Let's get something straight.

I don't stretch enough.  Never have.  Probably never will.  I try.  I really do, but still, I don't stretch enough, and it's why I walk around like an old man some days.  I have problems with my hip flexors, and lower  back.  Oh yes, and the sinuses.  Let's not forget about those.  So, I'm guessing that running outdoors, on trails, is probably not the best thing I could be doing, but I love it.  I rarely listen to my iPod when I'm running trails.  For starters, it's not terribly safe. You can't hear mountain bikers or other runners coming up behind you, but also, there's something almost meditative about the crunch-crunch-crunch of my shoes as they hit the dirt.  My run today went all right, I guess, I got 7 miles in, but I certainly didn't threaten any records out there.  My legs were leaden in the beginning, but felt better as I went along.  I felt a bit winded too.  The weather fully cooperated with highs in the low 80's, and a gentle breeze.  It was gorgeous out there.  Not like the 4th of July.  Before an evening barbeque on the 4th I did a quick 5 miles on the roads, and it was in the low to mid 90's.  The most memorable thing about that run was the sideways look I got from a Hasidic Jew while I waited at a light and stretched.  He just could not figure me out, and understandably so.  I made for quite a sight.  Red hair sprouting from a visor, no shirt, (yes, I wore sunscreen) and a heart rate monitor strap around my chest.  Maybe he thought I was sporting some sort of running brassiere or something, "and for you full-figured runners, there's the new 18 hour jog bra!"

I finished the week with 23 miles which is the most, I think, since I was training for Big Sur before my sinus surgery.  About half this week's miles were run on the trails, so I'm happy about that.