and I wanted to pull a few highlights together here.

Watch The Podcast:

🗽 The NYC Marathon & Knowing Your Why:

Running the NYC Marathon with my dad wasn’t about pace or perfection, it was about purpose. In the episode, I talked about how knowing your “why” is the anchor that carries you through the hard miles. From running your first marathon to crushing a BQ, everyone shows up to the marathon start with purpose.

💜 The Sports Bra Is Just the Start

One of my favorite parts of the conversation: explaining why Robyn is so much bigger than a sports bra. Yes, we’re redesigning the most overlooked piece of gear in girls’ sports. But the real goal is confidence, education, and a movement where every girl feels strong in her body and unstoppable in her sport.

 

"They're the future. In years to come they're going to be the ones making these decisions in board meetings, so we better start listening to them!"

📏 Today’s Sizing System Isn’t Working

We dove into how confusing & outdated current bra sizing is… especially for growing athletes. Most systems were never built with girls’ bodies (or sports) in mind. That’s why we’re rebuilding the entire experience from the ground up: from language, to fit, to testing with real athletes.

⭐️ Designing for the Next Generation of Female Athletes

Dominic asked what drives me, and the answer is simple: keeping girls in the game. Sports extend waaay beyond the field, and athletes deserve gear built with intention, engineering, and respect. They deserve body-confident sport, a culture where they feel proud of their movement, not self-conscious of it.

🛠️ Building the Bras: Software vs. Apparel

Coming from software background into apparel has been a huge learning experience. Software can deploy in minutes, yet apparel can take months. But that’s exactly why this work matters. We’re engineering something physical, personal, and high-impact.