Ode to Oatmeal,The Pumpkin Edition!



Pumpkin Oatmeal! Yay! How do ya like my pug mug? :)

 I'll admit it. I may or may not be a smidge obsessed with oatmeal. I think you would be too if you just took a look at some of the great health benefits! I actually blogged about it not too long ago... you can read all about why I love it so much. I've heard so many people say, "No, I know it's good for me, but the texture freaks me out." Or, "I hate the way it sounds when you eat it... like when you dig your spoon into it, it just sound, ugh." That last sentiment is from my younger sister, she's silly like that, and she's probably the one person I know that would avoid a food because of the way it "sounds." That's why I love her though :)

If the texture, taste, smell, sight or sound freaks out, then check out my previous post about my FAVORITE way to eat oatmeal... with mashed up bananas and PB! Yummers! I'm pretty sure it will change your life forever.

I'm not gonna bore you with a re-post of a previous post, I'm here to tell you about a FABULOUS new oatmeal recipe for all you oatmeal skeptics and pumpkin lovers alike (PS try the pumpkin cupcakes I made last week, they're to die for even without the frosting!) Friends... I give you, pumpkin oatmeal! I used the same basic ingredients (oats, oatbran, chia seeds, etc) but instead of PB I use canned pumpkin and a little something extra special to top it off...

 

Warning: Pumpkin Spice Candle was not an actual ingredient, just the inspiration :)

Laurie's Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal
1 cup water
1/2 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
1 Tb. oat bran
1 Tb. flax seed meal (ground flax seeds)1/4 - 1/2 tsp *pumpkin pie spice
1/2 medium banana (the riper, the better!)1 -2 Tb. vanilla almond milk
1/3 cup canned pumpkin (NOT canned pumpkin pie mix! That's got sugar 'n stuff added in! Also, because of the pumpkin shortage last fall, it may be a challenge to locate. Kroger doesn't have it in stock yet, but Schnucks does!)
1 Tb. chia seeds
Agave Nectar
1/4 cup Nature's Path Organic Pumpkin Flax Seed Granola (only $2.75 at Target... it'll cost you almost double at Kroger!)

1. Bring the water to a boil in a medium sauce pan.
2. While that's happening, put the banana  in a ziploc bag and smoosh it till you have a lovely banana "puree."
3. Add the oats, oat bran, flax seed, spices to the boiling water. Stir constantly for 3 minutes.
4. Snip off the corner of the ziploc bag and squeeze the banana into the oats, add the canned pumpkin and vanilla almond milk. Keep stirring for 1 minute.
5. Add the chia seeds and stir until completely combined.
6. Pour your oats into your bowl and top with granola and a nice little drizzle of agave nectar.
7. Enjoy!

Here's a few tips from me to you... when it comes to granola:
- Psst... easy on the granola there! While it is very tastey and good for you, it can also be VERY high in calories, fat, AND sugar! Always check your ingredients before you purchase.
- Here's my rule of thumb when it comes to sugar content and cereal... no more than 10g of sugar PER serving. That's just too much for you!
- Like I said, granola is high in calories... that's why I use 1/4 cup sprinkled on top of my oats rather than eat a bowl of granola cereal on it's own.
- It this stresses you out too much, you can always make your own! There are lots of simple, healthy recipes for granola out there on the interweb ;)

Don't have a jar of Pumpkin Pie Spice on hand? Cause I didn't...

Make your own PPS!
4 tablespoons ground cinnamon

4 teaspoons ground nutmeg

4 teaspoons ground ginger 

3 teaspoons ground allspice

- Place all spices in a small tupperware container... close the lid tightly. Shake, shake, shake! Store along with the rest of your spices.

I usually don't have the time/energy/money to grab a Starbucks unless I'm eating on the run... but I'm sure that a Pumpkin Spice Latte would be heavenly with this breakfast. I actually prefer a Pumpkin Spice CHAI Latte. That is heaven. Now if we can just get this crazy Memphis weather to actually act like it's fall...

