Vinnie Jones and Stayin' Alive!

Recent research has shown that the chances of surviving a heart attack double if the person helping you does continuous compression CPR. Vinnie Jones, the badass from Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, shows us how it's done.

Pumpkin Oatmeal!

Lots of lovely oatmeals - thanks A Beautiful Mess!

I'm a breakfast gal. I just don't do well without something in my tummy first thing in the morning. While I LOVE donuts, scrambled eggs and bacon, I know that having something more balanced will set a better tone for my day. Enter oatmeal!

Oatmeal is magical! It's good for you (most types have more than 3 grams of soluble fiber - the cholesterol lowering kind! - per serving) and the complex carbs digest slowly so that you don't want to cut someone for a Snickers bar by 11 a.m. Most importantly (to me) it's diverse: you can get super crazy flavors at your local grocery store or add delicious things to plain varieties (My favorites are Irish Oatmeal and Quaker Rolled Oats). Plus, what other breakfast food has a hilarious comic site named after it? Not so fast Raisin Bran.

Today after my walk (HOLLA!) I whipped up a bowl of Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal after seeing the recipe on A Beautiful Mess.

I tweaked the recipe a bit with what I had on hand - here's what I did:

"How long did that take, Sarah? I don't have all day!" This entire process took about 5 minutes - so no longer than making a bagel or something (definitely less time than frying bacon!) So BOOM - better breakfast in less time!

Saying the Right Thing

We all have trouble finding the right words sometimes. Some of us even seem to NEVER be able to choose the right words at all or stay silent, as to not cement the fact that we are fools. Regardless of our particular issues, the ability to open your mouth and insert your foot seems to be the great human unifier, while the ability to be cool about someone else's traumas, foibles or faux pas is divine.

I remember reading a good story about Cary Grant. He was filming a movie with Audrey Hepburn (maybe Charade?!? That was a good one!) and they decided to take a break at a local cafe to enjoy some wine. Audrey, gesturing wildly, knocked the bottle all over him, ruining his jacket. Not missing a beat, he continued the conversation while removing his jacket and putting it on the back of his chair. He didn't say a word, but his message was perfect. 

Check out this post on the Happiness Project about some other simple ways to say the right thing. 

Raging Pinterest Addiction

Holy bananas y'all - I'm addicted to Pinterest like crazy. It's a rabbit hole of lovely things to discover and the perfect place to bookmark things visually so that you can reference them later. Haven't checked out this awesome site and are wondering what the heck I'm talking about? Pinterest allows people to create "boards" on a variety of topics and "pin" items to those boards for their followers to see. It's both a bookmarking site and a social tool, which makes it super fun because you can discover new things through your friends and help other people find neat stuff too!

What's this? Why it's something I found (and subsequently found the awesome blog it's on) on Pinteres

One way I have really enjoyed using my boards to archive recipes I find on the web. My old way of doing it left much to be desired - I either bookmarked it in my browser (all you see is a link name!) or printed it out and promptly lost it in the kitchen (wastes so many trees!). With Pinterest, I can see the items and select based on picture and name what I'll make tonight. It makes keeping up with healthy recipes so easy! 

Do you have any favorite recipes from around the web to share? Leave one in the comments or pin it and link back here so I can stalk you via Pinterest!

Weigh in Monday - 1/2/12

My first Weigh in Monday of the year is kind of a cheat - the last time I weighed in seriously was in October and thanks to the stress of having a critically ill dad, I lost a decent bit of weight since then. So instead of being like "I lost 8lbs MOFOS!" (see what I did there? BAM) I'm just going to start over with my goals at this new weight. 

Goals: 

• Lose 5lbs by my birthday in March
• Walk 4 days a week
• Start workouts again (slowly! I pulled my back in November and have to watch it!)
• Eat at home for 10 meals a week
• Meditate 7 times a week

What are your "get healthy" goals for this year?

Hello 2012

While I am a firm believer in the "any-day-above-ground-is-a-good-one!" philosophy, I have to say I was so very ready to say goodbye to 2011 and welcome a new year with open arms. Hello 2012.

To start the year off right, I'm going to take a break from Facebook (my biggest time suck!) and Twitter (less so, but still something I tend to log in to way too much) for the month of January. Instead of sharing my craziness via status updates and tweeting about what I ate for lunch, I will focus on getting healthy again, cooking at home, and blogging here.

Please bear with me while I get back to posting this month - it will take a while to get back into the groove!

Weigh in Monday - 10/24/11

After a crazy week thanks to a family emergency, I'm surprised to be down any weight at all! I lost .2 this week and a 1/2" in both my waist and hip area - huzzah! 


I tracked every single meal, but failed on the walking and waking up early. I did, however, make it to both of my bootcamps and walked the dog almost every day.


Goal check!

• Walking - not so much this week
• Tracking - *swish*
• Weight loss - 2.8 lbs to go before 10/31 to make my 5 lbs monthly goal