DIAGNOSIS SO FAR...

FROZEN SHOULDER

WTF???

i don't even like my margaritas frozen!!! got x-rays yesterday and everything looked good to the doc except that i do have a small bone spur in my shoulder. he didn't think it was big enough to worry about for now, but eventually (the next 3 years or so) they'll have to SCRAPE IT OUT.

OH. HELL. NO.

then the doc asked me to try to move my shoulder. i laughed. mind you, every day i'm able to move my arm more and more, but still can't lift it even up past my shoulder let alone reach my head. which is why i'm rockin' a HUGE FRO right now. then HE tried to move it. he didn't laugh. really, it wasn't so much painful as just NOT GOING ANYWHERE. and the initial diagnosis was made: FROZEN SHOULDER. here's what the little pamphlet has to say:

"Known medically as 'adhesive capsulitis', it's a fairly common ailment - estimated to strike between 2-3 percent of the population, the vast majority women ages 40-60. Why the mystery? Nobody knows just what triggers frozen shoulder. It seems to strike out of the blue. Add the fact that 70 percent of patients are middle-aged women, and the specialists say hormones clearly pay some role but they don't know what."

middle-aged?? fuck you!! why don't i just shrivel up and get ready for menopause already!!!

so doc still wants an MRI to rule out anything else. going in tomorrow for that. and good news: I DON'T HAVE TO GET THE DYE INJECTION!!!!!

it was such a relief just to get some sort of diagnosis. afterwards, i stopped over at Griffith Park to meet up with fellow Iron Maidens, Juliet and Cindy, who were wrapping up their time trial ride. hey, if i can't work out with my crew, at least i can eat with them. i have to live vicariously through them 'til i can get back up to speed!! they were super positive and encouraging. "you can still do lower body work. you can still ride your trainer sitting up. at least you're spinning" and they're right. so right that i realized i had my gym bag in the back of the car, so i left them and went straight to the gym to do some lower body weights. plus, what would january 2nd be without a trip to the gym?? EVERYONE ELSE AND THEIR GRANDMA WILL BE THERE:


every window filled with a new years resolution
yes it's america's #1 new year's resolution: LOSE WEIGHT AND GET IN SHAPE. i laugh at how crazy the gym is the first week in january - all the freaks going too fast on the treadmill they can only last about 5 minutes, the super freaks letting out grunts in the weight room as if grunting helps shed that fat any faster. oh and my favorite was watching all the newbies stuck on, of all things, the drinking fountain. the drinking fountain on the 2nd flr. just outside the basketball court has a slight delay on it causing the water to still run for about 5 more seconds (super wasteful i know) after you release the handle. as i took water breaks in between sets, i musta caught five people standing there perplexed with the drinking fountain. all they could do was hit the handle again which further delayed the water. then would come the look of horror as they thought they'd broken it on their first day at the gym. i give 'em about 3 weeks tops, and then my gym will get back to normal. poor guys. i really shouldn't be so mean, but it just cracks me up. truth is, i was one of those newbies on more than one occasion. i can't even imagine how much money i've wasted on gym memberships i never used. i used to watch the LA Marathon every march on tv and then go out and buy some overpriced tennis shoes the following day and start "running." that would invariably last until about mid april, early may if i was really serious. so i really hope it sticks for some of those newbies, not all of 'em cuz that would just eat up too many dreadmills, but maybe one or two or three...

after the weights, i sat in the hot tub and did some more arm manipulations. went home and iced it and today, i'm feeling even better. good enough to maybe try some RUNNING. YESS!!!! i know, i know, i gotta go slow. my schedule has me doing 9 today, but as much as i wanna get right back up to speed, i don't wanna repeat the surfing incident (read post below), so i'm gonna go for 3 miles on the dreadmill tonight. let's hope there's not a line.....