Not Every Step is Forward

The last year of my life has been a personal challenge for many reasons...most of which are not running related so I will not go into a lot of detail.  Let's just say that every aspect of my life has been upended.  We have moved, I changed jobs, my husband and I separated, and the kids have entered into and left several "phases" along the way.  Adding all of this up, it has left me with little energy or motivation to run.  My mental state and my physical state have suffered as a result of my lack of running.  I've gained 20 pounds and have struggled to get it off. 

So I have re-committed myself to running.  I joined a running group...FINALLY!  That has made all the difference in the world in my motivation level.  I am so thankful for my new running friends.  They have no idea what an impact they have already made in my life...just by being there and helping me to keep going.

A friend recently asked why I have not been posting on this blog site much anymore.  I responded "I haven't been running so I don't have anything to say".  He reminded me that there are probably other people out there facing similar situations where life has gotten in the way of training...or just running in general.  His encouragement has led to this post.  I have realized that in life's journey, not all the steps we take are forward.  My last 12 months have been filled with steps backward and sideways.  But overall, I'm still in a better place than I was this time last year...so I am pleased to see that more steps were forward than any other direction.

I am running again!  I am blogging again!  I can't promise how often, and I can't promise that all of my posts will be interesting...but I can promise that I will be participating in the Baltimore Half Marathon in October...and along the way I will take many steps.  If you are reading this and are interested, I'll do my best to document my journey.