Duke Thoughts

Interesting week for Duke bball, and really the first big test for a young team. I think, after the Ohio State massacre a few weeks back, any Duke fan saw these early January dates at Temple and at Georgia Tech and perhaps saw some writing on the wall. This is a team that plays very well at Cameron, but outside of Cameron and especially in hostile, away team environments can be extremely shaky.

Well, the Temple game proved what we thought--Duke is a young crew who still hasn't figured out how to string together a complete, strong game on the road. That's why today's win at Georgia Tech was a big step for the Blue Devils. On the resume, it is a meaningless win, but for a team still finding its identity, it's a big step in the right direction. The Devils jumped out to an early big lead and perhaps sat on it a bit, eventually letting Tech into the game at the end of the first half and throughout the second half. Thanks to some clutch free throw shooting from Ryan Kelly, the team found a way to scratch out a hard-fought win in a tough environment. Now, does this mean I expect us to go into Maryland and the Dean Dome and come out with wins? Hardly. But, progress is being made--so mark this as a big day for this team, getting its first true road win of the season.

And for one minute, let's talk about Quin Cook. Coming into the Temple game, the guy had played 47 minutes of turnover-free basketball, logging 17 assists. I think the kid is making a strong play for that starting PG spot, and I think K is taking note.

Assaulting!

It's been a couple days, so in my effort to be accountable, here are the assault results from the last couple of days.

Thursday - back, biceps, shoulders, 10 minute run (8:30 pace). Cereal in the morning, small turkey sandwich for lunch (meaning 1 slice of bread), post-workout protein shake, green salad with cucumbers, broccoli, bell pepper, and grilled chicken for dinner; 10 minutes of abs before bed. 1690 calories - 1990 basal rate - 500 burned = -800 for the day.

Friday - 75 minutes of squash with Ach; designated CHEAT DAY with Bocephus for his birthday. Fiber one bar and banana in the morning, small turkey sandwich and baked cheetos for lunch, and then a blackout at Sonic for dinner--SuperSonic Double Cheeseburger with medium fries and a cherry coke zero AND a little less than half a frito pie shared with Bocephus. 2530 calories eaten - 1990 basal rate - 800 burned = -260.

The legs are tired today, so it'll be a rest day. Fiber one in the morning, small turkey sandwich and baked cheetos for lunch. Dinner plan is egg and turkey scramble with chopped peppers and onions. Tomorrow, back to the gym for chest, triceps, forearms, and a quick run.

Current weight: 187.2
Target weight: 180
Time frame: 5 weeks

Random Thoughts

No particular theme here, just a late-night blog post.

For this weekend's football games, I like the Saints over the Lions (please God let me be right), the Giants over the Falcons, Bengals over Texans, and Steelers over Broncos. No idea what will actually play out, since each of those last 6 teams has had some major Jekyll and Hyde tendencies this year. In addition, the Saints-Lions game will likely become a shootout which anyone can win. In any event, it will be a fun weekend of football.

Got my belated Christmas gift from TheWife last night in the mail. Lo and behold, it was a Nikon D3100 digital SLR camera with an extra telephoto lens (55mm-200mm). She really nailed it on the head there--I've always wanted one, but never could bring myself to drop the dough to buy one. Now that she's gotten it for me, I'll immerse myself in photography again--something I used to do, but somehow stopped in recent years. Already downloaded 4 iPad apps so I can read about composition, depth of field, and all that great stuff and finally start taking some quality shots. Thanks, TheWife!

On another note, it's good to be back home after the 10-day vacation to Louisiana/Ohio for the holidays. Got the warm fire at my feet right now, watching X-Men 2 with Bocephus, and continuing to rehydrate after a long weekend of boozing and two good workout days.

Finally, the assault is in the books for today. Cereal and a banana in the morning, a small turkey and cheddar sandwich and a handful of baked cheetos for lunch, and a 3 egg yolk (whoops!), 5 egg white omelet with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, and cilantro for dinner. All in all about 1550 calories without ever feeling too hungry during the day. On the exercise front, put in about 30 minutes of one on one basketball with Ach, and then 45 minutes of squash for what daily burn calls an 800 calorie workout. So the net for today would be 1550 eaten - 1990 basal rate - 800 extra calories burned with exercise = -1240. I can live with that. Tomorrow, back on the weightlifting train--back, biceps, shoulders, and a brisk run.

Current weight: 189.2
Target weight: 180
Time frame: 6 weeks

The Assault - Update

Ok, so, the assault sort of went on a hiatus for the last week. I say sort of because I was in Louisiana visiting the family, so I had no available gym. There, I have a treadmill and a yoga mat, so cardio and pushups are my only legitimate options. While I was there, from December 22-29, I did the following:

Dec. 23 - Walked 9 holes of golf (3,100 yards of just course yardage, probably more considering I hit the ball all over the place; call it 2.5 miles) with Dad and Ro
Dec. 24 - Walked 18 holes of golf with Dad and Ro (5 miles)
Dec. 25 - Walked 2.5 miles in the morning with Dad
Dec. 26 - Ran 4.5 miles on the treadmill (10 minute pace), followed by 5-7 minutes of abs
Dec. 27 - Walked 2.5 miles in the morning with Dad; walked 9 holes of golf with Dad and Ro (2.5 miles)
Dec. 28 - Walked 2.5 miles in the morning with Dad; walked 18 holes of golf with Dad and Ro and Haddox (5 miles)
Dec. 29 - Walked 9 holes of golf with Dad and Ro
Dec. 30-Jan. 2 - New Year's blur in Cleveland. Eating was kept under control, for the most part, but snacking did occur, as did intense boozing. Severe setback.

As you can see, there was little to no intense cardio for the last 10 days, but at least I was being active and getting out of the house. Generally, I kept my eating in check--a few cheats with pizza, sonic, fried chicken, but hey, it's the holidays!

This morning, I reluctantly stepped on the scale, and fortunately, was 190 still. I was about 188.6 the day I left for Louisiana, so the holidays definitely were a setback, but not gigantic. Today, I got right back on the horse though--bowl of cereal around 11am, fiber one bar around 2pm, and then hit the gym for chest, triceps, forearms and an 8 minute mile. Dinner was a restricted portion of TheWife's ricotta gnocchi with fra diavolo sauce (I had to, or else she would have been pissed watching me make an omelet while her gnocchi was sitting there) and a muscle milk protein shake. All in all, likely well under 2,000 calories for the day with a solid workout at the gym; 10 minutes of abs before bed and today will be in the books. Tomorrow, we'll do cereal again in the morning, perhaps a turkey sandwich and baby carrots for lunch, cardio in the afternoon, and then an omelet with tomatoes, onions and mushrooms in the evening. Baby steps, headed back in the right direction.

Current weight: 190
Target weight: 180
Time Frame: 6 weeks