Life is a Collection of Moments

Life is a collection of moments. We live for the moments when everything is going our way. When we feel happiness, elation, success and accomplishment. We choose to remember the good times in photos, Facebook posts, Instagram updates, and Tweets. My Klout profile alerts me when I have a "moment" on one of my social sites that brings a lot of interactions. 

This year so far is a collection of quite a few moments. I have had my share of highs and lows, successes and failures. My favorite moments have to do with trips I have taken and the people I have met along the way. Visiting New York, participating in the Nike Women's Half Marathon in DC, meeting the espnW staff, running Hood to Coast with Nuun Hydration and interacting with fans on my blog are all moments that I treasure. 

This month brings about three very important moments. First - my husband and I are closing on our first house, which means I get an office and a workout room! Second - I am heading to the espnW Women+Sports Summit to learn about what I love and interact with other amazing women. Third - I am running my third marathon in San Francisco at the 10th Anniversary of the Nike Women's Marathon. October is going to be one amazing month.

I'm learning to appreciate the moments that happen, rather than things. Moments are truly what matters and they are what you make of them. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't try to find a way to enjoy life and make a moment that matters. Right now my day to day moments seem to revolve around running. I really feel alive and in control of my life when I run. It's not always about the speed or the distance for me. It's often just about enjoying the run and getting away from the computer and back to nature. Running is the reason I blog, has lifted me up when I am low and has given me more confidence in achieving my dreams. Running and the digital world have collided recently and given me a chance to interact with other runners on a global level. I truly believe that running can cross oceans, ages, time, and unite people together. I have never met a runner that doesn't cheer me on or provide encouragement. No matter how fast or how slow, runners know it's about something bigger than winning a race. Running gives us moments to celebrate. 

The next few weeks I'll be traveling, learning, and challenging myself. I hope you'll join me for the ride and share the moment.

 ~Karen

Moments Matter

Our lives are made up of moments. I am 25 years old and I have had some of the best moments of my life these past six months training with Nike Women. This evening I powered through a three mile run on the treadmill and I had one of those moments. I can't explain how or why, but I was having a rough day and to be honest my last week of training for the Nike Women's Marathon has been tough. When I got on the treadmill I wasn't expecting much. I surprised myself with how good my run felt today. I forgot my GPS watch and my iPod and was able to just run and get lost in my thoughts, or no thoughts at all. It was one of the best feeling runs I have had in a while. I wasn't trying to be something I'm not or run too fast or slow, I was just in my comfort zone.

I hope that this feeling lasts throughout my 26.2 on October 14. I think sometimes I am over-thinking training and how I am running. Sometimes I just need to let go. It's so important to just live in the moment and let it play out. Today I was present where I was and focused on putting one foot in front of the other. I was living in the moment.

As the ten-day countdown to NWM begins tomorrow I plan on living in the moment and working on mentally being present when I run. Focus, determination and mental toughness are huge during race performance and I need to get into the racing mindset before race day. 

This weekend I am packing for my race, working on planning my nutrition for the weekend and focusing on the upcoming race week. I have one nine mile long run planned for Sunday and then a fairly light running week. I plan to make the most of every moment these last ten days.

As race day looms near, how do you prepare for the big moment?