I ran my hour and a half on Sunday as Siyabonga instructed me too. He's the expert and I have t listen to him if I want to progress in my training schedule.

At 6.15am I let the dogs out. I've been up since 5 am - before the birds started twittering and I'm feeling great! So I let the dogs out and my daughter's toy poodle, Oscar, takes a tumble down the retraining blocks in the garden. It seems as if he misjugded his footing and fell. I heard yelps and a thud and then he got up and ran to take care of his business. When I called him into the house afterwards, he had this weird look on his face like he was going to attack me and his nose was a bit bloody. Was he blaming me? He was also running sideways as if he'd hurt his pelvis. "Oh great," I think, "this would happen on the day of my next training session with Siyabonga. Anwya, Oscar being the roughneck tough poodle he is, rallies and he's fine by the time I leave for our run with Siy.

I warmed up for about 20 minutes - 10 mins running and 10 mins stretching - and by the time we meet with Siy I'm feeling good. I tell Siyabonga this and we start off running around the 'hood. Now Siy has been training me for 3 mins and walking for 1 min up to now, but today he decides to run me for 5 mins at a good clip before my rest, but doesn't tell me beforehand and I'm a bit miffed because I know something is up because I'm already cursing and hoping for my break. Me and my big mouth. The whole time I'm running with Siy and Paul I'm worried about my doggie.

About 10 mins into the run, my left calf muscle starts spasming. S**t, man, this is on level ground with nary a hill in sight and now this. So Siy shows me how to stretch on the run and we do this for about 4 minutes. No such luck - the calf muscle is being stubborn and so am I. I don't say anything to Siy and Paul and we move on.

My calf is hurting like hell, but I'm not going to wimp out and turn around while we're still in sight of the gym. No siree, I'm going to tough it out and finish the 7.5 kays. All the while I'm running I'm saying "there is no pain, there is no pain" but my calf is saying something else, if it could talk, it would be really swearing at me. I know if told Siy and Paul about it, they would've baby-ed me and taken me back to the gym. But I'm a tough chick and I want no pampering. So I soldier on. I finish the 7.5 kays and Siy stretches us at the gym and we get home. Oscar is fine, by the way.

Now my calf feels like there's a lead weight attached to it. I'm limping around the house as if I have a wooden leg. I'm icing it and Voltaren-ing it like mad. Elevating and the whole R-I-C-E treatment (rest, ice, elevation, compression) because I want to do my training run on Friday. I have from Wed pm to Frid am to get this sucker fixed.

Today I figured out that I'm either stubborn or stupid, probably both for running with a muscle spasm. But what the heck, at least I can train for this half marathon right - pain and all. There have been days I was in the throes of autism with my daughter - sleepless nights, tantrums, throwing things, peeing on the carpet, meltdowns in public, head butting me, perserveration until I went deaf - all within a morning, that I didn't even have time to think!!! So what's a little calf pain to get to my goal? I've confronted and accepted autism, stepped up to the plate, sucked it in, and took it on. I can do this half marathon. I will do it.

Autism never gives us a break no matter how crappy we feel. Autims doesn not listen to any excuses about how bad you feel today. Your child is infront of you needing you and you get to it, so there are no excuses for me not training and I soldier on.

The only easy day was yesterday.