This week was just AWESOME.  I…

• Worked my butt off and ended up meeting my goal of 100 miles running January! It took a killer weekend, 9 miles on Saturday and 5 miles on Sunday, to get there…but I got there.
• Lost 1.8 pounds.  I’m now at 152.8!
• Dropped another pants size.  I bought my first size 10 jeans since before my daughter was born!

It feels so good to be the boss of me.  To NOT let my whims for every small piece of chocolate or order of french fries rule my life.  Still, on Sunday I ate a HUGE piece of chocolate chip cheesecake and some delicious pork barbacoa (not to mention a cookie at church)…so I’m able to enjoy delicious treats in moderation.

I have a new goal to run 1,000 miles in 2010.  Special thanks to my brother-in-law Josh for his motivation and challenges.  Though with my new shoes it should be a total breeze, right?

Now’s a great chance for you to check in and let me know how you’re doing!  How are you going with your fitness and wellness goals?

I know it’s because I was careless with my eating.  And I was careless with my eating because I worked out so darn hard last week that I figured I could “fudge” a little.  It just goes to show that exercise AND calorie intake are both important — so if you really want to shed pounds, you’ve got to be specific and vigilant in tracking your calories and activity level.

Still, I was proud of myself because I ran 9 full miles on Saturday!   That’s the longest run I’ve EVER done.  I ran the whole time on an indoor track, stopping only twice to walk a lap while I drank some water.

AND, on top of it all, I got the coolest new shoes ever!  They communicate with my iPod Nano and tell me — actually TELL ME, in my ear — how far I’ve run, how much more I have to go till I meet my goal, and more.

Here’s a picture:

In fact, if you want to track my progress, my iPod automatically logs my runs online.  Just visit this link:

http://my.nike.com/wackeracker

So yesterday, I went on a bender.  Of Mexican food.  Authentic Mexican food.  Homemade authentic Mexican food.

I’m talking carnitas (pork-fried pork), enchiladas, grilled jalapenos, guacamole, chips, chile verde, beans, and sopapillas for dessert.

I’m pretty sure I ate my weight in food.

Then I remembered that today is my weigh-in and blog day, and I wasn’t excited.  No doubt I’ve still got last night’s lard in there, gumming up the works and weighing me down.  Literally.

Still, I weighed myself and the result was 154.6 — down 0.6 pounds.

That’s not great, considering how hard I worked last week.  I’m hoping some of the weight is lingering from my gluttonous spree last night and will wear off in a day or two.  If not, I learned my lesson, I suppose.  (Though not really.  Because if I had the chance to eat what I ate yesterday again…I totally would.  You only live once.)

How are you doing with your New Year’s resolutions?

But instead I saw that I’d LOST 0.6, down from 155.8 to 155.2.

Go me!!!

My big-picture goal is to get down to 130 by March 31.   The skinniest I’ve ever been was 125, and that was a bit too skinny.  130-135 is about right for my body type.  I’m excited, because I have total confidence in my ability to reach it — and I’m getting closer every day! 

Bummer.

But I did it to myself.  I went to 5–count ‘em, 5–holiday parties this week, and though I did a decent job not stuffing myself to the gills like I might normally, there are only so many cookies, candies, pigs-in-a-blanket, spoonfuls of jello salad, fried won-tons and cups of hot chocolate your body can take before it shows up on the scale.

In fact, the more I think about it, the more pleased I am that with 5 (did I mention it was 5) holiday parties under my belt, I only gained 1 pound!

So in a way, it’s a triumph!  Though I’m still several pounds away from my goal, and we’re leaving for Utah tomorrow.

My mission on vacation is simply to RETAIN MY CURRENT WEIGHT.  This is going to be very, very hard.  I need some coping strategies, because on the one hand, it’s vacation for heaven’s sake — I want to enjoy it.  On the other, I really don’t want to lose all the ground I’ve covered over the past few weeks.   Any suggestions?

Sorry I missed last week: I was crazy busy with work.   With Thanksgiving there to gum up the works, I actually gained 0.4 pounds.  I actually didn’t feel too bad about that, because normally I’d've gained like 3 or something.

This week was great, though!  I’m down 2.8 pounds, to 154.6.  That’s 4.6 pounds away from my goal, so I’m not sure I’ll reach it by next Wednesday when we travel home — but I couldn’t be more pleased!  What’s even more exciting is that I realized two workouts a day was one too many…and it’s okay!  I don’t have to kill myself to be successful.  I can just be normal and incremental and still get results.  That’s a great lesson to someone like me (one I wish I would have known when I was serving my Mormon mission, but I digress).

I forgot to do it yesterday, so I did it first thing this morning.

The result?

157.0!

It could be another fluctuation, but it’s the “official” weight for this week…which means I’ve lost 3 pounds from the time I started 9 days ago!  I feel very proud.

My goals for this week are…

• On days I don’t work out, eat 1200 calories
• On days I DO work out, eat 1500 calories
• On days I work out twice, eat 1800 calories
• Throw caution to the wind on Thanksgiving and enjoy myself!
• Be down to around 156 this time next week (I realize Thanksgiving is going to throw a wrench in the works and will slow down my progress, but I’ll try to get in 2 workouts that day and hopefully I won’t GAIN weight)

I’ll keep you posted on my progress!

I weighed in again this morning, and this time I’m back up to 159.4.

So. Frustrating.

What the hell is the point of all this if I’m going to fluctuate like that and can’t make my goals?!?!?!

I’m giving myself a virtual high-5.

I feel a little woozy now–and like I might puke if I see another pomegranate before I die–but I think it’s a good start for these next 30 days.

Oh, and I turned down pie.  No one likes to turn down pie.  But I’m going to have to get good at that over the next month, so go me!