Up close and personal... see the little green pumpkin seeds? De-lightful!



Truth time... seriously, who's the cuter pug? Mug pug, or Mr. Teddy? I found him sunbathing in the backyard the other day... look at the relaxed look on his face! Hehe... he makes me giggle :)

ATTENTION MEMPHIS PEOPLE!

This coming Saturday, September 25th is National Health and Family Fitness Day! Wahoo!

So get out there and get moving... want an idea?

The City of Memphis & Shelby County are hosting the 1st Annual Family Fun Run & Walk 5K! Check out this link to the Shelby County's website for more information, but I will say this... it's FREE! And you get a FREE tshirt (while supplies last.) If you pre-register, they will reserve a shirt for you! It's not

too late, fax in your registration form today! There's going to be other FREE activities like

fitness demos, FREE food, music, and FREE health screenings!

I would totally be going, but I have a prior engagement.

Remember my BFF Christen... the one that loves all things polka dots?

She's getting married on Saturday!

Women Running & Walking in Memphis 5K!

This is my pre-race smiley face.

Yesterday I ran in my second ever 5K. Actually I think I did "run" in one when I was in 8th grade. I don't feel like it really counts though. I ran in the Church Health Center's Race for Grace back in November 2008. This past week I decided to check my finishing time from that race just to have something to compare with my upcoming race. I remember doing some walking at that race, and I had absolutely no idea how to pace myself... of even that I was supposed to myself! Eek! My finishing time was 38:53. Ouch! I mean, like I said, I hadn't been running, like at all. So I guess I shouldn't be so hard on myself. I should be proud of myself for finishing, right?

Back to the recent running endeavor. Even though I signed up for the 10-week training program that was a part of the package when I registered... I honestly only attended 2 of the trainings (3 were canceled BTW.) I didn't exactly put in my time hitting the pavement on my own either. BUT... a commitment is a commitment. I figured that even if I wasn't prepared to run a 5K, maybe I could at least beat my body into submission ;) And beat it I did, jeez Louise! More onto that later though.

I showed up to Oak Court Mall at 7:30am to pick up my race number, and "swag" bag of goodies. I brought along my camera to snap some photos before the race began. It was pretty amazing to see the sea of Memphis ladies, every shape, size, color, age. It was a very "You Go Girl!" kind of an atmosphere.

Look at all that pink! I love the shirt for this race

Those raised hands represent the women who were running in their first 5K. You go girl!!!

In fact, just before the 2nd mile marker, there was a handmade sign that literally said "High five the woman running next to you and say, 'you go girl!' I totally wanted to take a picture, but I was kinda busy... ya know, in the middle of running a 5K and all.  

I had two goals for this race... the first one was to run the whole race (no walking breaks.) The second goal was to finish faster than my "PR" of 38:53 from 2 years ago. I admit, I did end up walking, BUT I didn't take my first walking break until approximately 20 minutes into the race... this was definitely a first. Yay me!

Second goal: MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! 

My finishing time was 37:09!! Wahoo! AND even though I did take a walking break, I power walked it... Oprah-style! Of the 37:09... I truly think I only walked a grand total of 4 minutes! Yea I know... that's small potatoes for you folks who run a 10K or half marathons without batting your eyelashes. But for me, this was pretty exciting. I actually think I could have finished by a minute or so earlier, but just before the third mile I started feeling kind of sick. I refused to quit though, I kept running... definitely not as fast I wanted to, but I ran! I don't know if it was the freakishly-hot-at-8am-sun beating down on me, or what... I actually think I wasn't adequately hydrated. Never a good thing.

I'll spare you the details, but I think my body started to rage against the machine as soon as I finally laid eyes on the clock at the finish line. I started gagging, I literally had to cover my mouth as I finished the last 45 seconds. I definitely thought I was gonna be sick, but I ended up dry heaving after I crossed the finish line instead. Painful!

Here are the running coaches for our training sessions, handing out bright pink medals to all the finishers.



How cool are those trophies!?! I SO wish I could have qualified for one... they were pretty rad.

