Ali on the Run Show27 Maalis 2025

795. Jinger Gottschall, New Balance Director of Sports Research

"I am nowhere near close to being an expert, and that's part of why I wanted this job — a challenge."

Imagine you're a real-life woman in STEM. Someone who loves numbers, data, hypotheses, constants, and thoroughly researched experiments with scientifically-backed outcomes. Imagine you're also an athlete. A triathlete, specifically. So, what's the dream job? Triathlete in STEM Jinger Gottschall found it: Director of Sports Research at New Balance. In her role, Jinger oversees a team whose job it is to create, research, test, and design shoes and apparel that maximize performance and minimize injury. In this conversation — recorded in the Sports Research Lab at The TRACK at New Balance — Jinger talks about what her job entails, why she wanted this job, where work still needs to be done when testing products for men vs. women, and just how many pairs of shoes are in her closet.

SPONSOR:

Lagoon: Click here to take Lagoon's 2-minute sleep quiz to see which pillow is right for you. (I'm an Otter!) Use code ALI at checkout for 15% off your next Lagoon order.

In this episode:

What it's like working at the New Balance Sports Research Lab (2:40)
How Jinger describes her job (3:45)
What it's like when the pros come into the lab (6:30)
How Jinger has learned about all the sports New Balance covers (11:45)
How Jinger got the job she has today (14:30)
On testing competitors' shoes (24:30)
The lab, by the numbers (33:00)
Jinger's take on testing for women's products (35:45)
What a day in the life is like at New Balance (43:45)
Jinger's favorite feature in the sports research lab, her favorite shoes, and more (48:20)

Follow Ali:

SUPPORT the Ali on the Run Show! If you're enjoying the show, please subscribe and leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. Spread the run love. And if you liked this episode, share it with your friends!

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(889)

64. Desiree Linden

"We fail all the time, and we learn from it and we get better. I think that's amazing. You fail your way to success. That's how it happens, and I'm super comfortable with that. I have no problem point...

15 Maalis 201846min

63. Dr. Meggie Q&A Part II: Fertility, Infertility, Labor, Delivery, & Advice

"Be open-minded and bring snacks." Dr. Meggie is back! Meggie Smith made her Ali on the Run Show debut last year, when she was wrapping up her OB/GYN residency at the NYU Langone Medical Center in New...

8 Maalis 201840min

62. Gabe Grunewald, Professional Runner & 4-Time Cancer Survivor

"It's OK to struggle, but it's not OK to give up." —Gabe Grunewald Gabriele "Gabe" Grunewald is a professional middle-distance runner and four-time rare cancer survivor from Minneapolis, MN. Gabe was ...

1 Maalis 20181h 1min

61. Dr. Meggie Q&A Part I: Egg Freezing, Periods, Hormones, & Birth Control

"KonMari your life, KonMari your uterus." —Meggie Smith Dr. Meggie is back! Meggie Smith made her Ali on the Run Show debut last year, when she was wrapping up her OB/GYN residency at the NYU Langone ...

22 Helmi 20181h 2min

60. Emma Coburn

"The narrative that I couldn't do things never entered my life." Emma Coburn is a professional middle-distance runner for New Balance. She's a world champion in the steeplechase, and competed at both ...

15 Helmi 201858min

59. Emily Saul, Co-Leader of November Project Boston

"When you show up with this army, this incredible mob of people around you who are willing to believe in you and tell you that you can do it… Who the hell are you to disagree?" Emily Saul is the co-le...

8 Helmi 20181h 1min

58. "Preppy Runner" Theodora Blanchfield

"It was this weird moment of knowing I was on the precipice of my entire life being about to change. And that was terrifying. The moment I had been the most scared of my entire life was about to come,...

1 Helmi 20181h 10min

57. Date Night with Ali & Brian: On Dreams, Goals, Fear, & Failure

"I went on this amazing trip, and I thought everything would change. But your problems don't just go away because you run away. They will follow you anywhere until you fix them." This episode got a li...

25 Tammi 20181h 11min