About six months ago, six brave souls agreed to allow The Bulletin to track their progress as they try to stick to their 2007 New Year’s resolutions. Today, four remain, and they’re dealing with obstacles ranging from vacation temptations to summer heat to a sore ankle. When contacted by The Bulletin, all of them expressed shock that another quarter of the year had gone by so quickly. But it has, so it’s time for an update.

Anna and Jeff Johnson Goal: Lose weight

Webster’s dictionary defines “vacation” thusly: “freedom from any activity; rest; respite; intermission.”

For Anna and Jeff Johnson, two vacations during the past six weeks provided not only a respite from work and day-to-day life, but also from their diet. And their exercise routines.

“We went to Kona (in Hawaii) for eight days and then a few weeks later, we went to Denver for two weeks,” Anna said Wednesday as she descended Pilot Butte. “We made some good choices, but … ”

Jeff interjected: “We pretty much ate what we wanted.”

The Johnsons, who live in Bend, resolved in December to lose weight in 2007. Jeff started at 299 pounds and wants to get down to 260.

At the end of March, he weighed about 275. On Wednesday, on the butte, he was at 287.

Anna started at 168 pounds with a goal of 140. She lost 10 pounds through the year’s first three months, but gained it back on vacation. This week, she’s at 170.

“You get to Hawaii, and they have all these tasty drinks. I had a lot of Mai Tais,” Anna said with a laugh. “And I might have had hot wings a couple of times.”

Jeff, who’d been eating more salad and veggies and smaller portions before the trips, let go of those habits while on vacation and went back to potatoes, bread and second helpings.

The couple didn’t do nearly as much physical activity as they wanted, either. One of their hotels had an exercise room. They used it only once or twice, Anna said.

Back in Bend, however, the Johnsons say they’re committed to making the most of July through December. Wednesday was their second early-morning hike up Pilot Butte in as many days, Jeff is going to go back to his cardio workouts and weight-lifting sessions, and Anna will start a new calorie-limiting diet program this week. They’re optimistic.

“We’ve got our vacations behind us. We don’t have any more time that we’re taking off,” Jeff said. “Now that we’re back in our routine, it’s time to get back on track.”

Lauren Bailey Goal: Lose weight

It’s been awfully hot out there. In Lauren Bailey’s office in Redmond, too.

“It’s 87 degrees at my desk right now,” said the 33-year-old medical records and social services director for a Redmond skilled nursing facility.

It was particularly hot at the Prineville gym where Bailey was working out in her effort to lose 50 pounds in 2007 after her aerobics class moved from one room to another. The new room had windows facing the Western sun.

Bailey took that opportunity to skip class.

“I didn’t go a few times, and I lost like 8 pounds,” she said.

How did that happen?

“That’s what I thought!” she replied. “I don’t know if I lost muscle or what, but I thought to myself, ‘Hey, I don’t need to go to the gym!’”

Bailey started the year weighing in at about 190 pounds, and by April, she had lost only 4. But she was seeing positive changes in her body’s shape. She dropped a size in clothing.

Today, she’s in essentially the same place. Four pounds down. A clothing size down.

They don’t call them the lazy days of summer for nothing.

“I’ve made excuses. I’ll say, ‘Oh I’m going to go (to the gym), but then I’m like, ‘Hmmm, the lawn really needs mowing,’” Bailey said. “I’ve noticed that I’ve easily made excuses, but I still have more of a mind-set for physical activity.”

She also continues to make better food choices. Her participation in a community-supported agriculture program means her dinners have more greens and vegetables than they used to, and she’s trying new foods — beet greens, chard and rhubarb, for example. She does, however, still give in to the candy jar at work.

“Did you know that there are some great new chocolates out there?” she asks with a laugh.

Much of Bailey’s time is spent driving U.S. Highway 97. She lives in Prineville, works in Redmond, and picks her son up from his job at the High Desert Museum south of Bend twice a week. And she’s hoping that at the end of the summer, when things slow down and the temperature drops a bit, she can head back to the gym.

“I haven’t counted it out,” she said.

Jennifer Ross Goal: Run a marathon

In late March, Jennifer Ross, of Bend, broke her ankle while training for a marathon. (To run a marathon in 2007 was her New Year’s resolution.)

In April, she was chomping at the bit to get her cast off and dismissing a doctor’s recommendation that she hold off on running for a while.

In mid-May, the cast came off, and Ross hit the treadmill, and then the roads around her home.

And by mid-June, she realized that doctor knew what he was talking about.

“I’m out,” she said, meaning she wouldn’t be running a marathon this year. “There’s just not enough time now.”

For Ross, the reality check came two weeks into her new training regimen. She had seen some swelling in her ankle after walking and a little more after running on the treadmill. Running on pavement was a different story.

“My ankle got all black and blue and swollen. I did that for about two weeks,” she said. “I thought, ‘Oh, I’ll just get up and start running on it again,’ and then it got all black and blue. It didn’t heal as fast as I was thinking it would, and it just wasn’t worth permanently damaging my ankle.”

Actually, it took some advice from a family member to convince Ross to give it a rest, because she knew that if she wasn’t training in June, she’d never be ready for her primary goal — the Portland Marathon in October.

“I just wasn’t able to run on it like I needed to,” she said. “If I’m not able to really start racking up my mileage in June, there’s no way I’ll be ready to do it. You really need four solid months of (training).”

Even so, she still wants to eventually complete a marathon and hopes to start working toward that goal again in August. If she’s ready for a half-marathon by October, she’ll go for it. If she’s ready for the full 26.2 miles early next year, she’s going to go for that, too.

For now, though, the super-motivated mother of three is resting the ankle and adjusting her goal, no matter how much it pains her.

“It’s such a bummer,” she said. “To me, being able to change your goals isn’t the ideal, but just being able to flow with your life circumstances, too, is important.

“You have to roll with the punches and the broken ankles and stuff.”