Articles by Nikki Mueller

About Nikki Mueller (513 Articles)

I'm the owner of Healthy Girl Fitness and I'm a personal trainer, certified AFAA group exercise instructor, and an RRCA certified running coach in SW Portland. I am also the mother of two young boys and am on the board at my youngest son's school. I led a relatively inactive life throughout my 20's until I discovered the world of fitness and running. I ran my first marathon in 2006 and haven't looked back since.

Run Oregon Test Kitchen: Orgain Sport Recovery Powder & Sport Protein Powder

July 7, 2020 // 0 Comments

If you’ve ever seen Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, you know there’s a scene at the end of the movie where Indiana is looking at all the cups and trying to decide which one is the Holy Grail that promises eternal life. That’s how I’ve [read more...]

Why You Should Be Doing Virtual Races

June 28, 2020 // 0 Comments

If you are like me, you resisted the virtual race trend for a long time. Many runners are understandably not as keen to running a virtual race as a “real” face-to-the-start-line race. There are many things you can’t experience, like race [read more...]

Run Oregon is Kicking It In Brooks Levitate 4 – releasing August 2020

June 16, 2020 // 0 Comments

Run Happy. This is the BROOKS Running motto and it’s never been more important or more true than right now. Running unites people and puts us all in (quite literally!) the same shoes. I’ve been running a lot during the pandemic. Running away [read more...]

Race Preview: 2020 Pacific Crest Endurance Sports Festival (Virtual)

June 15, 2020 // 0 Comments

As most races have this year, the 2020 Pacific Crest Endurance Sports Festival has been turned into a virtual event due to COVID-19. Of course folks are bummed that they won’t be able to travel to Central Oregon for this super fun event this year, [read more...]

2020 Fueled By Fine Wine Half/Quarter Marathon (Virtual)

June 8, 2020 // 0 Comments

To say it’s been a tough year would be an understatement. My solution has been to run. It doesn’t make anything go away, but it keeps me going. So when a great race organization like Foot Traffic announces that their store has been pillaged by [read more...]

Race Preview: 2020 Foot Traffic Flat Marathon/Half Marathon/10k/5k (Virtual Race)

May 31, 2020 // 0 Comments

Some things runners in Oregon could always look forward to in the summer were sun, sweat, and the Foot Traffic Flat on Sauvie Island on Juy 4th. This year, the 2020 Foot Traffic Flat will look a little different, as participants are being [read more...]

What Runners are Doing During Quarantine: The Goggins 4x4x48 Challenge

May 30, 2020 // 0 Comments

This was supposed to be my year of rest. After 2 marathons, 6 50ks and several (like A LOT) of races the last two years, I was going to take a break. This was before Covid-19. Before the crazy came to us. Before homeschooling our kids and staying [read more...]

What Run Oregon is Trying: HOKA ONE ONE Stinson ATR6 Hiking Shoes

May 24, 2020 // 0 Comments

My plan this year was to dial back on running and do more hiking, especially as the weather improves. A friend of mine bought a permit for a group hike to Mt St. Helens in August, and I thought this would be the perfect trip to set my sights on. [read more...]

Race Preview: 2020 Reflection Run 5k/10k/Half Marathon (virtual)

May 16, 2020 // 0 Comments

Runners are living in a new world, and if we’re going to get excited to run, it’s probably going to have to be by doing virtual races for awhile. But not all virtual races are created equal and some are definitely worth lacing up for more than [read more...]

Runner’s Superpower: True Grit

May 7, 2020 // 0 Comments

When I worked at a chiropractic clinic as a stretch therapist, I saw all sorts of athletes come through the office. Every one of them was amazing in their own way, from the dancers who were endlessly flexible to the football players who’d broken [read more...]

What Run Oregon is Trying: 361° Shoes

May 5, 2020 // 0 Comments

There’s nothing like opening up a shoebox to find a new pair of shoes staring back at you. If you run as much as I do, that happens frequently, and I love getting to try new brands and styles. I feel a bit like Cinderella getting her glass slipper [read more...]

Virtual Race Preview: 2020 Allstate Hot Chocolate 15k/5k

April 17, 2020 // 0 Comments

There are many things I took for granted before the pandemic shut us all inside, and one that I hadn’t really considered was the thrill of standing shoulder to shoulder with other runners in the starting line chute, wondering if I’d eaten enough [read more...]

Rockay Socks – Supporting runners and medical workers!