Check out my medal. Pretty sweet, right?

Well... you think I would swear off running after almost passing out at the finish line, right? Negatory! I decided that since I jump-started my body into this whole running thing, I'm gonna go ahead and sign up for another one... for next month! Aside from the soreness and the dehydration-induced sickness, I thoroughly enjoy the whole community of runners that I've encountered at races. Plus, it seems like every organization and their brother are hosting 5K races nowadays, so you're bound to find a cause that you'd like to support. Stay tuned to find out which race I choose and to read more about how I ACTUALLY prepare myself for this one. Cheers!


How exhausted do I look? Haha!



Check out  Races Online to find a race in your area!



Run Laurie! RUN!

Once upon a time... I joined Women Run/Walk Memphis. It's a 10-week training program to get us Memphis ladies running and ready for our final race, which is in less than 3 weeks (Sept. 25th!) I was able to convince my fabulous friend and running newbie, Amanda, to join with.

Wew! I'm a hot mess, thank heavens for a good cool down!

We both opted to join the Beginning Runners Group. After our "Week 1 Training," which consisted of running 1 minute and walking 2 minutes for a total of 20 minutes, I decided "Ok, this was a cake walk. I can totally switch up to the Intermediate Runners Group."

And then...
Week 2 was canceled due to lightening.
Week 3 was canceled due to the ridiculous Memphis heat.
Week 4 was "come at your own risk due to the ridiculous Memphis heat." Mmmmk... I'll pass.

... and so as a result of my own laziness and excuses (hey, I promised full disclosure here people,) I didn't attend the next 3 training sessions. In my defense, I was out of town during the Week 6 training session. I should probably add that I wasn't exactly doing "my part" by running on my own two more times during the week.

So when yesterday came along (Week 8, in case you're lost,) my running buddy asked if I was planning to go. I had already gotten quite comfy on my couch with an episode of Nip/Tuck (my recent addiction, thank you Netflix Instant Play) and totally wasn't planning to go. Alas, I realized... this girl (meaning me) needs to get her run on! I threw on my running shoes and agreed to meet Amanda thirty minutes later. In case your wondering, I went back to my roots and joined the other "beginners" for a run. I guess I jumped the gun on getting too ambitious with my running skills. I think the the intermediate running group was going to be running 8 minutes, and walking 2 minutes. I figured I better stick with the run 4, walk 2. So I did.

Girl power, right?

There was quite a group of women that were there, although it looked as if more than half had dropped out of the training program since week 1. After a few short announcements, we set off on our 45 minute run/walk. I was feeling pretty good up until we run uphill which was the 4th interval (we did 7.) I would be lying if I didn't say that this song was playing in my head. Go ahead, laugh all you want. However, this song is a must-add to the running mix on that iPod of yours.

I'll be the first to admit, that I have probably taken a good 3 weeks off from running. Eeek! From what I understand running is very much a "use it or lose it" form of exercise. My legs were hurting, I guess I could be embarrassed by that, but I've never claimed myself to be a "runner," ever. You gotta start somewhere, right?

Look at that trail of ladies running in the sun!

Alright... to my friends in the accountability corner: I'm planning to do 2 more runs on my own this week (probably Wednesday and Friday.) The race is SEPTEMBER 18th y'all! Time to get my run on!

For those of you looking for a bit of motivation to hit the gym and/or pavement... check out the one, the only... Jillian Michaels!

After our run in the evening sun, Amanda and I decided to pay a visit to THE best new yogurt place in town, YoLo! Perfect way to cool off, and refuel.

It's a self-serve yogurt place with lots o' toppings to choose from, including local fruit and bakery items! Yummers! This place is so great, I can pretty much guarantee that I'll  be devoting a whole post to them in the near future. In the meantime, here's a teaser:

How do I like my YoLo? Birthday Cake/Strawberry swirl, topped with strawberries, locally grown blueberries... and a lil' cookie from La Chica Bakerita

Nothing wrong with a little cookie to go with your cardio, right? ;)