Pump and blow. These are the basic tenets of CPR. Sounds simple, and it is, yet millions of Americans are not trained.

Why does this matter? Because only 1 in 10 people who suffer cardiac arrest outside of a hospital setting will survive. That statistic is worth repeating: 1 in 10 survive, meaning 9 of 10 will DIE.

This is an abysmal number, and the only way to improve upon it is for Americans to learn CPR.

In response to that urgent need, the small, student-run EMS service at Emory University here in Atlanta, Georgia, recently held the largest CPR training event in history.

"We trained over 600 people in 3 days," said Josh Rozell, chief of Emory EMS. "If we had only trained one person in CPR and that person had saved a life, we would be successful."

They're using a new technique called CPR Anytime -- a kit that's available to anyone for about $30 from the American Heart Association -- that employs a pay-it-forward-like idea.

In a one-hour session, you learn how to perform CPR using this kit. You then take the kit home and use it to teach five of your friends. Each of them can borrow your kit or buy one of his or her own, and share it with five friends, and so on. The number of trained life savers increases exponentially.

In fact, in Atlanta, a city with one of the worst cardiac arrest survival rates, Mayor Shirley Franklin employed this technique to get more than 30,000 city employees trained in CPR in about six months.

I can't save you the $30 it costs to get this kit, but, as an EMT myself, I can at least share the basics of CPR with you here, with the help of the American Heart Association's Heartsaver CPR instructions. Who knows? It could help you save a life, but it does not replace a CPR course!

Remember, you should not attempt to do CPR if the victim is conscious or breathing or if doing CPR puts your life in danger (for example, on the side of busy a highway).

Step 1: Shake and shout

If you see someone collapse or lying on the ground motionless, make sure they're not just asleep. Sounds silly, but they won't be too happy with you if they are just asleep, and you start pumping on their chest, so just shake them and shout "Hey! Can you hear me? Are you OK?"


Step 2: Call 911

If the victim does not respond, call 911. This should go without saying, but you'd be surprised how easy it is to forget this step in the heat of the moment.


Step 3: Open the airway

Oftentimes, when unconscious, a person's tongue can obstruct the airway. The easiest way to remedy this is to simply tilt the head back. So, place one palm on the person's forehead, and 2 fingers from the other hand under their chin, and tilt backwards gently.


Step 4: Check for breathing

Spend about 10 seconds looking at the victim's chest, listening to hear whether he or she is breathing, and attempting to feel the person breathing on your cheek.


Step 5: Rescue breaths

With the victim's head tilted slightly, pinch the nose and give 2 breaths (1 second each) into the victim's mouth.


Step 6: Begin chest compressions

Quickly move or remove clothes from the front of the chest that will get in the way of doing compressions. Place the heel and palm of one hand on the center of the victim's chest, directly between the nipples. Put the heel of your other hand on top of the first hand and push straight down on the chest 1.5 to 2 inches with each compression. Push hard and fast, at a rate of 100 compressions a minute.


Step 7: 30:2 ratio

Do 30 chest compressions, followed by two more breaths. Continue to do cycles of 30 compressions and two breaths until the victim regains consciousness, someone arrives with an automated external defibrillator, or AED (you may have seen these in airports, shopping malls and other public spaces) or professional help arrives.

These are the basic steps, and they can help you save lives. These instructions by no means replace a CPR course, and I would encourage you to find a course in your area by clicking here, or purchase a CPR Anytime kit for you and your family by clicking here.

I'm curious... Would you be more likely to learn CPR if you could do it in the comfort of your own home for only a few bucks?

Imagine not being able to smell a rose or the pungent aroma of a cup of coffee? As we age, our ability to smell diminishes. In some cases, as much as 60 percent as we reach our so-called golden years. Our smell peaks in our late 20s or early 30s, and gradually declines after that.

Some people are more vulnerable to infections or viruses that cause them to lose their sense of smell altogether. The condition is called anosmia. The viruses seem to attack the nerve cells, which are located in the upper part of the nasal cavity, causing the loss of smell.