April 16, 2020 // 0 Comments

Socks, despite what many would think, remain one of the most important things a runner owns. You should barely notice them at all if they are good, and you can’t fail to notice them if they are bad. If they don’t do their job correctly, a badly [read more...]

What Run Oregon is Wearing: Warm weather gear from Under Armour

April 9, 2020 // 0 Comments

It typically takes a hot day for me to run in shorts, as most chafe my thighs and ride up my “power thighs.” It’s not exactly warm here in March, but lucky for me I can wear summer gear due to COVID19 forcing me to run on the treadmill more. [read more...]

What Run Oregon is Wearing: rabbit

March 29, 2020 // 0 Comments

We all have those pieces of running apparel that are our “go to” grabs for races or long runs. If you’re like me, you’ve got options in your closet, and probably a lot of them are great choices too. But we all have our favorites, and they [read more...]

What Run Oregon is Trying: COROS APEX Pro Premium Multisport GPS Watch & Performance Optimization Device

March 19, 2020 // 0 Comments

I’m not a technical mastermind. I’m a 42 year old women who still remembers when we lived without cell phones, who still loves CD’s and who writes lists with paper and ink. I also remember when I didn’t need a watch to run and I could just [read more...]

2020 Spring Classic Duathlon & Home Depot Half Marathon, 10k, & 5k

March 14, 2020 // 0 Comments

**GIVEN THE UNCERTAINTY OF THINGS DUE TO COVID-19, PLEASE NOTE THAT WE ARE PREVIEWING THIS RACE AS IF IT IS STILL OCCURRING . WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO FOLLOW THESE RACES ON SOCIAL MEDIA OR THEIR WEBSITES TO DETERMINE IF CHANGES ARE BEING MADE** I am [read more...]

2020 Hood to Coast Windy River Relay (Hood River)

March 4, 2020 // 0 Comments

Have you heard of a little weekend relay in Oregon called Hood To Coast? Unless you’re a runner who’s been hiding under a rock, you’re probably aware of the two-day extravaganza toted as “The Mother of All Relays,” (it IS the [read more...]

Race Preview: 2020 Couve Clover Run 3m/7m/10m (Vancouver, WA)

February 21, 2020 // 0 Comments

Run Oregon is Kickin’ it in the Brooks Hyperion Tempo

February 19, 2020 // 0 Comments

I’m a recent BROOKS shoes convert. I used to try them every few years, but they always felt too heavy on my feet. Then I got to test the Glycerin 17 and all was right in the BROOKS shoe world with my feet. The new BROOKS Hyperion Tempos are [read more...]

What Run Oregon is Trying: Bodypeace Fitness App

February 17, 2020 // 0 Comments

I recently started a new part-time position at a chiropractic office as a stretch therapist. What that means, quite simply, is that I stretch people. I ask every one of my clients if they ever stretch at home, and 85% of them say they don’t. If [read more...]

Race Preview: 2020 Dirty Leprechaun 5k/10k Obstacle Race (Tualatin)

February 14, 2020 // 0 Comments

Spring is coming. Yep, really. And what that means to runners is that race season is going to be in full swing soon. The 2020 Dirty Leprechaun will be on March 14th this year and it will be one great way to celebrate the return of lighter days and [read more...]

What Run Oregon is Trying: NATHAN Quickstart 4 Liter Race Pack

February 3, 2020 // 0 Comments

Hydration vests used to be something you didn’t see on runners all the time, but these days you’ll see them attached to 5k road runners and 100 mile trail runners alike. When I started running ultra trail runs a couple of years ago, I was ready [read more...]

Run Oregon is Kickin’ it in the new Brooks Glycerin 18 (releasing March 1, 2020)

February 1, 2020 // 0 Comments

I have always been a fan of Brooks gear. This is a company that specializes in running, period. Unlike many other companies that are jacks of all trades in sports gear, Brooks is ALL ABOUT running. They are runners and they get it. Moreover, their [read more...]

Come Join the 2020 Foot Traffic Event Expo for it’s 10th Year!

January 31, 2020 // 1 Comment

If you’re a runner or walker, (which hopefully you ARE if you’re reading this,) what better place to be on February 15th than an expo that celebrates that? Get excited, because Foot Traffic is celebrating the 10th annual expo event at the Foot [read more...]

Race Recap: 2020 Cascade Half Marathon (Turner)

January 25, 2020 // 0 Comments

Doing a race in January in Oregon is like playing the lottery. Sometimes you win, but you usually lose. The Cascade Half Marathon has been known to have some awful weather. Sometimes there’s wind. Somethings there’s rain. Sometimes there’s [read more...]