It's been a while, but I'm back now.

It's been awhile since I have felt I really had anything worth saying. And in those brief moments where I really wanted to shout "hey world listen to what I have to say" I would write down my thoughts in my notebook and then forget they ever happened.

In short, I spend a week traveling in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, China, for work. The hours were ridiculously long and tiring. Often spending our mornings and afternoons walking around various factories and our evenings driving back to our hotels, dinners, and then answering emails and writing re-caps back to the office until 1 or 2am. My poor faithful running shoes came with me on that long journey, and patiently sat in my suitcase waiting to be bought out. I told myself I knew it wasn't going to happen, but maybe just once, maybe just a mile? I needed some sort of exercise, I was feeling soft and lazy. My running shoes, sadly, never got used that week.

When I returned to the US, after a weekend of much rest and doing nothing, I was ready to begin officially training for the Philadelphia Marathon. This was it. The Big Time. Monday after work boyfriend and I set out for a nice easy two miles, and for me two more nice easy miles after that. I felt great, like I was back in the game, ready to go, ready to train. Until Tuesday morning I woke up and felt like I got hit by a bus. Attack of the post travel, run down and then got on a plane and had a nice multicultural airborne germ cocktail. Sick? I can't be sick! I'm training! Doesn't my body know this cannot be happening? But it was. And it lasted all week. One week of I can handle, but two? This was insanity. Finally by Sunday night I was feeling better and couldn't wait to get running Monday.

So now I'm back. I even got to do a long run yesterday of 8.5 miles. The hardest part is keeping my pace slow. And the scariest part is I am actually training for a full marathon. The seriousness of that sentence has not even hit me yet. My new schedule has me running five days a week with two off days, which is more than my usually four running days three off. As much as I am scared I am also excited. It has been two years since I have gone down this path, and a part of me thought I was done with the 26.2 forever. But now here I am again. Sure I am only on week in, but it's been a good week.

More to come from now on. Promise.

xx Sara