What's it like to lose your sense of smell completely? Try this: Take three jellybeans, with strong flavors such as licorice, banana, and coffee. Put them all in a baggie, close your eyes and pick one. Then hold your nose tightly and place the jellybean in your mouth. You can tell it's sweet, but I bet you can't figure out the flavor. Now let go of your nose and smell the aroma? See? If you can't smell, you can't enjoy the pleasure of food.

It's not just food. Think of what it would be like if you couldn't smell smoke or natural gas -- it could be dangerous.

Women usually develop anosmia in their 40s or 50s after suffering from a serious sinus infection, usually brought on by a common cold. Although some men contract it, middle-age women are more susceptible, because, doctors think, their immune systems are more fragile as they go through menopause.

Physicians say the condition can be treated with medication, but the medicine does have side effects. Many people take vitamins loaded with antioxidants to regain their smell, but it takes time and in most cases the smell never comes back 100 percent.

So when you smell cauliflower cooking on the stove this Thanksgiving, don't think, "Ewwwww"; appreciate the fact you can smell it at all.

The fit buddies "after" picture

It's been four months since you've heard from the Fit Buddies - Ed Lavandera, Stacia Deshishku and me -- so here's an update on how everyone's doing. I also wanted to give you a chance to make your voices heard about obesity and Fit Nation.

Stacia says

The premise of the Fit Buddies experiment was that if you do something for 12 weeks, it becomes a habit, but unfortunately habits are too easily broken!

I wish I could say that I'm working out as hard and watching my diet as closely as I did when I was on the Fit Buddy program - but that wouldn't be true. I'm a journalist, and the facts do matter.

So here goes the confessional.

I'm still going to the gym, though not as regularly. I took off a few weeks - unintentionally – because of vacation and an illness. Going "off course" allowed me to slip back into my bad habits. Getting back in the gym has been harder and harder each time I'm away. It always feels as if I'm starting over from scratch. Depressing.

But don't fear. I'm NOT giving up. This is a commitment by me -- to me - not to or for anyone else. I'm only cheating myself by staying out of the gym and eating all that Halloween candy! I'm committed to changing my lifestyle for the better.

Though I haven't been in the gym as consistently as before, I have spent more time walking/hiking - and reconnecting with friends. What a great way to get my heartbeat going. I'm also realizing that exercise isn't one size fits all. Some is better than none, and I get bored easily. So my new mantra is: Mix it up. Spend time outdoors. Combine catch-up time with friends - which is good for my mental health, with time exercising, which is good for my physical health.


Ed's take

In the four months since we ended the formal Fit Buddies program, I've kept off all the weight I lost between April and July. That's a great feeling and a big accomplishment.

But I want to keep going and I definitely miss not having someone like Robert working on my exercise routine.

I have found that when I work out regularly I want to eat better.

My travel schedule has been incredibly intense the last few months so my routine is out of whack. I'll work out well for a week and then miss the gym for a week. That's frustrating. I'm not giving up and I look forward to losing more weight.


And finally, Matt

I'm doing pretty well too! I've managed to keep all of the weight off, but I've gotten busy again at work and have let that derail my exercise plan. (I know, more excuses). My fiancee and I have started running, but admittedly, we don't do it often enough. The thing that's really stuck with me are my eating habits. We're cooking dinner more, eating out much less. Eating is now more a chore than a treat! (I never thought I'd say that!)

Speaking of work getting busier, we're gearing up for the First Annual Fit Nation Solution Summit next Wednesday in New York City. CNN’s chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, will be joined by former President Bill Clinton, New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Frieden and many of our other Fit Nation friends to discuss solutions. We'd love to hear from you!

If you have a question for President Clinton, Dr. Gupta or any of our obesity experts, submit them on tape by clicking here for our I-Report page, or even leave your question on the blog. I'll make sure to take them to New York with me next week.

Thanks for all of your support throughout Fit Buddies! Make sure to stop by CNN.com/Fitnation in the coming weeks to check out our plans for 2008 and to take the Fit Nation Challenge!